Trying my darndest to enjoy the outdoors, one weekend at a time
Now that we’re in February and the rain keeps pouring here in the Bay Area, I keep day-dreaming about the beautiful sunny days we had in Joshua Tree waaay back in December. The places my brain goes to are the hikes and the amazing desert scenery that we encountered along the trails. Recalling these memories … More Mastodon Peak Hike in Joshua Tree National Park
While visiting Joshua Tree during the busy holiday season, we came across 2 amazing and underrated hikes that allowed us to really experience Joshua Tree away from the crowds. The campgrounds were completely full and the park was brimming with many people like us who wanted to celebrate Christmas at Joshua Tree. Especially at the … More Desert Queen Mine Hike in Joshua Tree National Park
We arrived at Joshua Tree National Park on Christmas Eve day (2018) after having spent a peaceful, away-from-the-crowds night at Red Rock Canyon State Park the previous night. We continued on past the Joshua Tree Visitor Center knowing it was closed because of the government shutdown. At that time it was only day 3, little … More Dispersed Camping on Bureau of Land Management Area South of Joshua Tree National Park
Spending the holidays surrounded by nature is something we’ve grown to love and look forward to. Finding places that are good for December travels in our campervan can be a challenge, but our California deserts is always a good bet. For our 2018 Christmas holiday trip we made plans to camp at Red Rock Canyon … More Winter Camping in Red Rock Canyon State Park
Big Sur is a magnificent stretch of coastline in central California just south of Carmel, and although I love all of California’s coastline, the scenery along this particular route is so amazing that it makes me constantly sigh from pure contentment at seeing all the surrounding beauty. Five state parks anchors this area, including Pfeiffer … More Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
You are absolutely right, I’m a bit off schedule. We are in the middle of December right now and I’m blogging about a Thanksgiving visit to the Big Sur coast. I’m hoping you understand … sometimes life just happens. Hope everyone is fully enjoying the holidays and getting a chance to appreciate our great outdoors. … More A Big Sur Thanksgiving
Really? I need to post about a smoothie recipe? I know, it’s not that hard to make a smoothie without a recipe, but I really want to pass this on. Usually, I just throw some of this, and some of that in a blender and violà – a pretty good smoothie. I never really needed … More Our Favorite Fruit Smoothie
I needed some serious garden inspiration for a side yard that I’ve been working on since the beginning of summer and was hoping to get some by visiting the gardens at Filoli Historic House and Gardens located in Woodside, California. At the time of our visit in July, a colorful glass art exhibition was being displayed throughout … More Filoli Gardens
Do you have a ‘bucket list’ or a ‘to do list’ for all of the adventures you want to experience in your life? I’m embarrassed to say I have a pretty crazy, let’s just call it extensive, one. I can’t help it, I’m a shameless list maker and there are so many great blogs out there … More Lassen National Park
I can’t stop thinking about the caves of Lava Beds National Monument. Exploring those unique caves was so fascinating, but the activity itself was such a family bonding experience. I mean you are literally stuck together traversing in the dark with only the members in your group to help guide you to the exit. It’s … More More Lava Beds National Monument Caves
I’ve been so excited to post about Lava Beds National Monument because this place was just amazing! It waaay exceeded our expectations and was a completely different park than we expected. Lava Beds is a good name, but I am convinced that this park should be named “Most Awesome Lava Tube Caves Ever National Monument” … More Lava Beds National Monument
After spending the morning driving the Rim Drive around Crater Lake and seeing the lake from all its glorious angles (see previous post), we had time to explore some non lake areas of the park. Crater Lake only makes up 10% of the park, so there is much to be explored besides the lake. We were able … More Crater Lake National Park, Part 2
I hope everyone’s enjoying their summer and getting the most out of our great outdoors! Our much-anticipated summer trip came and went in a blink of an eye, and we have now started the countdown for my daughter’s first day of school. I neeeeed moooooore tiiiiiime! It was a rare summer to have our daughter … More Crater Lake National Park
Last year my daughter’s volleyball team traveled extensively, and although it was somewhat manageable for an eighth grader, we didn’t think this was the right choice for her when she began high school. This year she played on a Power League team that didn’t have any travel tournaments (no airplane travel), and it turned out … More Our Weekends Lately…
Alright, let’s get down to business, Seattle’s food… 🙂 I can’t write about Seattle and NOT mention the food. The food culture in Seattle is out of this world! It was fun to taste the foods we read and heard about, and this list is our two cents. We only had so much space in … More Our Favorite Seattle Bites
