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Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon
  • Erica Cromwell
  • David Conklin

Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

10,000+ miles, 2 adults, 300 lbs of dog. What could go wrong?? Let the adventure begin! Read more
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  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Salmon Arm, BC

    July 9, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 95 °F

    We drove 140 miles to Salmon Arm, BC along Shuswap lake for 3 nights. Along the way we learned about the importance of salmon from our Guide Along app and enjoyed the scenery. Our new campground is small but peaceful other than the highway noise. A delicious dinner was enjoyed with the pups followed by relaxing by the community fire pit. They announced that fires will be banned starting in 2 days and will likely last the rest of our Canadian trip. Our bodies needed some recooperation so we mostly rested and then drove around a bit. Our camp hosts directed us to some lovely wineries, and then on our last full day we did decide to do a hike. Enderby cliffs was maybe not my favorite hike of all time, but was certainly worth doing. Between my legs starting tired and sore from a workout the day before, the temperatures climbing into the 90s early in the morning, and a decent amount of elevation gain with less payoff than were used to…I’ve definitely become a spoiled hiker. After appreciating the views we enjoyed a relaxing evening with the pups. British Columbia is now under a fire ban, so our fire nights are gone for now. It was nice while it lasted.Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Valhalla Provincial Park part 1

    July 13, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

    We drove 175 miles from Salmon Arm to Summit Lake, BC including a ferry! (A first for the camper and the pups). Camp Valhalla is situated right on Summit Lake, a quiet and crystal clear lake that almost feels like a private space. So serene.

    Our first full day we had another doozy of a hike. Gimli Ridge takes you up to Gimli Peak in Valhalla Provincial Park. The drive there is half the adventure and only advisable with 4 wheel drive and good clearance. Then it’s almost immediately a steep incline that is relentless the entire 3 miles out. The last half mile is scrambling/bouldering on loose rocks, from pea size gravel/sand to massive boulders. Somewhat terrifying considering this is a not super stable landslide area. All worth it to have the nearly 360 views from the ridge. The alpine lake was still iced over but we enjoyed the hike overall. The 2800 ft of elevation gain made for an exhausting day so we headed into the nearest town, Nakusp, for a delicious dinner and hung with the pups to end the day.

    Our second day we had a slower start and enjoyed a good morning with the pups and coffee on the dock at the campground. Then we headed to Wilson Creek falls which was still a good amount of elevation gain but blissfully short compared to our recent hikes. The temperature change was so abrupt when you approached the falls that it felt like walking through a door into AC. Well, wet AC since the mist was blowing everywhere. The waterfall was very impressive and perfect for a hot day. It’s still been in the mid 90s and is supposed to get even hotter over the next couple days.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Valhalla part 2

    July 16, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    Our third and last full day we decided on another alpine hike to beautiful lakes. Gwillim lakes is one of the most renown in the area and takes you past 3 beautiful lakes in 7 miles and 2500 ft of elevation gain. This was probably the buggiest hike we’ve done. Started the day off with a 3:30 am wake up call to try to hit the cooler part of the day for the big inclines. GPS said it would take 1 hour 50 minutes to get to the trailhead but turned into 3 hours when the last 40 km (25 miles) was dirt road and kept getting worse and worse. Thank goodness for a great driver (Dave), and high clearance. We met 2 logging trucks on the road which is not what we wanted. Luckily there were narrow pull offs at both points and the truck drivers were really maneuverable. We saw a few deer and what may have been elk hoofprints. The mosquitos and horse flies were brutal, even with both of us soaked in backwoods spray. Dipping our shirts and hats in the icy water helped keep us cool on the way back and we were able to try out our new food thermos for a warm meal before heading back down. Overall, a very long day followed by a partially failed search for a magnet in 4 towns. The beauty and serenity of this area make it easy to see why it was named Valhalla.

    Our last morning at Camp Valhalla we were able to check out a little late from our campsite so decided to take advantage and get another swim/paddleboard in. Finally made a full mile (1760 yards) which I haven’t done in 5 years. We played around with some photos/videos since it was a leisurely swim. We’re going to miss the easy access to crystal clear water surrounded by the mountains. We saw hundreds of tadpoles at the beginning and end which was neat.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Revelstoke

    July 18, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    We spent a week in Revelstoke, British Columbia and it quickly became one of our favorite places on the trip. Quieter than Whistler, but still close to amazing hikes and the quaint downtown had several amazing restaurants and bars to check out. The smoke definitely set in while we were here, and combined with temperatures over 100 degrees most days it changed a lot of our hiking plans. The first full day we chose a very steep but short hike called Hermit trail in Glacier National Park (we didn’t even know before planning this trip that Canada has a Glacier NP, too!). The sign at the trailhead stated “this is the steepest trail in a park known for its steep trails” and boy was it right! The climb was brutal (4.4 miles round trip with 2730 ft of elevation gain) but the views were phenomenal. And we were glad we did it since the smoke came in much heavier the next day.

    Friday came with heavy smoke we drove along the Sunshine Meadows parkway in Mt Revelstoke National Park. The wildflowers were starting to bloom but weren’t at peak yet, not surprising since the parkway was closed until a week prior from the winter snowpack.

    Saturday we enjoyed the farmers market and shopping around the downtown revelstoke area. Sunday was spent hiking along rolling hills on a 10 mile stroll through Mt Revelstoke NP to two alpine lakes. Thank goodness they were cold so we could dip out hats in the 100 degree weather.

    Sunday was still thick smoke so we chose short hikes in Glacier NP to waterfalls and through fern lined giant trees. It was nice to do some shorter hikes with rest between.

    Monday we planned on going to the mountain resort early but the town along with our campground lost power. Luckily it was the coolest morning we had all week but we couldn’t leave until we knew the power was on and stable for the pups. Finally at 11am it came back and we could be on our way. The Revelstoke mountain resort has multiple activities, including 2 mountain coaster tracks, axe throwing, and gondolas you can take to multiple levels. We enjoyed all of it, but unfortunately the smoke came back in the valley as we were up top.

    Tuesday was our last full day in the area and although we had hoped the smoke would clear it just wasn’t going to. We had been saving Abbotts ridge hike for a clear day but we did it anyway. It’s one that requires at least a group of 4 people due to bear activity (a momma grizzly and 2 cubs) so we found another group of 2 on AllTrails to meet up with. They were very nice girls and we had a great morning overall. In 7.5 miles round trip we climbed 3300 ft which actually didn’t feel too bad. The views would have been spectacular if the smoke would have cleared. It’s definitely a hike that’s high on our list if we get to come back to this area.

    Overall it was an amazing week despite the smoke, heat, and mosquitos that tried their hardest to carry us and the dogs away. We will definitely return to this area!    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Abraham Lake

    July 26, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 52 °F

    We had a great time driving the 212 miles from Revelstoke to Abraham Lake because of the views and wildlife. Less smoke from the nights rain definitely helped. We saw big horn sheep, our 7th black bear (didn’t get a great photo) and A GRIZZLY. It was a young grizz but the situation was perfect since we could observe it from the safety of the truck. The dogs didn’t know what to think of it but definitely gruffled. We also were able to stop at Bow Lake, another glacier fed turquoise lake. When the sun broke through the clouds a few times the color was spectacular! Some say the icefield parkway (which includes Bow lake and several other amazing spots is the most beautiful drive in the world. Every bend you see more majestic mountains and glaciers or ice fields. We learned that glaciers move like a slow river, and ice fields are stationary like a pond. Always learning! We also drove through Yoho and Banff national parks (our 3rd and 4th Canadian NPs) on our way to Abraham Lake. Along the way we learned that “Yoho” is a First Nations word that loosely translates to “wow!”

    Our first full day we went for the hardest hike on our list while here. We knew Vision Quest was rated as a scramble but didn’t know that meant the entire way (usually it’s just the last little bit on most hikes rated this). We made it a little over halfway but the 33%+ grade on loose, unstable rock made it very slow going and once it became super loose rock/skreet we called it and turned back. The way down was much more dangerous and overall I’m glad we turned back. The views of Abraham Lake which glowed turquoise were worth it, especially with a few breaks in the clouds for the sun to hit.

    Then we headed out to the ice fields parkway again and stopped at Waterfowl lakes on the way to Peyto lake. Peyto lake is known as the brightest lake in this area and even without the sun shining it truly was the brightest lake we’ve seen. The short hike up includes mostly paved trails with a short jaunt on some dirt paths with multiple overlooks. Our original plan was to stay for sunset (which isn’t until 9:45pm here) but the clouds looked unrelenting instead of breaking at 8pm as predicted. It was so nice to have an area to ourselves that normally is one of the busiest on the parkway.

    The next day the smoke started to come in a little, so we decided to do some shorter hikes. We started with Siffleur falls, a fairly flat and beautiful hike. It was 4.5 miles but only 480 ft of elevation change which felt so nice compared to the steep ones we’ve done recently. Unfortunately there were so many people not following safety rules in bear country and around the waterfall so we headed back after enjoying the views for a bit. At the suspension bridge and only a quarter mile from the parking lot, people stopped us due to a grizzly being spotted in the trees on the other side of the bridge. We stopped for a bit then as a group made it through to the other side. Once in the truck we drove towards our next hike and saw the grizzly again in a safe environment. It might be the same one from the other day, but the ranger said there are a couple around the same age.

    We drove back to the icefield parkway and hiked Mistaya canyon. A short jaunt at 0.9 miles that features a sturdy bridge and a close up of the canyon carved by the raging waters.

    After playing with the pups for awhile we headed to dinner at the next lodge over. While the entrance was a bit confusing (it was like going into a family’s house with kids shoes to step over, the vacuum out, etc) we were led to a beautiful back deck with a great view. The staff and menu were superb and everything was delicious. One of the best meals we’ve had and definitely surprising in this rural of an area. After dinner we walked down to the cove overlook and saw an osprey catch a fish, then fly right overhead. Overall another amazing day.

    We planned to start the next day at sunrise but then decided to sleep in a bit instead which ended up being a good thing because our timing with seeing a black bear (our 8th) along the road was perfect. We originally planned on hiking Glacier Lakes but a park ranger recommended Bow Glacier Falls instead. We’re really glad she did since it was a perfect hike. It was 6.3 miles and only 1000 ft of elevation gain which was a really nice change of pace for us. You’re along the beautiful turquoise Bow Lake the first ⅔ of the hike, and then hike up to a large waterfall. Bow Glacier falls is the start of the Bow River which feeds one of the largest watersheds in the country.

    We left the falls area since there were some people acting irresponsible. There were quite a few people traversing wet rock without sure footing, and a guy who somehow came up the opposite side of the ridge and scrambled down. How he managed the skreet and sheer slopes is mind boggling, but regardless was a huge risk when this area needs no rescues at this time. First responders and helicopters are busy with the several wildfires, and the parks system specifically asked people to be extra safe so they don’t have to take time away from the fires to come to the aid of visitors.

    Our last full day turned into a bit more adventure than we planned. The first hike to Crescent falls was supposed to be a 0.5 mile round trip but was about 1.25 due to the lower parking lot being not a parking lot at all. Overall still an amazing hike with beautiful platforms and stairs leading down to a few spots to enjoy the double falls. The uphill back to the parking lot wasn’t too bad since it was short and a cooler day.

    Next we headed to Whitegoat falls. This was close to our campground and only 2 miles, what could go wrong? A landslide had ruined part of the trail so someone made makeshift ropes to help you descend the sheer cliff with loose dirt and rock to the base of the falls. What looked like one rope section turned into 3. Maybe a bit more adventure than we planned, but once done the rest of the trail felt like a breeze. The falls were beautiful and cut through the rock nicely.

    After spending lots of time with the pups and doing chores we heard there was a chance of a geomagnetic storm! We had a good spot picked on the edge of the campground but it was a low chance of seeing them due to clouds, smoke, and the fact it only stays dark here for about 5 hours. We didn’t really sleep and headed to the spot around 1am. We were able to see the aurora borealis a bit between the clouds and smoke, and an extra bonus of seeing 6 meteors! After two hours in the cold, smoke, and high winds whipping around us, we decided to call it a night. This area was so peaceful and beautiful, another great stop on this trip!    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Lake Louise-Takakkaw Falls & Lake Agnes

    August 1, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    We drove 79 miles from Abraham lake to our Lake Louise campground. This is one of the most beautiful areas in the world and can be quite busy in the summer months. We luckily are fine with waking early and hiking further in to reduce getting caught in the worst of the crowds. We enjoyed the wild beauty of the Canadian Rockies including massive waterfalls such as Takakkaw falls in Yoho National park and spending lots of time in the mountains.

    Lake Louise is a bright turquoise glacier fed lake with a beautiful hotel along the shores. Because it has become so popular it is difficult and expensive to park at the lake, but there is a shuttle system that you can purchase from a local ski lodge. We enjoyed hiking from Lake Louise up to Lake Agnes which had a teahouse to purchase beverages and pastries from. We ordered tea biscuits and a fudge bar along with a lemon-raspberry tea. We continued on to the Big Beehive portion of the trail, a section with several steep switchbacks followed by a ridge section that offered beautiful views looking down at Lake Louise. Then it was time for some downhill, yay! We connected over to the Plain of Six Glaciers trail and started to ascend again, this time less steep but no shade for several hours. Luckily there was another tea house and we had a light lunch which was delicious. Overall, an amazing day with the hike totaling 12.25 miles and 3700 ft of elevation gain. Phew!    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Moraine Lake

    August 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F

    A 3 am wake up call was so worth it to see Moraine Lake for sunrise. These tickets are pretty hard to get and sell out quickly. We were lucky to also be on the first bus which gave us the ability to pick where we wanted to sit first. Although some people still climbed down in front of us, overall we were lucky to have a mostly clear view of a spectacular sunrise. The mountains light up a brilliant gold-pink and the reflection on the turquoise water was pristine this morning. We could not have asked for much better conditions. Plus we had great sitting neighbors from the UK that helped us heckle/shame people for going lower and ruining everyone’s photos.

    Another day we drove to Two Jack lake and Lake Minnewanka which are very busy with people kayaking, hiking, and picnicking. We drove into the town of Banff (about 40 minutes from Banff national park) and enjoyed several locations on different days for food and beverages. Once parked the town is easy to walk along but becomes extremely packed with tourists around meal times. We tried mostly going during off times and that worked out well.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Emerald Lake, Moraine Lake, Banff

    August 4, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F

    Another early morning wake up call to get to Emerald Lake in Yoho national Park before parking filled up. We arrived at 6:30 and by 6:45 the parking lot was full. We enjoyed the last of the sunrise colors above the beautiful glassy lake reflection. Glacial silt reflects blue spectrum colors more than any other, which is why it’s such a bright turquoise color along with many lakes in this area of the world. We hiked around the lake and were rewarded with views of a bald eagle and a few loons with a baby (sound on for the video to hear it’s beautiful call). Then it was time to hop in line for the canoes rental which opened at 10am. Canoeing on any of these lakes requires a lot of patience and waiting but is well worth the effort and cost with the peacefulness and beauty found in the middle and far ends of the lake. You cannot bring your own watercraft to this lake since the national park system is trying to decrease invasive species from entering different lakes. We loved the canoe experience we had and headed out before the area became too crowded.

    We stopped at Morants Curve on the way home, a famous stretch of the CPR (Canada pacific railway) that features a S curve along the turquoise bow river with the mountains in the background. When the CPR was trying to entice visitors to come to the area, a photographer by the name of Nicholas Morant was hired to take beautiful photos. His capture of the freight trains at this spot was one of his most successful and the site is named after him. The trains run in either direction along this part of the single track every 15-20 minutes or sometimes every few hours.

    We had our most brutal early wake up call. I don’t know if I’ve set my alarm for a number beginning with “1” much in my life, and I don’t really intend to anytime soon. Moraine lake sunrise shuttles are really hard to secure so we felt we should at least try since we had a second shuttle secured through Parks Canada. It stormed most of the night and as we were getting ready for the day, but we forged ahead hoping the weather would clear enough for some sunrise light. It cleared to the point of not raining (which we were thankful for), but not enough for any pictures of the mountains lighting up like they did Friday. It just made us more thankful for our Friday experience. We originally planned on hiking Sentinel Pass at Moraine Lake while we were there, but with how much it rained I was nervous what the steep terrain would be like so we nixed it and headed to Lake Louise via the connector shuttle. On the way we spotted our 12th black bear along the road! We love seeing all the wildlife here.

    We arrived to Lake Louise at 7:30 to blue skies and after dropping off our permit and inflating our kayak, we headed down to the lakeshore for her maiden voyage. As we walked down to the lake it was clouding up a bit, and by the time we arrived at the lakeshore again at 8:15 it was foggy. No big deal for us, we had witnessed the majesty of the mountains already and really just wanted to kayak. As we set her in the water, a peal of thunder sounded. We paused and discussed what we should do, and decided to at least get on the water for a little while as maybe it was a stray thunder. Within the first few minutes we quickly realized a severe storm was cresting the mountains with frequent lightning so we turned back. We quickly returned to the dock and were able to get out of the water as the lightning grew near continuous and sheets of rain came through. We were prepared with our rain jackets on and phone in the ziplock bag but so many other people were not. So we headed back to the truck with the kayak to reassess the weather and realized the storm was only growing as it hit the mountains. Our maiden voyage lasted approximately 4 minutes but we had a good time while it lasted 😂 the storm was also hitting Moraine Lake, and if we had decided to go ahead with the hike we would have been in a very dangerous situation. We were very thankful we stayed safe overall.

    After cleaning up and drying off we headed to Banff with Mickey. We left Lake Louise to 50 degree weather and still raining. We should have checked the weather in Banff because it was almost 80 and sunny. This is why you should always have layers in the mountains. We made our way to Park Distillery since we knew they were big dog friendly, but didn’t realize only a few tables were allowed to have dogs at them. They had issues with servers tripping over dogs in the past, so it made sense that they designated certain tables to avoid that. It made for a perfect spot once one opened up, and Mickey received lots of attention and love as always. He also really enjoyed sniffing out the window along the Bow Valley parkway, an area labeled as a “wildlife corridor” so I’m sure he encountered lots of virgin smells. Overall, not the day or activities we originally planned but a great day nonetheless.

    Another day we headed to Johnston canyon by 6:30am and saw a beautiful bull elk on the way. We were only one of a few vehicles in the parking lot and the entire way to the lower and upper falls we only saw 2 other people. This is one of the busiest areas in all of Banff and for good reason. A series of cat walks takes you along a river through a gorge and past several cascades along with the falls. By the time we finished enjoying the serenity and beauty and started making our way back, there was a steady flow of people coming in. Hundreds arrive by 8 and as we left the parking lot was full and cars were lining up on the road by the dozens. Thank goodness we are good with the early alarms to really enjoy the natural beauty in peace and quiet.

    From there we headed towards Banff again and were lucky enough to see 2 more elk in a field of wild flowers. They kept their eyes on a deer at the edge of the forest as well and we enjoyed watching all 3 for several minutes. Then we drove along Vermillion Lakes and up to Mount Norquay. As soon as we pulled up to the top of the mountain Dave spotted another bear. At first since we were so far away we thought it was a grizzly based on color and size. After analyzing the photos however it seems to be a cinnamon black bear (black bears can actually come in a variety of colors including several shades of brown). This makes it our 13th black bear of this trip!

    After enjoying some food and souvenir shopping at Banff we headed back to our campground at Lake Louise and spotted our 4th elk of the day, another bull! This one was at the crest of a hill so we didn’t get to watch it for long as it moved along to the far side.

    We stopped again at Morant’s curve and waited for the train to come by. The first train was heading the “wrong” direction again and was about 25 minutes after we pulled in. We waited for the next train hoping it would be from the other direction and this one took almost 50 minutes! But it was heading the right direction for a beautiful site and was worth the wait. We chatted with a few people during our times at the pullout and it really was a beautiful day to pass the time. When we returned to our campground we found that a hail storm had come through and dumped a good amount of it. Luckily we didn’t have any major damage to the camper or solar panel, phew!    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Drumheller

    August 8, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F

    We drove 201 miles mostly east further into Alberta to Drumheller. The landscape changed dramatically from Rocky Mountains to flat wheat farmland to Badland hoodoos. It felt very surreal to be out of the mountains as we’ve been mostly surrounded by them since June 11th. The major reason most people travel to Drumheller (including us) is to visit the Royal Tyrell museum. With only a population of 8,400 people the museum attracts over 500,000 visitors each year. Opened in 1985 and named after the paleontologist who found the Albertosaurus, this 135,000 sq ft building houses over 160,000 fossils and some of the most complete fossils in the world. Each exhibit is beautifully created and maintained with clear information on each specimen. There was even a section on fossils found by oil companies as they dug and the relationship between the museum and these companies to properly deal with those situations. Some of the fossils were stained black from an increase in manganese in the soil including a T. rex specimen nicknamed Black Beauty. Outside of the museum are walking trails through the badland terrain and stairs leading you up to a nice overlook of the scenery.

    From there we ventured outside of town to some historical areas that had quick stops. First up were the hoodoos, which although very neat to see were much smaller than the photos advertised. Then we drove past a suspension bridge and a restored coal mine without stopping as these just weren’t in our motivation today. We did drive to the tiny town of Wayne (population 25) which is known for having 11 bridges cross the same tiny, winding creek to get to the town. Although we only crossed 9, so we aren’t sure if we actually arrived at the town or accidentally stopped early at the only place to grab food or drink 🤷‍♀️

    After refueling we headed to an area called Horseshoe canyon outside of Drumheller. It’s an interesting region of badlands surrounded by prairie and farmland. The two mile hike meandered down into the canyon and at times was flat and easy to see, and others were more of a “make your own way” adventure. Finally, we headed back to town and enjoyed a burrito from a food truck along with some local beverages. All in all a great day filled with history and beautiful scenery.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Canmore

    August 11, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    We drove 150 miles from Drumheller to Canmore. It’s so nice to be back in the mountains, with near constant views of the infamous “three sisters” mountain towering above the town. Once arrived we hoped to get some hiking in since we have more hikes than time here. It was rainy and potential for some nasty storms, so we drove a scenic gravel drive in the mountains first then headed to Grassi lakes. The trail is fairly short at 2.3 miles and only gains 620 ft which was very manageable. The trail can be done as a loop amd the reward is a waterfall on the way up and two pristine small emerald lakes at the top. No swimming is allowed, but due to the fairly short trail it’s a magnet for “instagrammers.” Luckily it wasn’t too crazy while we were there between some spurts of rain and going later in the day. This area is easily one of our favorites of the trip so far already.

    Ha Ling peak is a well known summit in the area, which causes a lot of people to attempt it that are not prepared at all. We luckily hit a sweet spot on timing with people who had climbed for sunrise coming down, but most other people not starting yet. We had the saddle and the summit mostly to ourselves but lots of people heading up on the way down. So many people were struggling when they weren’t even halfway up, or didn’t have water or poles. It was a really interesting people watching experiment. To summit you have several steep switchbacks, followed by climbing a few sets of steep stairs, then scramble up steep loose rocks from the saddle to the summit. Yes, it was steep the entire way. In 5.2 miles you climb 2700 ft which is pretty intense but it’s one of the safest summits in the area. The Canadian government recently finished a massive improvement project which includes the stairs which greatly improved footing and safety.

    We also saw 2 different herds of elk and a herd of big horn sheep twice on our travels up and down the mountain including several babies in each group. Always love seeing the wildlife!

    We cooled off afterwards with our kayak’s 2nd voyage. We headed to Spray Lakes, enjoyed our packed lunch, then inflated the kayak and set off. A relaxing hour was spent on the bright blue, clear water. It was very peaceful with only a few other people paddling along shore.

    We drove through Banff national park to Kootenay national park in British Columbia. The drive through the park itself is jaw dropping gorgeous and it’s surprising more people don’t visit this amazing park. It was a little smoky, and we had probably our latest start of any hike we’ve done (11am). The hike to Floe Lake which is a 13 mile, 3300 ft elevation gain jaunt started brutally hot but not as much incline as we expected with how much elevation we needed to gain overall. We pushed the pace since we started so late and didn’t want to be away from the pups too long. Whoever made the trail perhaps got distracted on where the end point was because the rolling hills through wildflowers turned into an insanely steep never ending series of switchbacks for the last hour to get to the lake. Worse yet, if you slowed or stopped you were swarmed by biting flies within 5 seconds that chased you for 10 minutes at speed. This quickly went from one of my favorite hikes to lots of cursing. We finally arrived at Floe Lake in just under 3 hours and loved the turquoise water with the steep rock wall and Floe Peak towering over us. After enjoying a small lunch and photos we headed back, and good thing we didn’t dawdle longer. Thunder claps (and the flies) chased us down the switchbacks and once we arrived in the meadows again it started to pour. 2 hours of speed hiking in the cold (temps dropped to likely 50 ish degrees) with lightning and thunder rolling around us was maybe not how we wanted to end the hike. We tried to keep good spirited and “talked with Thor” with the frequent thunder while trying not to focus on all the dead trees surrounding us aka kindling if a lightning strike started a wildfire. This was one of our quickest paced hikes when factoring in the distance and elevation, and overall still ranks high in our enjoyable hikes. Would love to go back and camp at the lake when we have a chance, and maybe not sprint in and out.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Waterton Lakes national park part 1

    August 15, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    We drove 181 miles from Canmore to Pincher Creek, a town in southwestern Alberta. We were supposed to go to Jasper, but with the wildfire still out of control and half the town burnt down, we pivoted and went south. Waterton lakes national park was high on our list of places we wanted to go initially, but we just couldn’t fit it into our schedule. When the fire reached the town of Jasper several weeks ago we figured we’d make a reservation down here in case our original reservations were canceled. This area is important in energy: wind, solar, oil, and coal industries are all prevalent here. It’s known as the windiest place in Canada and it feels like it!

    Every day we drove from Pincher Creek to Waterton Lakes national park, about 40 minutes south of our campground. The drive was beautiful through farmland, horse farms, and an abrupt transition to steep Rocky Mountains. Each day was filled with an amazing hike in a quiet corner of the province.

    Bear’s Hump leaves pretty much from the town center and climbs a steep ridge to a beautiful knoll and overlook. Although it’s short at 1.5 miles it climbs over 700 ft in the ¾ of a mile to the summit. After just a few minutes at the lookout on top, thunder pealed so we turned and headed back down. This hike marked our 200th mile hiking on this roadtrip! The views were beautiful but being on a high rocky knoll is not where we wanted to be with frequent lightning flashing. On our way down the trail another hiker pointed off in the distance at a momma black bear with 2 cubs heading down the mountain. We watched as two different groups of hikers almost had interactions with the bears but luckily both groups saw mama and backed out the way they came without incident. This makes black bears 14-16 for us on this trip! We also saw them as they scratched an itch up the hill from the road heading into town. After walking around town for a bit we headed to Red Rock canyon, another popular and scenic drive to a short hike. Upon arriving we realized it was much busier than expected and the hoard of people posing and meandering through the canyon made us pivot. Luckily there was another trailhead at the same parking lot to Blackiston falls. This 1.6 mile out and back hike was a gentle 280 ft elevation change and had beautiful fireweed growing out of the wildfire damage from 2017. Most of this area has evidence of this most recent fire but the wildflowers have exploded with the increase in ground light. On the drive back to the park exit we saw a large black bear foraging close to the road (black bear number 17 overall and 4th today!)

    The drive along the Akamina parkway to Cameron lake was beautiful. The wildfire that ravaged this area in 2017 is still very evident from the burned trees and strong presence of fireweed (the purple wildflowers growing everywhere). Fireweed is a pioneer plant, meaning it’s one of the first to grow after a fire goes through an area. Once the trees grow back thicker, the fireweed doesn’t have enough sunlight and it won’t grow in these areas anymore. The flowers bloom from bottom to top, and once the top flowers die it’s supposedly the end of summer. The flowers were blooming right at the top so it seems about right for this area. We enjoyed a 2.4 mile walk along Cameron lake with views across the water to Montana (the mountain with glaciers on it is in Glacier NP as there are no glaciers left in Waterton). The trail ended abruptly in the woods with signs urging people to turn around since further ahead was a “grizzly garden.” This hike was very informative for what grizzlies like to eat other than mammals which came in handy later!

    We experienced a high tea at the Prince of Wales hotel. Built in the 1920s in a Swiss chalet style, it’s incredibly maintained and is still traditional. There’s no AC and they serve high tea from 12-4. We made reservations for this a few days prior and enjoyed a great view of the lake and mountains along the iconic window line. Our server was very knowledgeable, and the teas and tray of food were delicious. As we were leaving there was a report of a black bear along the driveway, and as we were heading out it popped back onto the exit in front of our truck. It ran off into the forest and the people walking further up the drive had no idea it was there. A good reminder to always be aware of your surroundings here. Black bear number 18 for us!

    Another day included a leisurely hike to Bertha lake after passing Bertha falls. Most people only hike to the falls as the trail gets much steeper including some nice switchbacks through raspberry bushes and cow parsnip (which we learned from our Cameron lake hike are two favorite snacks of grizzly bears!). The lake was beautiful and our recent onslaught of super steep hikes made this one very doable without any rest breaks heading up. After a snack at the lake we headed back down to complete this 7.25 mile long, 1900 ft elevation gain trek. We stopped just outside the park at the bison paddock where the park maintains a small herd. Bison used to roam wild here but were massacred by white settlers (because we’re the worst) and the area where they would normally be is now mostly farmland. It was neat to see them with the mountains in the background, but it would be nice if they could enjoy the vastness of the park area somehow.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Waterton Lakes national park part 2

    August 20, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    Another day on the way in we saw 20 deer, 6 elk, and 4 black bears (a mama and 3 cubs-numbers 19-22 on our trip)! This day we took a shuttle to Cameron lake in order to do a through hike called Carthew Alderson. This 12.5 mile trail goes through 4 different ecosystems while gaining just over 3,000 ft in elevation. Most of that gain is in the first 4 miles with steep switchbacks through burned forest thriving with fireweed to Summit lake. We enjoyed a nice snack at the lake followed by more switchbacks to get up over Carthew ridge to the overlook. These switchbacks were along rocky exposed ridgelines and had a few marmots on trail to navigate. The views were 360 once you summitted the ridge and it was just gorgeous. From the forest to the ridgeline you could see several glacial lakes across the border in Montana. After the ridgeline you started descending (sometimes sliding on loose rock) through the valley with several other lakes along the way. The hike ended with 4 miles through dense forest and what another hiker called a “bear cafeteria” aka pushing through all the bear snacks including berries and cow parsnip. We made sure to make lots of noise and had our heads on a swivel. This was definitely one of our favorite hikes of all time with all the different types of views but we’re very glad to get ice cream and head back to the pups to rest and recharge.

    Our last day in the area we took a boat shuttle across the lake to Crypt Lake trail. This is a very well known adventure for this area but you can only access it by 2 shuttles a day and have to make it back for the return boat. The hike up through the forested steep switchbacks leads to more uphill climbs in the valley past waterfalls and sweeping views of the mountains. This area of the park hasn’t had a wildfire in 500 years so the undergrowth and brush are very thick. We were warned of nearly daily black and grizzly bear sightings on this trail but no one on our return boat including us saw any. Towards the end of the trail it turns into a cliff edge, then you climb a ladder on the side of a mountain, to a tunnel that you have to stoop through and scuttle sideways, then along a steep drop off with a thin space to walk on with chains to hold onto. This all leads you to gorgeous Crypt Lake. Another beautiful and pristine alpine lake that was frozen over a month before. We walked around the lake, including to the southern side which technically is in Montana! We of course had to photograph the walking to a different country, and stand on the glacier on the US side. Once back on trail we saw some teenagers cliff jumping into the lake, and I decided it was something I couldn’t pass up. The lake temp was still past “refreshing” and I was glad for the short swim to the exit rocks since my entire body was already numb. After drying off a bit and snacking on some gnocchi, it was time to start back for the boat. There was a side loop on the way down to another waterfall but with the time crunch to get to the first boat we pushed the speed in order to complete the side quest. Some areas were a little technical, so that was interesting, and the waterfall was moderately beautiful. Probably wouldn’t do the side trail again, but glad we did it this time. The first boat back is first come/first served so that’s what made it stressful, not knowing how many people were at the dock before you until you arrived. And the next boat isn’t for another 2 hours. After basically running down the trail we arrived to the dock and…there were maybe 8 people there before us. Needless to say we made the first boat. In total it was 12.5 miles and 3200 ft of elevation gain. We enjoyed a nice relaxing foot soak in Waterton lake while chatting with some trail runners and then were ferried back to the main park.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Edmonton-Elk Island NP and Metallica

    August 23, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 75 °F

    We drove 326 miles to Edmonton, the capital of Alberta. First we went to Tim Hortons (Dave’s first experience!) to fuel up. The drive north was fairly uneventful and the farmland was endless.

    Our first full day we drove to Elk Island national park on the other side of Edmonton. It was our 7th and final national park in Canada, and it definitely was a different environment than the others. It’s a main conservation area for the local flora and fauna including wood bison, plains bison, moose, and of course elk. We saw bison from the road (likely plains bison) before even getting to the visitor center and the helpful ranger guided us to a good trail running route. The wood bison trail would provide us with a fairly well maintained trail with a good chance to see wildlife including bison, moose, and black bears. We saw…nothing. In 10 miles we saw lots of scat including over 100 bison pies, lots of bear scat, and piles of elk pellets but no animals except for squirrels and a beautiful snake. We jogged 1 minute out of every 5 since we haven’t run in months and kept our heads on a swivel while calling our loudly during our running sections. Was definitely a different experience than our usual outings but it was neat to see the different fields and ponds.

    Of course we were starving by the time we finished so we grabbed some burgers and made a stop to Canadian Tire (think massive Bed Bath & Beyond plus a tire shop). We finally found a propane fire pit to enjoy since the fire bans likely won’t stop any time soon.

    The entire reason we came to Edmonton, and part of what we built this trip around. In November of 2022 we bought tickets to see Metallica play two nights here in Alberta. We had Pantera as an opener the first night, and the energy of the bands and the crowd was very impressive the entire time. Metallica played for over 2 hours without rest and for being in their early 60s it was really neat to see how much they still love what they do. We had almost perfect weather both nights and great people around our seats that we interacted with.

    The lines for merchandise at the concert were insane so we decided to go to the pop up shop we knew they had outside of the venue the day between the shows. Just a few thousand people also had the same idea. We stood in line for an hour and some change before getting inside. The designs were very intricate and it was cool to see so many people from different backgrounds and ages excited for the band. We chose our shirts and headed out. What started as a quick quest to find the Metallica brand whisky (blackened) turned into an amazing find of a store. Whisky Drop is owned and run by a retired history teacher who plays guitar in a local band. Graham was an instant favorite of ours, and we could have sat there for hours talking with him and hearing the stories behind the carefully curated bottles he selected. We truly hope to see him again in our travels.

    Night two of Metallica Edmonton was with Ice Nine Kills and Five Finger Death Punch as openers, it was an even better night than the first. Our travels to the concert were much smoother as we knew what to expect, and because we arrived at the time we had planned to Friday the line to enter was almost 0. We were able to quickly grab refreshments and enjoy leisurely getting to our seats instead of sprinting everywhere like the first night. Ice Nine Kills showed talent and a lot of theatrics although I wouldn’t say they’re my cup of tea overall. Five Finger was really impressive and did a great cover of House of the Rising Sun. Then Metallica came out and killed it for the second time with no repeat songs from the first. The lighting guy must have been asleep the first night and made up for it the second. Our group around us was mostly the same as the first which was great. The security had been significantly increased to keep people from congregating in the aisles and in front of us which made for a much better experience. Overall, a great end to our time in Edmonton and our 8 weeks in Canada.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Glacier national park (US) part 1

    August 27, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    We loved our time in Canada but needed to head back to the US. We drove the 372 miles south to Glacier National Park in Montana. With all the rule changes that had been implemented over the summer for bringing dogs back into the US we had spent hundreds of dollars and hours researching what we needed for our 3 pups. And the legitimate answer for our crossing was….nothing. The paperwork was necessary but none of it was checked. Our border crossing took all of 5 minutes, and some of that was just friendly chatting with the officer about his dogs and how we all love pups. The dogs got some treats from him, and overall it was a great experience. To be fair, we also had everything printed, organized, and ready to show including an inventory of our camper food and beverages. We offered all these papers to the officer and he just grinned and said, “that’s okay.” Since we had to empty out most of the fridge and pantry for the crossing and there’s not really a grocery store nearby (the closest one marks everything up 10x since the next one is 2 hours away) so we ordered the campground pizza. It was actually delicious and the campground makes the dough themselves. Our top priority for our time in Glacier National Park (our 4th US National park of this trip) was to complete the Highline trail with the garden wall spur trail. The last time we were here the shuttle that takes you to this point to point hike had stopped the day before but we were told they ran for one more week. This led to us meeting a great family that are now friends as we shuttled ourselves to complete this hike. At the time, Dave and I weren’t up to do the garden wall and the weather was turning south fast. We were motivated to explore this new area now. We were about a mile from the campground when we saw 2 small black bear cubs (one cinnamon) on the road playing but did not see mama (our 23rd and 24th black bears!) before quickly moving along. The shuttle unfortunately was running much slower and smaller buses than promised due to some of the CDL drivers having left for college. So our hopefully 8:30 am start was pushed to almost 10am. We had some entertaining fellow passengers that passed the time quickly including a through hiker about to complete the Continental Divide Trail (from Mexico to Canada). Luckily we talked to a ranger at the trailhead and learned a rain storm was coming in around 3pm that was likely going to turn to snow. This definitely quickened our pace and set out on this amazing hike.

    It starts through a short forested area then along a ridge in the rocks with steep drop offs to your left. It’s a wide enough trail that Dave and I felt very comfortable along it but it gives people a thrill! The incline is fairly gentle for most of the hike with a few steep switchbacks along the way to help crest some ridgelines. The views are truly endless and it has earned its place on most top US hikes for a reason. When you reach the garden wall, you can see the steep incline on loose rock by the ant-size people above you. Between keeping our pace at or below 20 minute miles at high elevation with further incline, and the steep and loose change in footing, the garden wall was humbling in its short jaunt. We finally reached the top of the ridge and were rewarded by beautiful views of Grinnel Glacier below us and near 360 degree views. Last time we were in Glacier national park we hiked up to the Grinnel Glacier via the Many Glacier area which is a stunning trail. Seeing it from above was worth the effort to get here. The whipping wind made it difficult to stay at the overlook for more than a few minutes and we headed back down. The return 4 miles to the next shuttle were also swift to beat the incoming rain. As our shuttle picked us up and delivered us to the next stop the skies let loose and we were very happy to be off the trail. A long wait for the next shuttle was frustrating, but eventually we were able to get back to our truck and the campground. We were also lucky to see a very large adult black bear (#25 this trip!) on the second shuttle on the way back, and Dave spotted some mountain goats on the first shuttle. Another pizza night and relaxation insued to reward ourselves from a 13.7 mile, 2400 ft elevation day in just over 5 hours.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Glacier national park part 2

    August 29, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    Our second full day in the park a cold front moved through and there was snow at high elevations. This pretty much shut down all thoughts of doing any hikes. After a lazy morning with the pups we decided to drive up Going to the Sun Road around 10:30 to see the snow. This is the only road through the majority of the park and is is rated as one of the most beautiful drives in the world but can be tricky if you’re not a driver comfortable with steep and narrow terrain. About halfway up the rain turned to snow and quickly started to stick to the trees and ground. Luckily the road was warm enough to not ice or become slick and we enjoyed gorgeous winter-esque views. After soaking in the vistas we decided to turn around and head back down the mountains since it was evident not all the people around us were used to winter weather driving. We certainly didn’t want to be in an accident or stuck in the mountains due to poor choices of others. We even saw a truck pulling a camper up the road, which is highly illegal in this area.

    Shortly after arriving back to the camper, we noticed the furnace really wasn’t working. As in, it stopped working completely. Dave looked into several reasons why and I tried to research more, but in the end we had to settle for a small counter top ceramic heater to keep us and the pups safe in the dropping temperature. One of the few times we were happy to have such a small space to manage! Always an adventure.

    For our third day our original plan for today was to drive into Many Glacier area to hike to Iceberg Lake before the need for a permit which would mean a 3:30am alarm. This trail closes frequently after grizzly encounters, and this had happened when we were in GNP in 2022. After the alarm went off and we saw the snow still up in the mountains along with the Milky Way above, we decided to make a new plan. Between the snow and possible ice on the hike, and the potential to run into large mammals such as moose and grizzlies frequent on this trail, we figured it would be smarter to wait until later. This meant doing chores to catch up on things until 3pm when permits were no longer required. Luckily our several brisk, longer hikes had trained us well to complete this 10 mile, 1500 ft elevation gain trail at 20 minute mile pace. We had the lake to ourselves which was so peaceful, but we knew we had to turn back towards the truck quickly due to the setting sun and the carnivores in the area. We enjoyed yet another pizza while relaxing with the pups and prepping for a long drive the next day.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Grand Tetons National Park

    August 31, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 50 °F

    Our long day of driving from Glacier NP to Grand Teton NP turned into a realllyyyyyyyy long day on the road. What started as a 9 hour, 480 mile journey turned into a 13 hour, 621 mile day. We started out pretty steady with no issues until we pulled into West Yellowstone, Montana with only 2.5 hours left to drive. About 45 minutes prior to us arriving there was a large hole found on the road over a bridge so the entrance was closed “indefinitely.” After a short discussion, we decided to reroute south instead of chancing the bridge not reopening. What was originally supposed to be a 3 hour reroute (which was bad enough already) turned into 4 hours when we realized Google maps wanted to take us through Teton Pass. This road is very doable in good weather in a normal vehicle, but with extremely steep grades and switchbacks, it sees more trailer/motor home accidents and deaths than almost any road in the country. After an even shorter discussion we decided it was better to safe than sorry and drove to the next pass south. We finally arrived in our campground just outside Grand Tetons National Park after seeing an elk just off the road. Needless to say as soon as we set the camper up it was off to bed for us. Our first full day in the area consisted of mostly running errands in Jackson, a beautiful ski town with great cafes and boutiques. We visited a lodge my family stayed at in 1997 and 2002 and tried finding animals at Oxbow Bend at sunset and did sight a family of otters, a white pelican, and a bald eagle.Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    GTNP-Cascade Canyon

    September 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    As a lot of our friends and family know, almost 4 years ago to the day (15 days early) Dave and I met on trail while each solo hiking Cascade Canyon to Lake Solitude. While planning this roadtrip we knew we wanted to try and find the exact spot on the hike that we met and today we set out to do just that. We really hoped to spot a moose along the way (the hero of our relationship) and I guess we hoped too hard! While walking along Jenny Lake to the start of the canyon we spotted a momma moose and her young calf at (of all places) Moose Pond. They were fairly far away and in the brush, but we still really loved seeing them and feeling like it was a great sign for the day. That…was an understatement. Less than a mile later we came upon 3 other hikers who asked if we had seen moose on the trail. They meant ON the trail as one of them saw them shortly before but the other two didn’t. Turned out the one who saw the moose is from Germany and was every startled seeing them. Shortly after continuing down the trail, low and behold the two moose were back on the trail!! We made sure they knew we were there to avoid surprises, and they didn’t seem to care. These massive animals can turn moods quickly and are much faster than we are so we tried to give them as much space as we could. At one point they moved off trail and we tried to scoot by while they munched on vegetation. As we were almost even with them, the bull moose calf decided he wanted back on trail and we quickly back pedaled. They kept on trail for a bit in front of us and we slowly meandered until they moved far enough off trail for us to pass successfully. 4 moose in 2 miles! A stunning start to the day.

    The trail along the lake is fairly level but once around to the boat dock on the far side it climbs steadily to Hidden Falls (not hidden at all), and to Inspiration Point. These are two popular spots for any visitor to the park for good reason, and we started on the trail at sunrise to avoid most of the masses. After enjoying these spots we headed into the canyon and spotted another female moose! 5 moose is a blessing that some visitors don’t get to experience in multiple visits and we were incredibly grateful. We found our spot (maybe a “little” further into the hike than we both remembered) and spent some time there reminiscing and exchanging our marriage vows. We could not have asked for a better hike.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Grand Teton NP architecture

    September 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 77 °F

    We enjoyed the stroll back down to the boat dock from Cascade Canyon and took the aqua shuttle back to the trailhead. We hit a few spots of historic architecture including the Chapel of Transfiguration and a few of the Mormon barns. These structures were built in the 1920s and it’s amazing how well preserved they are.Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Grand Teton NP-Taggert Lake

    September 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

    We considered hiking Delta Lake and after researching found it well within our ability, but that it’s a hike that locals really wish would close. It’s an unmaintained trail that has become “instagram famous” which is ruining the environment along it and requires several rescues each season due to people being unprepared. We decided to respect their wishes and chose Taggert Lake instead. It would be an easy hike for us which was fine, we loved the reflections of the mountains in the lake, and found the nicest couple to chat with on the way back. We always love making mountain friends!

    That evening we enjoyed animal spotting along Moose-Wilson road (found another momma moose with 2 young calves but we only saw one baby) followed by driving to Signal Mountain Lodge. I stayed here in the cottages with my parents in 2020 but the lodge and restaurant weren’t open due to the pandemic. We lucked out with one of the best tables on the back patio where we watched sunset over Jackson Lodge with views of Mt Moran. On the way home we saw 4 more female elk and readied for another long drive the next day.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Driving Grand Tetons to Moab, Utah

    September 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 63 °F

    It was time to leave the magic of Grand Tetons national park and head to the desert. It rained a bit and made for some moody mountain pics. Soon we were heading through beautiful passes along the snake river and getting to see some early fall colors! On the way we were driving over one of the passes and had a momma moose and her calf leap the guardrail and run right in front of us. This makes 10 moose in 3 days in Wyoming, we were so lucky to see this many. Very scary, but luckily we were heading uphill so we were safely able to stop. After driving 543 miles we arrived in Moab, Utah. Once safely in the campground we relaxed and caught up with great friends over the phone.Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Arches NP: Fiery Furnace

    September 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F

    A big day with multiple parts to it! We were lucky enough to snag a permit to explore the fiery furnace area of Arches National park (our 23rd US National park together). We weren’t able to get the ranger guided tour but probably enjoyed the self guided one better overall. You have to go to the visitor center to pick up a physical permit which requires you to watch a short video on how to stay safe and keep the environment pristine. The soil crust here is alive and one step on it destroys it, taking 100 years to regenerate. If you stay on rock or the sandy wash areas, all is good. Other than that they encourage you to explore as much as possible as there is no real trail. There’s a 2 mile loop with small, somewhat hidden arrows that help the rangers keep on track and you can download this map on AllTrails (which we did). This helped greatly for us to not get completely lost in the maze of towering rocks while exploring spur trails and dead ends. In the safety video you also are encouraged to speak softly to let everyone enjoy the serenity of the area as the rocks amplify and bounce sounds around. This led to us exploring the beautiful area in near complete silence for 4 hours. There are only a few animals in this harsh environment, including lizards (which we saw) and shrimp!! (Which we didn’t see). The magnitude of how large and intricate these formations are is impossible to capture. A good chunk of the trail is squeezing through tight cracks in the massive boulders, sometimes barely wider than our shoes! Some scrambling was involved, but nothing scary or exposed which was nice. Absolutely amazing.Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Arches NP: Delicate Arch visit 1

    September 4, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 88 °F

    Once we exited fiery furnace, we made a last second decision to do the Delicate Arch trail to avoid the typical crowds. At 3.3 miles long with 633 ft of elevation gain, the trail isn’t super intense for us but can trick unsuspecting visitors into dangerous situations. It has some steep sections on exposed rock, a wide cliff ledge to navigate, and very little shade in a hot environment. It’s one of the most popular sites in the entire state, as the free standing arch is featured on the state license plate and millions of photos. We climbed the trail and were able to enjoy the arch with only a few other people, and for a few seconds had it all to ourselves.

    The rest of the day was enjoyed with time with the pups and a nice dinner with the best sunset view.    Read more

  • Summer 2024 Roadtrip-Honeymoon

    Arches NP day 2: Devils Garden Loop

    September 5, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F

    Arches national park requires timed entry reservations and can be tricky to get. Luckily fiery furnace permits allow entry and we snagged a reservation for 7am for this day. We headed into the park and to the Devils Garden trail. This 7.5 mile long, 1100 ft elevation gain trail takes you past several arches and formations. One of the most dramatic arches is also one of the first, Landscape Arch. Discovered in 1933, it’s the 5th longest arch in the world (behind 4 in china) at 290 ft from side to side. So many beautiful views and much easier navigation compared to last time I was here and did it solo. Dave has taught me so many helpful skills which definitely helps on primitive trails such as this.Read more

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