This section follows along on the longer trips that I take, especially the more recent or consequential ones.
For a listing of all my various trips, check out the My Travel page. That listing also links to summary pages for many of the trips, which usually includes where we went, links to pictures, and even some commentary about the trip. Sorry—this unfortunate separation is an artifact of changing blog goals over time.
If you’re interested in my shorter adventures, head over to the Outings topic instead.
Since its purchase in 2006, my Subaru Forester—named Betsy—has been a constant companion in my quest to visit every national park unit. The vehicle has transported Kim and I on some of our best road trips, whether that’s our Great American Roadtrip in 2007, our wedding post-wedding roadtrip in 2008, or many others. There have … Read more
One of the natural features I often enjoy visiting on my travels are caves. I’m not a caver, but I seem to find myself in many places that have caves and cave tours, and it’s rare for me to pass up an opportunity to explore yet another one. In fact, I’ve been to more than … Read more
In addition to the cool national parks I visited in 2010, I also managed to make it to a few other notable places. Many of the places were part of work trips or extra days I added on to work trips—it’s nice having a job that gets you to such awesome locales. Here’s a short … Read more
It was February 2009 when Kim and I brought friends Victoria and Terry on a short roadtrip to California. Our primary destination was Mojave National Preserve, a national park unit tucked away between I-15 and I-40 near the borders of California, Nevada, and Arizona. It was a first visit for Kim and I, who had … Read more
2010 was an uncommon year for me in my national park quest. For years and years, Kim and I would have gone on several trips each year, all with the sole purpose of marking dozens of parks off of our list. This year, things had changed. Even so, I was able to make it to … Read more
I belatedly realized that I hadn’t posted a summary of our Bayou roadtrip yet. Well, here it is. We drove 4,106 miles through 5 states in 11 days to see 11 parks, plus spend New Years Eve in the French Quarter of New Orleans. In doing so, we finished off the states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, … Read more
On the heels of news of more state park closures, I figured I should out myself as a mediocre park visitor. The truth is, despite being a native Arizonan, I’ve only visited about half of our state parks. In my defense, I’m not a boater and have thus avoided water-related parks, and my national park … Read more
It feels like we’re being unfaithful. In less than 72 hours, Kim and I will be departing on another of our national park roadtrips. It’ll be the first time we’ll be roadtripping sans Forester since we got her. It feels a little weird. It’s the right decision to leave her at home – she’s in … Read more
It’s nearly the holidays, and that means that Kim and I are planning another roadtrip. Usually, this trip is half-planned for us: it’s often centered around which bowl game ASU will be playing in. Sadly, that hasn’t been the case the last couple of years. Last year, we took advantage of the planning freedom afforded … Read more
We’re back from our Texas Roadtrip. While it wasn’t quite what we had originally planned – we ditched the camping entirely, for instance – we still had a good time and managed to see quite a bit. A few observations gleaned from our trip: It’s great to get back a day early, so you have … Read more