I really wanted to climb Guadalupe Peak. As the tallest mountain in Texas, it seemed like the thing to do as a native Texan in a “love hate” relationship with her home state. 😉 But an eight mile climb with over 3,000 ft elevation gain is a little beyond my abilitiy Continue reading
To be honest, I had never even heard of the Guadalupe Mountains National Park until I started my bucket list quest to visit as many of our National Parks as possible. And I’ve lived in Texas most of my life. So it speaks for the notoriety of such a park that gets no respect, Continue reading
The convergence of sunrise and moon set over Santa Elena Canyon
Leave it to Lynne to have some fancy app on her phone that tells the exact position the moon will be setting on any given day. She had done her homework to learn that it would be setting right in the crack of Santa Elena Canyon on the morning after the full moon….as I understand it, a one out of 365 day chance to hit the “sweet spot.” Continue reading
Continuing on with my “Big Ben Top Ten” series, here is the next installment. Thanks to those who are following along with my Top Ten countdown, even though it may be somewhat predictable. 😉 Continue reading
Continuing where we left off, here is Part Two of my “Big Bend Top Ten” List:
7. TERLINGUA GHOST TOWN – We met a couple of characters in the Hot Springs who said we should head on over to Terlingua for some good live music and cold beer. Continue reading
I have always been a bit of a “park snob” when it comes to Texas parks, sensing they were only for bass and crappie fishermen, or Texas rednecks looking for a cheap weekend getaway. I didn’t hold out much hope for Big Bend, being out in the far remote reaches of West Texas. Continue reading
I went through a few real cold spells while traveling through Pennsylvania and Virginia….those cold, damp nights that make you chilled to the bone. I even experienced some snow with temperatures down to 28 degrees, (a number which I would scoff at later.) What kept me going through those achy cold spells was the promise of a weekend stop in Hot Springs, Arkansas for a long hot soak on my way back to Texas. Continue reading
Since I took my virtual office on the road, my life sometimes feels like a game of “Frogger,” that old 1980’s video game, back in the day when video games were the size of an entire phone booth rather than a smart phone. Life seems like a series of lily pads, highways, and RV Parks where I must wait for them all to align with my work schedule before I can “leap” to the next safe stop. Continue reading
Those are the words that Stephen Bishop, one of Mammoth Cave’s best known African-American slave guides and explorers, used to describe the massive cave system located in central Kentucky.
Mammoth Cave is the world’s longest cave system Continue reading
For all the massive crowds I saw on Skyline drive during the peak of leaf peeping season, there were none on the hiking trails, thank goodness. Oh, I saw a few families along the trail, but very few. And what few I did see appeared to be foreign tourists. I talked with a family from Israel, and met several from Asia and India along the trail. But none who “looked like me.” Continue reading