Great Sand Dunes National Park

Sand, sand, sand... I love sand. I love sand dunes. In fact, I've been to four major dune fields in as many years: Kelso Dunes in Mojave National Preserve (2012), Eureka Dunes in Death Valley National Park (2013), White Sands National Monument in New Mexico (2014), and this year in Colorado's Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve. They are the tallest dunes in North America. They change color throughout the day. Here they look really cool with Medano Creek and the Sangre De Cristo Mountains as a backdrop.

Top O' The Continent

On Sunday we crossed the Continental Divide in Colorado, the high point (in terms of elevation) of our trip. If all goes according to plan, we will not see any water destined for the Pacific Ocean until Yellowstone National Park on our return journey. Go East young man!

Camp Life

I'm giving thanks for breakfast here. Also, I'm trying to recall my last shower. Dad says that if you keep your face and hands clean the rest of you doesn't matter (within reason, of course). Another opinion recently expressed by my dad is that he loves the store, but REI brand tents suck. We have to be really careful not to get the zipper stuck or else we'll have a bunch of friendly mosquitos as bedtime companions.

Romance In Durango

That's the name of a Bob Dylan song. My dad says it refers to the Mexican city. I'm talking about Durango, Colorado. At the coffee shop we chatted with a man about my age who just moved here from California. He gave us some good suggestions about places to hike in the surrounding mountains. Always ask a local!

Mesa Verde National Park

On Friday we spent the morning touring the ancient ruins at Wetherill Mesa. It is accessed by a gnarly 12 mile road that can't handle RVs and tour buses so it was quiet and peaceful. The Step House ruin is especially cool. It's been so hot that even though our campground was at 7,000 feet above sea level, at night we didn't even need to get inside our sleeping bags. Just at sunset we saw Jupiter and Venus right next to each other in the southwest sky. They're very bright so even if you live in an area with lots of light pollution you can still check 'em out.

The Silver Bean

Another of our favorite stops in the Four Corners area is the Silver Bean Cafe in Cortez, Colorado. They serve coffee out of an old school silver trailer. They have some old school toys inside too. I got to play with an Etch-A-Sketch while enjoying my drink. If you are traveling in this area, do not go to Starbucks! I repeat: DO NOT GO TO STARBUCKS!!!

Twin Rocks Cafe

I think my favorite region of our great country is the desert Southwest. There's always something new to discover here. One of my old favorite spots is the Twin Rocks Cafe & Trading Post in Bluff, Utah. The food is great and there's air conditioning. The scenery in the area is pretty spectacular, too. Today we drove through Monument Valley. It was like being on the set of a John Ford western... in color!

The Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon: It's very big. I came here once before in 2006 with my dad and brother. This time we hiked down to Hermit Basin. My dad says that I'm the only person he knows who hikes faster going back up to the rim. Yes, it's true. I left him in the dust.

Road Trip Day #1

Needles, California.
We had a long drive today all the way out to the Colorado River. When we arrived at 7:00 PM the thermometer read 108 degrees, perfect weather according to my dad. After dinner I went for a swim which helped a lot. The photo is of the sunset over the desert from our hotel balcony. Tomorrow it's on to the Grand Canyon!

Baseball Fans!

This is me and my brother on a hike at Pt. Reyes.  Notice that we're each representing opposite sides of the Bay.  Hey, I can't help it if my brother roots for the wrong team. :)

Contemplating The Trees

Late afternoon... I'm in a thoughtful mood.

Memorial Day Weekend

My dad and I went camping Memorial Day weekend. Well, we cheated and went into town for an ice cream sundae...