Pioneers of the Trail
I spent several months walking the Oregon Trail when I was five and I flew over it in several hours when I was a senior citizen. Jacob Butts 1840-1925 The pioneers that traveled the Oregon Trail were hardy people. Much hardier–than us. Earlier this year we read a book about two brothers who retraced the […]
Land of Two Thousand Arches
In a world that is becoming increasingly virtual, the parks remain places of visceral beauty. Nevada Barr, American Author You may not have been there yourself, but you’ve undoubtedly seen pictures of Arches National Park. On our current journey through the southwestern US we managed to spend two days hiking through this unique area, located near […]
The Austin Texas Snipe Hunt
We love to check out unique local adventures during our travels. During a week in Austin we took a tour up in the University of Texas tower, visited the LBJ Presidential Library, worked on a house build with the local Habitat for Humanity chapter, and…may have engaged in a local “snipe hunt.”* According to local lore, a million […]
The Secret Caverns
An hour east of Tucson there is a unique set of caves in Kartchner Caverns State Park. This Arizona state park was created in 1988 to preserve these caverns in as pristine state as possible. Local cavers, Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts, discovered the caverns in 1974. They kept the location secret and explored them […]
Snoozing in Saint Patrick’s
While living in Dublin in 2016, we heard an interesting story at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral about Jonathan Swift. Swift, the well-known author of Gulliver’s Travels and A Modest Proposal served as the dean of the iconic cathedral from 1713 until he passed in 1745. Seems that during his sermons, Swift would be pushed around in a mobile pulpit which was mounted […]
“Saddling” up on the Oregon Trail?
Great stories often inspire personal adventures. When Laurie and I watched the movie The Way about a man who hiked the Camino de Santiago across Spain, she said, “That’s how I want to start retirement.” In April of 2016 we started our life on the road with the 500-mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage. Recently we listened […]
An Unplanned Gem: Antelope Canyon
One of the best ways Dennis and I have found to discover an unexpected treasure is to listen to what people we meet say their best finds are. A recent example of this was when Grace and Jake, the couple we hiked The Wave with, told us about their experience doing the Lower Antelope Canyon tour. Originally, […]
Winning the Lottery: The Wave
Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit. Edward Abbey One hundred and two applicants–all vying for only thirty spots. It was the largest group of the year applying in person to be able to hike into the Coyote Buttes North wilderness—better known as “The Wave.” Even though it was a frigid […]
A Stop in Death Valley
“Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.” Anonymous “So, you brought this wet weather.” Outside, rain was falling on the driest and hottest National Park in the United States. When we told the ranger at the visitor’s center we were from Seattle, she blamed us. Yeah, we’re used to it. When I was […]
An Unplanned Stop
Every cloud has a silver lining John Milton Our world is full of so many great places that it’s impossible to experience them all in a lifetime. On Friday, we would have driven by one such great place—except that our Subaru broke down in Yreka, California, just over the border from Oregon. We had it […]
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