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State Park

This Week on the Road - March 23rd-30th

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This Week on the Road - March 23rd-30th

Hello Everyone! It’s been a wildlife viewing week out here on the roads of Northern New Mexico. I’ve seen eagles and hawks in the air, deer, bighorn sheep and pronghorns in the fields and lots of prairie dogs running around searching for their underground tunnels. I like seeing wildlife. These animals make me smile. I’ve actually done a lot of smiling this week as I’ve found myself in wild places surrounded by beautiful landscapes and breathtaking sunrises and sunsets. I’ve managed to keep most of the demons in my head at bay this week and have felt pretty good all around. The weather has generally been great this week as well which hasn’t hurt. Warm, sunny days and cool, pleasant nights work really well for me. I do find that I need to change from shorts to long pants very soon after the sun goes down – it doesn’t take long to cool down in this dry air. It’s hard to believe I’ve been in New Mexico for over a month at this point, but I’m starting to make plans for the final stretch of my time here and then I’m off to Arizona for the rest of my winter/spring. My month in New Mexico has been special and memorable and I definitely understand why they call it The Land of Enchantment.

When I left you last week, I was in tiny Clayton, New Mexico in the far northeast of the state. I did head out to Clayton Lake State Park that evening which has a fascinating “pad” of over 200 dinosaur footprints from when the area was the muddy shoreline of a vast inland sea. Some of the footprints were very pronounced in the evening light and while it was very windy out there it was still really cool to see. I decided to spend the night at one of the campgrounds by the lake and ended up having the whole place to myself which was really nice. It was windy and cold, but I stayed out to watch the sunset and then popped out periodically to check out the stars which were really bright and mesmerizing.

Thursday morning I stuck around my campsite for a bit, enjoying my coffee and the warm sun on my face by the lake. I’ve been rereading the book Blood and Thunder by Hampton Sides which essentially tells the history of early American New Mexico. It’s an excellent book, and I’m enjoying it even more now that I’ve been to a lot of the places he writes about. A pair of bald eagles were cruising around the lake while I read which was awesome. Eventually I pulled up stakes and headed back into town to take a few more photos and then got on the road west to Capulin Volcano National Monument. I had noticed on my way out to Clayton Lake the evening before that the landscape was much more volcanic in that part of the state and it became even more pronounced as I went west. I drove past Sierra Grande, which is an incredible example of a shield volcano and then headed towards Capulin which is one of the country’s best specimens of a cinder cone volcano. This volatile and quick-forming volcano (which looks like what you imagine in your head when you think of a volcano) formed sometime around 60,000 years ago. The fertile soil it produced made for some fine grazing land so ranchers have used the land around the volcano for centuries and its distinct and easily recognizable shape made it a landmark on the Santa Fe Trail. Today, you can drive right to the top which is pretty cool but probably not for the faint of heart as there is a pretty severe drop-off and not many guardrails on the road. Once you get up there, though, you are rewarded with remarkable views in all directions and you can hike around the rim and down into the crater. You can look east at the seemingly endless plains stretching to the horizon and west to where they run into the Rocky Mountains. When I left the park, I headed north to Folsom and planned on taking the road over Johnson Mesa to Raton so I could drive past the Folsom Man Site, an archaeological area similar to the Clovis Man Site I talked about last week when I visited the Blackwater Draw museum. Somehow I took a wrong turn and ended up going a half hour down the wrong road but it was a beautiful road and a nice detour. When I finally figured out I had gone astray, I returned to Folsom and found the road I wanted to take. It was poorly marked and when I made the turn, I found it was also closed. Two hours later, I was back at Capulin but thankfully it was only a short drive from there to Raton. Raton is a cute little town on the railroad line with an old theatre and an older train station. I did wander around town a little bit but I was pretty tired and didn’t find out much about it. I stopped in for a great craft beer and one of the best burritos I’ve ever had at the Cellar Brewery (which is actually on the first floor, but they brew the beer in the basement) and then called it a night.

On Friday morning I headed just down the road to the town of Cimarron. Their sign reads “Where the Plains Meet the Mountains” and you can look west from town and see the Rockies emerging from the flat plains. Cimarron is also home to the Philmont Scout Ranch, a massive wilderness area donated by oilman Waite Phillips to the Boy Scouts in 1938. Way back in 1992, I came to Philmont on my very first trip to New Mexico and my first trip anywhere west of the Mississippi. My Boy Scout troop spent 10 days backpacking through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and covered about a hundred miles on foot if my memory serves. It was an amazing experience for a city kid like me and a formative one…

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This Week on the Road - February 24th-March 3rd

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This Week on the Road - February 24th-March 3rd

Hello Everyone! Well it was a fun romp across the country and I’ve made it to New Mexico. I’ve definitely been having a wonderful first week here in The Land of Enchantment. I’ve traveled from the oilfields of the southeast, through UFO country at Roswell and into the Old West at Lincoln. I paid my respects at the grave of Smokey the Bear, passed through some beautiful ski resort towns and then down into the Tularosa Basin of the Chihuahuan Desert where I saw some cool petroglyphs and incredible White Sands National Park. My week is ending here in sunny Las Cruces where I celebrated Mardi Gras last night, far from New Orleans, but close in my heart. It’s been an amazing and incredibly diverse start to my New Mexican adventure, much like the people of the state itself. I can honestly say that my first impression of New Mexican people in the short time I’ve been here is that they are very sweet. That’s probably not a good word, but it’s the one which constantly comes to mind. I’ve had quiet and pleasant conversations with roughnecks, bouncers, a bartender missing his front teeth and a guy with neck tattoos and every one of them just seemed like a teddy bear who would giggle if you tickled them (an impression I did not test out on any of them). I have, of course, met wonderful people all over the country, but there are places where you get a particularly good feeling and so far this part of New Mexico has given me that feeling. The places I’ve traveled have been great and the food has lived up to my memories of how good New Mexican cuisine can be. All in all, it’s been a fantastic week on the road and just what I needed to start off this leg of my journey.

When I left you last week I was headed towards Luckenbach in the Hill Country of Texas. On my way, I stopped into Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Site in Johnson City, a town named after one of Lyndon’s relatives, James Polk Johnson. The site was fascinating and included LBJ’s boyhood home in Johnson City and the Johnson Ranch and “Texas White House” a few miles down the road where he lived later in life and eventually retired. It’s also where he is buried in a very simple family cemetery. LBJ grew up in a humble home with no electricity, one of five children born to two local teachers. He went on to become a teacher himself and taught impoverished children of Mexican descent. LBJ entered politics in 1931 as a legislative secretary and went on to serve in both the House of Representatives and the Senate (where he rose to be the Majority Leader). In 1960, he ran against John F. Kennedy for the Democratic nomination for president, joining JFK’s ticket after his primary defeat. When LBJ became president after Kennedy’s assassination, he often returned to his Texas ranch, inviting friends, colleagues, and foreign dignitaries to join him there and experience some Texas hospitality. Their barbecues were both massive and legendary. While the Texas White House was closed during my visit, the grounds were open and I enjoyed learning more about Johnson, his early life and his political successes. I had always pictured Johnson as a Texas rancher, but never realized his humble upbringing and had always assumed he was just carrying on with Kennedy’s agenda instead of how much actually came from him. I’m glad I made the stop and after a few hours there, I was off to Luckenbach.

Luckenbach was settled in 1845 and steadily grew to a population of 492 people in 1904. By the 1960s, though, it was virtually a ghost town and the town was advertised for sale in the newspaper. Two men, Hondo Crouch and Guich Koock, bought the town for $30,000 and set about trying to revitalize its aging dance hall and country store. The town’s fate was sealed when Waylon Jennings recorded a song called Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love), a song he hadn’t written about a town he’d never been to. The song hit #1 on the charts and people have been coming to check out the town ever since. It hosts concerts, festivals and live music daily. The night I arrived the scheduled musician had called off due to the weather but luckily a group of musicians just happened to be there to celebrate a friend’s birthday and jumped at the opportunity to take the stage in such a storied venue. They were great and I enjoyed chatting with them after the show. I also enjoyed meeting the locals and talking about the history of the town and the people who have passed through over the years. It was a really fun night.

Freezing rain came overnight and caused both shows to cancel on Thursday so I decided to head on down the road. The rain had frozen in the trees, creating an absolutely mesmerizing landscape as I descended out of the Hill Country and into the flatlands of West Texas. When I got to a lower elevation, the frozen trees gave way to prickly pear cactus and I felt as though I had arrived in the West. I made my way through Mason, Menard and Eden before landing for the night in San Angelo. I hit the gym and then headed out for some delicious Tex-Mex food and a quick beer before calling it an early night.

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Snapshots: Door County: The Quaint Peninsula

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Snapshots: Door County: The Quaint Peninsula

I haven’t met many people in Wisconsin who don’t get a dreamy look in their eyes at the mere mention of Door County. It’s clearly a place near and dear to generations of people who have passed time there over the years and it definitely lived up to the hype. Door County is the peninsula which juts out between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, often thought of as Wisconsin’s Thumb. The well-manicured towns that make up Door County are often likened to New England seaside towns and while I can see the similarities, to me they were unique and wonderful and pure Wisconsin. Each town on the peninsula was beautiful and special in its own way, and I think travelers’ own tastes would be the only way to choose a favorite. The beautiful flowers, clean beaches, busy farm stands, pristine state parks and great little restaurants all helped make my stay in Door County a good one. I definitely understand what all the fuss is about and I know when I hear someone mention it in the future, I may get a dreamy look in my eyes myself. I hope you enjoy these photos from my stay in quaint and charming Door County, Wisconsin.

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This Week on the Road - July 22nd-29th

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This Week on the Road - July 22nd-29th

Hello Everyone! How are y’all doing out there? I hope everyone’s summer is going well and you’re getting out and having adventures of your own out there. I can’t believe it’s almost August and I know it’s going to be cooling down here in the north in just a few more weeks so I’m trying to soak up the sun and enjoy the summer while it lasts. Even Lake Superior is pleasant to swim in this time of year up here, so I’m swimming every day I can. It’s been a busy week here in Michigan as I’ve finally crossed over into the Upper Peninsula. It’s definitely different here from what I was finding “down south” – the towns are smaller and less polished, but the people are friendly and very passionate about their region. These “Yoopers”, as they call themselves, weren’t connected to the rest of Michigan until the completion of the Mackinac Bridge in 1959, so they’ve developed independently of the rest of the state. It’s interesting to see. I’ve had a great week of lighthouses (surprise!), history and some really beautiful sights and I can’t wait to share with you what I’ve been up to this week, so here we go:

When I finished writing last week I headed out of Petoskey and hopped on Michigan 119, the Tunnel of Trees Scenic Byway. It was a beautiful road, barely two lanes wide, which bobbed and weaved up the coast through some cute little towns and beautiful scenery. I imagine it would be quite spectacular in the fall when all those deciduous trees have changed colors. The Scenic Byway ended in tiny Cross Village which is home to the Legs Inn, one of the more well-known off-the-beaten-path restaurants in the state. The Legs Inn was built by Polish immigrant Stan Smolak almost a hundred years ago and it’s still owned and run by his family today. It gets its name from the old stove legs which run the length of the building’s roof. The rest of the place is a work of art in its own right having been carved out of whatever wood or other materials Stan and his mostly Odawa Indian friends could come up with at the time. A lot of the tables are two tree stumps with a plank between them (cleaned, sanded, stained, varnished and looking really good, though). The food is from his native Poland and in a regular summer they would bring Polish students over to work at the inn. My server was from Poland, here on a student visa since before the pandemic. I had a taste plate which included a cabbage roll, hunter’s stew and pierogis, and I washed it down with a refreshing Polish beer. My lunch was very good and the atmosphere was great and it was definitely well worth the stop.

From Cross Village, I headed clear across the state to Cheboygan on the banks of Lake Huron. I went out to the State Park for a quick swim and then came back to town in the late afternoon. I visited the old Crib Lighthouse, which was very cool and made for some good black and white photos, and then just wandered around downtown for a while. Although there is definitely tourism there thanks to nearby Mackinac Island and the lake itself, Cheboygan felt more like just a regular town than most I have been in on my way up the Lake Michigan coast. To be honest, I found it quite refreshing. In my time in the Deep South and Appalachia I felt like regular towns were the norm and touristy places were the exception. Here in Michigan I’ve felt quite the opposite. That being said, there was some great public art on display including a wonderful mural of the town’s history. I stopped in the Cheboygan Brewing Company for a quick beer and they had a great fire pit outside which made conversation with strangers quite easy. From there, I had to make a quick stop into Pub 27 up the road because they had a great neon sign outside and it looked like a regular people’s bar in a regular people’s town. I was sure glad that I stopped in. The bartender, Taryn, is a 3rd generation Cheboyganer and the bar is owned by her parents who own several other business ventures in town as well. Her boyfriend, Alex, was very friendly as well and they were interested to hear about my travels and what I thought of Michigan. I enjoyed chatting with them, but I had an early start the next morning, so I called it an early night.

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Snapshots: Cape Henlopen State Park

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Snapshots: Cape Henlopen State Park

Just before New Year, I was thrilled to be able to get away from the city for a few days and visit beautiful Cape Henlopen State Park in Delaware. Only about two and a half hours from my front door in Washington DC, Cape Henlopen felt a world away. Built on the ruins of Fort Miles, a World War II fort which protected the Delaware Bay (and Wilmington and Philadelphia along with it), many of the buildings and watchtowers still remain intact in the park today. Beyond that, there are beautiful long beaches which provide plenty of space to stretch out and enjoy all the recreational opportunities the area has to offer. I particularly liked the Fishing Pier which provided a view to the west and the setting sun. The park was quiet when I was there and I got to enjoy some of the wildlife in the area, from deer to horsehoe crabs. Cape Henlopen was a wonderful escape from the city and felt like a breath of fresh air after so many months. I hope you enjoy these photos from this beautiful Delaware state park.

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D.C. Chronicles Volume 26

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D.C. Chronicles Volume 26

Hello Everyone, well this week officially marks the half-year point of being sheltered-in-place here in Washington D.C. This is definitely not what I had planned for my 2020, but it is what it is and I’m still grateful to be here all things considered. I have watched spring turn to summer, hung on through the long, humid summer days and now I am watching the temperatures drop and the leaves start to change. I’ve tried to keep myself and my folks active and busy the best I can and I’ve really enjoyed being able to read more, play some music, do some writing and learn more about the history of my hometown. I’ve made friends with a 2 year-old who shares my daytime adventures with me and traveled with my mom around the region to explore Civil War sites and local scenic byways and neighborhoods. I’ve tried hard to keep this blog going despite the fact that it’s supposed to be a travel blog which 2020 simply had other plans for. If you’re still reading and following along, I really appreciate you. Believe me when I say I hope that I can get back on the road sooner rather than later and continue my adventures around the country. There are a lot of unknowns in the future, even on the other side of this, but I’m excited and hopeful for what’s to come.

This week has been pretty quiet. There is definitely a chill in the air and nighttime temperatures have dipped near freezing. Mason and I continue our exploration of the woods near his house and have found several new-to-me trails to wander down. Now that it’s cooler I can’t have him splashing around in the water, so we spend more time walking and exploring and less time throwing things in the creek. He seems to learn and grow every day and we both continue to learn from each other. He definitely wears me out, and when he takes an afternoon nap, I take one too.

I’ve finished The Pirate Hunters book and enjoyed it so much I’m staying on that vein for a while as I picked up a book I had started many years ago called …and a Bottle of Rum. It’s a fun look at the history of rum from its origins in the Caribbean through to more modern times. I bought it when I worked as a kayak guide on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands to have something to teach my adult participants, which was fun but I never got through to the end of it. I’ve got another book on pirates lined up for after this one as well before I shift gears to something else.

On Friday, we did our weekly basement party with a theme of Blues, Brews and Barbecues. We tapped into our home-brewed IPA which is finally ready to drink and we really enjoyed it…

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Snapshots: Waimea Canyon - The Grand Canyon of the Pacific

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Snapshots: Waimea Canyon - The Grand Canyon of the Pacific

At 10 miles long and 3,600 feet deep, Waimea Canyon is often called the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific”. Formed by the erosion caused by the Waimea River, a river which flows from the “rainiest place on Earth”, the canyon gets its name from the red hue of the exposed iron-oxide of its walls. Situated in the heart of the tiny and remote island of Kauai, there didn’t seem to be nearly as many visitors there when we visited as I would have expected from something of this size and grandeur. All the better to enjoy it, though. While it was a bit hazy for photography that day, I hope you enjoy these photos from beautiful Waimea Canyon.


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This Week on the Road - March 8th-14th

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This Week on the Road - March 8th-14th

Spring seems to have sprung here in Louisiana this week with temperatures reaching the low eighties with a wonderful breeze to cool everything off. People were out mowing their lawns in the nice weather, and the smell of freshly cut grass enhanced that notion in my mind. Louisiana strawberries are coming into season, and Daylight Savings Time has extended my days a little bit, making everything feel less rushed. It has been a wonderful winter here in the South, but it is nice to see some of these indicators that the season is changing.

After Mardi Gras and months and months on the road, I took a little break for a few days. I was staying with my friend Luke and I had a lot of work to catch up on, so I just laid low on Thursday and Friday. I got back to the gym and started eating salads again. I did edit a lot of Mardi Gras photos though, with more to come, and created a few posts about my New Orleans experiences.

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This Week on the Road - February 7th-14th

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This Week on the Road - February 7th-14th

It’s been another great week out here on the road. This week I’ve made my way to a handful of Florida’s 700 natural freshwater springs, enjoying some swimming, kayaking, snorkeling and boat tours as I went. I also dipped into some real “Old Florida” towns, most notably at Cedar Key and Micanopy. This week I also visited the State Capitol in Tallahassee and enjoyed the Florida History Museum there as well. I ended off the week by dropping down to the “Forgotten Coast” and cruising along the Gulf of Mexico through hurricane ravaged towns. I’ve seen some really stunning places this week and learned a lot as I went. As I write this, I’m coming to the end of my time in Florida, and I must admit I will be sad to see it pass into my rear view mirror

My week started with a visit to Three Sister’s Spring National Wildlife Refuge in Crystal River for one more look at the manatees. Once again, as has been my experience throughout Florida, this proved to be a little too expensive to provide value for money. You have to park at City Hall and pay the $15 entrance fee and then hop on a shuttle for the five minute ride to the refuge. Once there, there is a nice boardwalk around the spring itself, which is beautiful, and some great spots to view the largest population of manatee in Florida. When I was there, it was a fairly warm morning, so there were only about 20 manatee around. They were amazing to see and photograph, and there were tons of volunteers around to help answer questions, but if it had only been $7-8 it would have been better. I hope the money went to preserving the habitat and keeping the manatee healthy…

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Snapshots: Myakka River State Park

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Snapshots: Myakka River State Park

Myakka River State Park surrounds Florida’s first designated Wild and Scenic River. The river winds through a vast expanse of wetlands, prairies, hammocks and pine forest, and is a welcome break from the Tampa-St. Petersburg corridor just a little over an hour north. The park showcases an amazing diversity of flora and fauna and it felt so unspoiled when I visited. I went with my friend Amber, who is a serious naturalist, and she showed me all kinds of wonderful things while we were there. We started our visit at the suspension bridge and observation tower which took us through and then above the canopy for a bird’s eye view of the park. It was amazing to look out across the park and not see a building in any direction. From there we went and hiked out to Mossy Hammock Campground along the Fox’s High Road and were surrounded by live oak draped in Spanish moss and beautiful birdsong. We emerged into the prairies for a while, where her dog could run at full speed. When we finished our hike, we spent some time by the lake, enjoying the magical reflections we saw there. In all, it was an amazing day out in the wild with good company and beautiful weather. It was a little wet on the trails, but we managed. This was a great park to visit, and I hope you enjoy my photos from Myakka River State Park.

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Snapshots: The Manatees of Blue Springs State Park

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Snapshots: The Manatees of Blue Springs State Park

Blue Springs State Park near Orange City is one of several winter homes for the wonderful West Indian Manatee. Also sometimes called the “sea cow”, manatees can reach up to 13 feet in length and can weigh as much as 1300 lbs. Despite their size, manatees are quite graceful in the water, propelling themselves with their large tails, and can reach speeds up to 15 miles per hour. Manatees are mammals, so they need to breath air, but can hold their breath for up to 15 minutes at a time. They are vegetarians, and have no natural enemies, but are often wounded by the propellers of passing boats. In the 1970’s, manatees were placed on the Endangered Species List, but their population has rebounded and in 2017 they were downgraded to threatened status. They are sheer pleasure to watch, and the water of Blue Springs State Park is so clear it makes the experience even better. I enjoyed hiking to the source of the springs, which is also a scuba dive site when the manatees aren’t in for the winter. The park also offers boat tours and kayak and canoe rentals to explore the St. Johns River, but the manatee habitat is closed for the private use of the animals. Located only an hour or so from Orlando, this makes a great getaway from the crowds and noise of the amusement parks. I loved my visit to this park and happily just stood and watched the manatees for hours. I highly recommend Blue Springs State Park for anyone visiting Florida in the winter when the manatees are in their winter home.

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Snapshots: Cloudland Canyon

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Snapshots: Cloudland Canyon

Cloudland Canyon State Park is in the far northwest corner of Georgia, an easy half-day trip from Chattanooga and a reasonable day-trip from Atlanta. It is a beautiful place with a thousand-foot deep canyon on the western edge of Lookout Mountain. Even the name makes me smile and conjures up magical images in my head. The hike down to the waterfalls involves a lot of steps, but is well worth the effort. I got there a little late in the day to get good light for my photos in the canyon itself, but the stunning dusk and sunset views from the rim made up for it. This was a wonderful introduction to the state and a great place to spend the afternoon. This was my first visit to Cloudland Canyon, but it will not be my last. I hope you enjoy these photos from my visit, remember you can always click on them to see a larger view.

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