I am beyond excited for this trip. I have lived in California basically my entire life. During those forty years, I have seen the overwhelming majority of the state. But next week, I get to spend some time exploring a part of the state I’ve never before been able to visit: gold country. At the…
Editor’s note: what a wonderful story of bonding with a newborn through travel! Sam’s adventures may be changing, but I have no doubt that his stories, while a bit different, will be just as inspiring to all of us. For more of Sam’s incredible writing, click here to visit his index page. As everyone knows,…
I hope you are all enjoying my stories from Northern Arizona. While those will continue for the next few weeks - I love when a trip gives me so many things to write - it is time for my next trip. I have spent a TON of time in Northern California, but relatively little along…
It’s been almost fourteen months since I returned from Spain, leaving that trip three weeks early because there were *gasp* more than 100 daily cases of this new coronavirus there. I figured I’d ride it out back in Los Angeles, returning to travel by summer at the latest. Little did I know I’d spend the…
Palm Springs is hot in July. Very hot. Wearing my mask, I grab a double-double and a vanilla shake from California's most iconic burger chain, In N Out, and start up a winding road into the mountains. This road, California Highway 74 and turning into California Highway 243, is known as the Palms to Pines…
With international travel seeming to largely be out of the picture, at least for the near future, but summer and fall vacation plans upon us, let's talk about how to take a basically free road trip - or to plan one for next year. Road trips are one of my favorite ways to travel. There…
What makes the world's best zoo? Is it the best value for the money? If so, the St. Louis Zoo might be tops, given the fact that it is both good and free. (Parking is expensive, however.) Is it the largest? San Diego might take the prize. Is it the most unique? The Night Safari…
The rolling plains of Iowa are covered in cornfields, just like a scene out of Field of Dreams, broken up by the occasional silo or windmill. It is beautiful, if redundant after the first 30 or 40 miles. But it's not the reason I'm in Iowa. Welcome to Iowa! In Des Moines, I visit the…
About seven years ago, my father moved from California to Dillsboro, Indiana, just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. He had always wanted to try small town life, and chose Dillsboro since one of his closest friends lived there with her family. The town was good to him. He made some amazing friends, and formed a wonderful…
What if I told you there was a place where green met blue, with forests extending all the way to beautiful shores? What if I told you that this place of immense natural beauty also had a fascinating history? Finally, what if I told you that this place was right here in the United States,…