There really isn’t much to see at Ecola Point on the coast of Oregon in Ecola State Park. But if you need a place to have a meal with a picnic table for convenience, it’s a good place to do…
Climbing Pothole Dome – Easy Yosemite Hike
If you’re looking for a short little hike in Yosemite with terrific views – and a slight sense of adventure – check out Pothole Dome to the west of Tuolumne Meadows along the Tioga Pass Road. The trail is only…
5 Best Day Hikes in Bryce Canyon National Park
Rock Formations. Hoodoos. Creamsicles. Ever since our first visit to Bryce Canyon in 1997, it’s been one of our favorite parks in southern Utah, over Zion, Cedar Breaks, and Capitol Reef. It gets crowded these days, but it’s…
Overlook Death Valley & China Lake from Rogers Peak & Bennett Peak
If you happen to visit Death Valley in the spring, fall, or summer, you’ll probably want to get out of the valley as quickly as possible to escape the heat. The problem is that one of the few ways to…
Indian Rock: Day Hiking Yosemite’s Only Arch
On our recent visit to Yosemite, there were a few “must do” hikes on my list along the Tioga Road, namely, Cloud’s Rest and North Dome. Actually, the dome didn’t interest me as much as a photo I had seen…
Hiking Point Arena-Stornetta National Monument
If there is a more beautiful place on the California coast than Point Arena-Stornetta National Monument, I can’t imagine what it would look like. The trail through Point Arena-Stornetta takes day hikers through clifftop meadows of waving grasses and wildflowers…
Sneak Peak: A California Trip through Desert and Snow
Well, I just got back from a fantastic trip to California! We saw the desert, and we saw snow (lots of snow!), not to mention some truly fabulous views of mountains, cliffs, slot canyons, salt flats, and the beautiful NorCal…
Arch Rock Picnic Area: Sea Stacks in Oregon
Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor really is unique and beautiful, even among the beauty of the rest of the Oregon coastline. I didn’t do half as much there as I could have; just some exploration around the Natural Bridges…
Terrifying Trails of the Western US
Hiking any trail can have its frightful aspects – walking away from civilization and the comfort of your car and into the unknown wilds of who-knows-where (not to mention scary stuff like spiders, snakes, bears, wolves, and sheer drop-offs). But…
Epic Day Hiking Road Trip to Southern Utah
Southern Utah packs so much beauty into a small area. Arches, rock formations, turrets, towers, spires, mountains, canyons, cliffs, meadows – there’s so much to see, and often so little time to do it. So here are some of the…