Pompeys Pillar is a place I keep going back to. When I am in Montana it is one of the stops I end up making, and the reason is simple: it is an easy adventure with a lot of history in it. It sits just off I-94, about twenty-five miles east of Billings — a break in the [...]
I thought I knew a lot about the story of Harriet Tubman, but what I was taught was the tip of the iceberg. I'm so grateful for this park, and a place to go to learn more about her story, struggles, and major impact that she made on this country. The headquarters location is home to a Visitor Center [...]
Val-Kill cottage in Hyde Park, New York—Eleanor Roosevelt's personal refuge and the place she called her own. What to expect and stop at FDR Home next door.
I've dusted off journals to share more details about parks and attractions that I visited during my year-long sabbatical. In September 2020, I traveled from New York City north to Hyde Park, New York. It was challenging to be in New York City during Covid. When I caved and bought a car, it provided me with the freedom to [...]
I did not choose Death Valley. Death Valley was where I ended up. I had been in Zion and a rogue cold front was coming through. The advice I got was simple: go west. So I went west, and I arrived, and I was surrounded by gray rocks. There were no sites left in the regular campground, so [...]
I visited Craters of the Moon in June of 2021. At this point, I had been on the road for 5 months. The process of reserving a campsite, getting to locations, setting up, exploring, and taking camp down, had become routine. Or so I thought. This was yet another different experience. And with it came the stress and exhilaration [...]
Shenandoah National Park along the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia — seasonal guide, best hikes for every level, what to pack, and why you should get off Skyline Drive and onto the trails.
Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas — Bathhouse Row, the healing springs you can drink from, hiking trails, and why this is the most unusual park in the country. Everything you need to plan your visit.
Little Rock Central High School NHS — the only national park with a functioning school. The bus bench, the window exhibit, and why visiting while school is in session changes everything.
I walked out to the South Rim, saw the Grand Canyon for the first time in my life, and thought: yeah, that's what it looks like in the pictures. My own reaction surprised me. I had expected to be levelled by it. I have thought about it a lot since, and I do not think the problem was [...]
Yellowstone is my home park when I am out west. I have family close enough that I can pop in for a few hours whenever I want, and that is exactly what I do. In 2021 I used Big Sky, Montana as a base — about an hour from the West Entrance — and I went in over [...]
I have been to Mount Rushmore about half a dozen times. It is genuinely incredible to stand in front of. It is also very busy, and there is a lot going on — you arrive, you come through the gate, there are shops, and then there is a long walkway lined with flags leading you toward the mountain. [...]
Bryce Canyon was never going to be the visit. It was a stop. I was on my way to a much bigger trip — the Grand Canyon and Zion — and Bryce got a few hours in the middle of it, in early March. I knew going in that not much would be open. It was still the [...]
I took the detour off I-90 with my fingers crossed that it would even be open. This was January 2021. You could not assume anything was open, and I had no idea what I was going to be up against on access. I lucked out. I was driving west for the first time, on my way to Montana, [...]
