My top favorite trail I did in Petrified Forest National Park last fall was the Wilderness Route Loop through the Painted Desert. Actually, it’s not a trail at all; it’s loosely connected GPS coordinates that take you to some delightful…
Thompson Peak: The Highest Point in the Sawtooths
When I visited the Sawtooth Mountains last fall, I decided that we should save our last day to climb the highest point in the range – Thompson Peak. I printed trip reports off of the internet and it sounded fairly…
Grand Canyon Views at Jicarilla Point
I’m always on the lookout for cool new hikes in my favorite national parks. So I was super excited to read about hiking to Jicarilla Point, well west of Hermit’s Rest, on the rim of the Grand Canyon. It seemed…
La Boca Arch & Harold Arch
La Boca Arch (and its neighbor, Harold Arch) is often overlooked because it’s a long distance down a dirt road well outside of the typical parks near Moab, Utah. But if you happen to be in the area (say, to…
Yellowstone’s Chocolate Pots
The Chocolate Pots are an overlooked attraction between the Artist Paint Pots and Norris in Yellowstone National Park. In some ways, it makes sense that the overlook doesn’t even have a sign (it’s not that exciting!), but if you have…
Exploring the Painted Desert to Onyx Bridge
I’ve always thought of Petrified Forest National Park as a place of overlooks and quick trails – no way to get down into the Painted Desert or other areas of the park for a nice, long hike with interesting or…
Death Valley’s Hole in the Rock Spring
On our way down into the valley from Daylight Peak last fall, I stopped at the Corkscrew Peak Viewpoint to hike to Hole in the Rock Spring. I wasn’t expecting much – desert springs are more often jungles of brush…
Climbing up Observation Rock
One of the most beautiful (and adventurous!) hikes we took in the Maze District in Canyonlands was the scramble up Observation Rock. No trail leads to the summit; there’s not even a cairned route to its base. But the views…
Bell Canyon & Finishing the Little Wildhorse Canyon Loop
I wrote in another post about ascending Little Wildhorse Canyon in Utah’s San Rafael Swell. It’s a great canyon experience, with dryfalls, sculpted walls, rock formations, and more to explore. Most people (myself included) opt to do the hike as…
Little Wildhorse Canyon – A Fun Slot!
Little Wildhorse Canyon may be the most famous slot canyon in Utah. It’s certainly up there, along with Buckskin Gulch, Peek-a-boo and Spooky Slots, Kanarra Creek, and the Zion Narrows (which are unarguably the most famous and also not really…