Photo Blog with Waterfalls, Hiking, Outdoors, and other Adventures
Awoke before sunrise ready to stretch my legs a bit. The park newspaper gave suggestions for ideal sunrise viewing and I chose Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes. Left the campground and started my drive. Mountains encapsulate the area in all directions like a bowl. Besides one couple, I was the only other early bird here. You can … Read more
After leaving Artists Drive I didn’t have much daylight left but it still felt too early to call it a day. What to do next? A quick read of the park’s newspaper pointed me to Zabriskie Point which they claim is the best place to watch both sunrise & sunset in all of Death Valley. … Read more
Generally when I take these last-minute trips where I’ve done little to no planning, my first destination is always something “easy” to get things started. Today that location was Artists Drive which is located only about 10 miles south from the campground. (Important: Don’t forget to click the photos for a full-size image!) Located in … Read more
I’m posting out of order today in honor of the #optoutside movement started by REI to encourage people to skip the evil that is Black Friday shopping and instead get outdoors. Luckily today in Wisconsin we had a mini heat wave and tied record highs around 65 degrees which made it an easy choice! Before … Read more
Last stop for this Tennessee journey was Piney Falls State Natural Area. After leaving Ozone Falls I had almost no cell service and had to rely on loose notes & Google map printouts. Took a chance and eventually found the trailhead – no surprise, with sunset looming I was the only one here. The start of the … Read more
Time was moving quickly today, and the sun was getting noticeably lower on the horizon. Next stop was Ozone Falls State Natural Area, a smaller park with a tall waterfall. I visited the lower section via the Plunge Pool Trail. Along the way, there is a cave eroded in the cliffs called Gambler’s Den with … Read more
There are no shortages of hikes or waterfalls in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and luckily my next stop wasn’t far after leaving Cataract Falls. Only several miles up the road, Laurel Falls is another popular short day hike. Parking at the trail head was a battle – likely due to the Thanksgiving holiday and kids … Read more
Left Newport this morning and bid Kelly farewell; she was heading east for work and I had to go west for tomorrow’s outbound flight. Sunshine and 40 degree temps made for excellent hiking weather (something we could have used the last few days). Oh well, onward to make the most of my limited time here! … Read more
Woke up and left Gatlinburg with some time for day hiking before the next destination. Cold and wet weather killed most of our planned hikes, but we decided to try our luck on Max Patch, one of the most popular viewpoints along the Appalachian Trail. Remember that smoky fog from yesterday? Well that doesn’t look too … Read more
Several days into the trip and we finally made it to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. First stop was Clingmans Dome, the highest point in Tennessee and the infamous Appalachian Trail. Views here looking over the mountain range are normally quite amazing, however today Mother Nature had other plans. Driving up the 7 mile … Read more