Posts & pictures of my adventures!
Friendship Hill and Fort Necessity - another 2 NPS sites

This was definitely a NPS-focused trip so I can mark off a bunch of NPS units, and this day was a three-fer. Friendship Hill NHS and Fort Necessity Nat'l Battlefield were the first two parks up for …
Yes, We Visited Another Mound...in Moundsville, WV

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, I don't really care for the mounds. My husband, however, was convinced he could find a mound in Moundsville, West Virginia, and he was not disappointed. He found the Grave …
Hopewell Culture NHP

I'm really not the biggest fan of ancient native mounds. So, I was less than thrilled about having to visit Hopewell Culture NHP. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the place, with …
U.S. Air Force Museum and Bockscar

Part of our Manhattan Project Quest is to see the actual Enola Gay and Bockscar, the two bombers that dropped the atom bombs on Japan to end WWII. We've already seen the Enola Gay, and now we are …
Dayton Aviation National Historical Park

After Wilbur and Orville Wright proved to the world that flight was possible in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, they returned to Dayton to improve their airplane and figure out how to fly for more than a …
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

When we were looking at things to do in Cincinnati, we discovered the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. So, after the baseball game, we still some time and were able to fit it into our …
Cincinnati Reds Baseball Game

Since we were in Cincinnati, and the Reds were playing at home, Scott worked going to a baseball game into our schedule. It was a beautiful day for a game.
Marking Off Two Ohio NPS sites

We had to cancel/postpone our planned Canadian Rockies trip due to some unexpected medical issues for Scott that precluded him from going to elevation for awhile. Instead, we changed our plans and …
Our Last Day in NE

Our last day in NE started with driving under the Archway that spans the old Oregon Trail. Then we found an interesting monument to the Oregon Trail travelers.
Our Second Full Day in NE

Our second full day in Nebraska found us driving back from the western part of the state to the eastern part - getting a bunch of new counties along the way. In usual fashion, we did find some …
Carhenge

Carhenge, modeled after Stonehenge in England, is a well-known roadside oddity in western Nebraska. I visited back in 2009, but Scott hadn’t gone yet. It’s at the end of the Sandhill Scenic Byway, so …
Sunflowers Everywhere!

This part of Nebraska is full of gorgeous sunflower. Both wild and planted.
Nebraska National Forest

Within the Sandhills area is the Nebraska National Forest, specifically the Bessey/Halsey area, which is best known for its hand-planted forest and the Bessey Nursery. According to the Forest …
The Nebraska Sandhills Area

The Nebraska Sandhills were our main focus on exploring this weekend (in addition to getting many new counties!) They “are a vast, grass-stabilized sand dune region in north-central Nebraska, …
Heading to Nebraska for a Weekend

Well, due to some unexpected heart issues for Scott earlier this month that precludes him from going to elevation for a short bit (he’s fine), Scott and I had to cancel our trip to the Canadian …
Dodgers Stadium

As part of my MLB stadiums quest, we spent the weekend in LA with our friends, the Hubbard’s, who were kind enough to bring us to a Dodgers game. Our friend Krista also joined in on the fun and we …
Nixon Library and Boyhood Home

For Scott’s quest to go to one site per President, we visited the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda, California. I thought it was a pretty well-done library with a lot of interpretation on the various …
everywhere in California

Although we got a California brewery for my Brewery-In-Every-State quest a long time ago, Southern California has so many good breweries that we always have to stop somewhere. And LA traffic really …
An Afternoon in Grand Teton National Park

After spending a Morning in Yellowstone National Park, we drove the outer look through Grand Tetons National Park in the afternoon.
A Morning in Yellowstone National Park

Since we revamped our trip to spend an unexpected night with our friends in West Yellowstone, we further revamped our trip to spend the next night in Driggs, Idaho, with some ASU tailgating friends. …
Spending an Unexpected Evening With Friends and a Montana Brewery

When Scott and I finished Craters of the Moon National Monument, we realized we were "ahead of schedule." We have some friends in West Yellowstone, Montana, who happened to be home for the evening. …
Craters of the Moon National Monument - BLM

While I have previously been to the portion of Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve managed by the National Park Service, I had not gone to the portion of the Monument managed by the …
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument

This Juneteenth Trip also allowed me to mark off another National Park Unit - Number 382 / 433! First we stopped at the two primary overlooks - the Snake River Overlook and the Oregon Trail Overlook.
Waterfalls in Southern Idaho

If you know Scott and I, you know that we love finding and photographing waterfalls on our trips. Our Utah/Idaho trip was no exception. We spent a good share of a day exploring some of the nice …
Evel Knievel Jump Site in Twin Falls

Since we were in the area, Scott wanted to go to the Even Knievel Jump Site where Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel attempted to jump over the Snake River Canyon - what he thought would be his most …
Koto Brewing - Idaho Brewery

Koto Brewing in Twin Falls, Idaho, was the Idaho brewery that I checked off on my Brewery-In-Every-State Quest. There were two really interesting parts to this brewery. First, they used the flooring …
Salmon Dam - Twin Falls Area

On our way from Wendover, Utah, to Twin Falls, Idaho, we stopped at Salmon Dam, just outside Twin Falls. The dam provided interesting views, but we loved the little waterfall next to the dam. It …
Historic Wendover Airfield - WWII

We visited the Historic Wendover Airfield in Wendover, Utah, as part of our Manhattan Project Quest. The Army Air Base was used as a major training facility during WWII for the Army's heavy bombers …
Bonneville Salt Flats

The first stop on our June 2025 trip to Utah and Idaho were the Bonneville Salt Flats, a densely packed salt pan west of Salt Lake City. These Salt Flats are where they run the land speed races and …
Frances Perkins National Monument

Our last stop of the trip before I had to fly home was Frances Perkins NM. Frances was the Secretary of Labor under FDR and was the first woman in a presidential cabinet. She was integral in passing …
New England National Scenic Trail

After spending the night with our friend in NY, we headed on to Connecticut. Not only did we mark off our last remaining county in CT, but we also did a short walk on the New England NST (my 380th …
Tunkhannock Viaduct

Supplementing Steamtown is this huge stone bridge, built to handle the huge steam engines going to and from Steamtown.
Steamtown NHS

On our way to see a friend in NY, we stopped by Steamtown NHS-my 379th NPS unit. Man, if you’re a train lover, this place is for you. Lots of steam trains and everything else you can imagine about …
Jim Thorpe’s Memorial and Grave

After spending my actual birthday with friends in Philly, we headed north, stopping at Jim Thorpe’s Memorial and Grave. Such a tremendous athlete-football, baseball, and Olympic events.
Hopewell Furnace NHS

This was our first stop on my birthday to mark off my 378th NPS unit. Hopewell Furnace is a well-preserved charcoal-fired iron furnace so important to the US in the late 1700s and throughout the …
Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School NM

Visited the Carlisle Federal Indian Boarding School today. Thousands of Native American children were forced to go to school in these Boarding Schools, where they were stripped of everything of their …
Brown v. Board of Education NHP

The first stop today was 3 sites associated with Brown v. Board of Education NHS sites. I never thought about this issue in states like Delaware and Pennsylvania, but it was. Clayton HS was an …