Last summer I was offered an opportunity to visit one of the few national parks in California I had yet to visit, the Channel Islands. Upon looking at the itinerary I noticed that an entire day was dedicated to kayaking…
Lassen Volcanic National Park is one of California's least visited parks. It is located about 5 hours north of the Bay Area, 3 hours north of Sacramento and 1.5 hours east of Redding. It's location is most of the reason…
One of our favorite summer trips, with the best hike ever was to Zion National Park. This is one of Utah's most visited parks and for good reason - it is an amazingly immersive experience whether you stay inside the…
One of the biggest attractions for visitors to Alaska is to see wildlife in their natural habitat. This can be achieved almost everywhere in Alaska from seeing a bald eagle fly overhead in Anchorage to hiking with moose at Flattop Mountain.…
California is home to 28 national parks and sites scattered throughout the state. From the iconic Half Dome in Yosemite, to the desolate in Death Valley and the big trees in the North at the Redwoods, there is no shortage…
Visiting the Grand Canyon is often high on travelers’ bucket lists. Part of the Grand Canyon makes up one of the most famous of all the US’s national parks, while other sections are located on lands still owned by Native…
If you are like most people, you have heard of the Mojave Desert, but your association might be limited to images of barren landscapes dotted with military bases. The Mojave definitely represents some of this, but it also has so much…
One of our main reasons for our recent visit to Tucson was to explore Saguaro National Park. And to get a other junior ranger badge of course! Reading the name saguaro, you might not know exactly what it is (or even…
If you follow us regularly, you know we are national park obsessed. But it's not just nature parks that we love to go to, we also enjoy visiting many of the monuments and historic sites that are part of the…
One of the best places in Southern California for star gazing is in and around Joshua Tree. We have been out several times specifically to do this, but only recently learned about the Sky's the Limit Observatory in 29 Palms.…
We have been to Joshua tree too many times to count, but we continue to find new areas to explore. On my most recent trip, I had the opportunity to stay in Twentynine Palms near the Oasis of Mara entrance.…
I have been to Joshua Tree many times, and while there is still a ton to explore on my own, I was excited to get off the beaten path with Joshua Tree Excursions during my last visit. Joshua Tree Excursions is…
Last summer we took a 10 day road trip through Arizona and Utah with our family friends from Texas. While researching that trip I came across Dinosaur National Monument in northern Utah and western Colorado. We weren’t planning to be…
The Bay Area is one of my favorite places on earth. Not just because I lived there for almost a decade, but because no matter where you turn you are surrounded by so much beauty. The abundance of beautiful scenery,…
Many famous and well visited tourist sites in the US are classified under the national park system, however, most visitors don't even realize it. Monuments, places of historical significance and battlefields are just some of the types of places you…
A visit to the Big Island of Hawaii isn't complete without a trip to the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Having the opportunity to see a real live active volcano in person was one of the main reasons in going to Hawaii…
In celebration of the 100th year of the National Park Service, I will post at least once a month in some way relating to our wonderful national park system to help bring awareness to an awesome part of our country that is…
America's national park system is one of the greatest assets we have in this country, and is often the most underutilized. Growing up I never stepped foot in a national park. I didn't even know anything about them until I…
Road tripping is the quintessential American summer vacation. We joined the masses this year with a 10 day road trip through Arizona and Utah. Every year, (OK, this is only year 2, but we hope it continues for many years to come!), we…
One of the main reasons we chose the Big Island over the other Hawaiian Islands was to visit Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. My son had seen a brochure about the park at a friend's house last summer and has wanted to go…