Tag: National Parks

A Dream Vacatiopn to Tanzania & Zanzibar

Asante Sana Tanzania and Zanzibar, thank you for a fantastic experience. The two countries have been on my bucket list. Years ago, I saw a photo of a woman walking along the shore of the Indian Ocean. The beautiful colors of her dress and head scarf and the turquoise water drew me in. The photo […]

Color Peeping in Southern Utah

The desert southwest has a beauty all of its own. Crystalline blue skies hover above red rocks as cacti and palm trees stretch toward them. Desert dandelions and marigolds, California poppies and golden suncups, and desert lavender and sand verbena stand out against the terracotta and umber landscape in spring and summer. I lived almost […]

Exploring Southern Utah’s National Parks during Coronavirus

Stepping up to the edge of the precipice, there is nothing but air in the spectacular abyss known as the Grand Canyon. The shackles of months of coronavirus isolation seem to vanish in an instant. Glancing back, my 18-year-old cousin Charlie stands frozen five steps behind me with terror gripping his face. “You’re afraid of […]

Bedeviling Tasmania

Tucked away 150 miles south of mainland Australia, the island state of Tasmania too often is a travel adventure after-thought. Talk about a missed opportunity.   Superlatives come easily in “Tassie,” as its 500,000 residents call it, where the world’s tallest flowering trees shelter some of the planet’s oddest mammals. Even a short visit can yield […]

Cool, New Banff & Jasper Winter Adventures: Ice Climbing, Heli-Snowshoeing, Fat Biking

Move over skates and skis — winter adventures are gaining quick popularity thanks to cool new offerings in Canada’s National Parks.

Houseboating on Lake Powell

The car came to a stop throwing up dust on the dirt parking lot. It had been a 10-hour drive from San Diego and I could hear the complaining before the doors even opened.  Out of the hot car poured my young cousins: Matt, a typical hard-to-please 15-year-old; Charlie, a 10-year-old always buried in a […]

Volcanoes National Park: Big Hawaii

An Education in Volcanology in Hawaii’s Volcanoes National Park