If you can do one trail near Mammoth Lakes, CA, Duck Pass certainly should rank high on your list of possibilities. The trail passes by several lakes between mountains before ascending to an 10,800ft. pass overlooking the valley you just…
Walking the Zion Narrows
I first did the Zion Narrows in 1997. Or, should I say, I first set foot in the Virgin River in 1997, and we went around the first bend and turned around. The kids were too young; one of the…
Evening at Badwater Basin
We were crazy to go to Badwater Basin in the middle of June the week after record-breaking high temperatures in California. We knew we were crazy. But we also wanted to hike Telescope Peak, and since we had to travel…
Views of Cannon Beach at Ecola State Park
There really isn’t much to see at Ecola Point on the coast of Oregon in Ecola State Park. But if you need a place to have a meal with a picnic table for convenience, it’s a good place to do…
Climbing Pothole Dome – Easy Yosemite Hike
If you’re looking for a short little hike in Yosemite with terrific views – and a slight sense of adventure – check out Pothole Dome to the west of Tuolumne Meadows along the Tioga Pass Road. The trail is only…
Climbing Telescope Peak!
It’s not gorgeous, it’s not all that tall, and it’s not all that easy. So why climb Telescope Peak in Death Valley National Park? One reason is bragging rights: It’s quite something to say you’ve been to both the lowest…
Overlook Death Valley & China Lake from Rogers Peak & Bennett Peak
If you happen to visit Death Valley in the spring, fall, or summer, you’ll probably want to get out of the valley as quickly as possible to escape the heat. The problem is that one of the few ways to…
Rustic Trail North from Glass Beach – Beautiful!
If you want a rustic, realistic coastal trail experience near Fort Bragg (or want a more natural, realistic walk from Glass Beach), I highly recommend the near-social trail that extends north from Glass Beach along the bluff tops to the…
The “Hard” Trail from Glass Beach
Two sections of trail currently strike off from Glass Beach in the town of Fort Bragg, California. After you’ve seen the glass on the beach, you might as well take the “Hard Trail” south along the top of the headlands…
Visiting Sea Glass at Glass Beach
A couple years ago, I saw a picture of beautiful sea glass with the ocean behind. The caption explained that this was Glass Beach, in Fort Bragg, California. I was disappointed to find Fort Bragg so far south, my intent…