It's the newest national park in the United States! Geologically though, the New River is actually one of the oldest rivers in the country as well. This Summer has been busy, and other than exploring very locally, we have not been able to venture far from home so far this year. But we were able …
Continue reading "New River Gorge National Park – A scenic weekend"
A hike at one of my favorite places on the Appalachian Trail. A 10 mile thru-hike around Smithsburg, MD to the Mason-Dixon Line.
After a month and a half of free-spirited travel across the US, through California and the Southwest, I found myself at a crossroads. I could start driving home and hit a few places on "my list" on the road east, or I could take a week to try and squeeze a few more places into …
Continue reading "Is it really time to go? – One last drive through the Southwest"
After almost 3 weeks along the California coast, it was finally time to drive to Vegas. It was a Tuesday and I had to be there Friday morning. No problem! What is on the way to Vegas? Well, Yosemite National Park is on the way (if you take a slightly longer route). Even though I …
Continue reading "The return inland – San Francisco to Vegas"
Last week, on Explores Inc. This is part 2 (or the return trip) from the Northern California coast drive. If you want to see how I got here, check out part 1 of the Northern California Coastal Drive, which covers the northbound trip from San Francisco. I don't have any pictures for the first few …
Continue reading "Can’t we stay a little longer? – Northern California coast – part 2"
Disclaimer What you are about to read is part 1 of a two-part series. Actually there is so much to write about, I didn't want you to feel like you were reading a book, so I divided my exploration of "NorCal" into a northbound journey, and the return southbound journey. If you really enjoy this …
Continue reading "Let’s keep going – Northern California coast – part 1"
After driving out of Sequoia National Park and through the Central Valley, I stopped in Paso Robles to get an early dinner at Jack in the Box and inquire about campground availability near the coast. The answer: there wasn't any. I called the San Simeon Creek Campground which would be the first one I passed …
Continue reading "That’s the California I know – Big Sur and the central coast"
It seems likes everything is bigger in the Sierra Nevadas. The highest mountain in the lower 48 states is in the Sierras. I think the biggest waterfall in the US is in the Sierras. And the biggest trees (by volume) are in the Sierras. While we were wrapping up our hike in the Hoover Wilderness, …
Continue reading "Big trees, mountains, and waterfalls – Central Sierra Nevada"
Gear list This post covers 5 days of backpacking in the Hoover Wilderness, part of Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. I divided up the days onto separate pages. This will also allow you to stop reading earlier if you tire of my tale since the pages will be shorter. I still hope you make it through the …
Continue reading "True Nature – 5 days in Hoover Wilderness"
After departing from Bodie, I stopped at the nearest active settlement: Bridgeport, CA. Bridgeport is a cool little town. There is not much going on, but Lenny (who I was meeting to backpack with in the Hoover Wilderness a few days later) recommended that I stop for a burger at The Barn. I was so …
Continue reading "The gifts of nature – Buckeye Hot Springs, CA"
I had a couple of days to kill before meeting my buddy Lenny and his west coast friends on the 4th of July for our backpacking trip through Stanislaus National Forest. One place on my list that happened to be nearby, is Bodie, California. Bodie is a California Gold Rush town located on the eastern …
After crossing into Nevada, I stopped at the gas station/hotel/restaurant just over the border. I had about a quarter of a tank of gas left, but the distances around these parts are awfully long. I wanted to make sure I wasn't stranded in the desert over the next two days. While I was filling up, …
