There are a number of great activities in Cape Hatteras but chartering a small plane for what they now call Flightseeing surprisingly brought this preserve into focus. A pilot was found via advertisment in a local pamphlet and a time was set. We met in the morning at an airstrip in Frisco, just a few miles south of Buxton, home of the historic Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.
In the lab accident also known as my first job out of college, when the prospect of slogging it out, day after day, year after year hit me in the face like a wind-shift along side a Yellowstone sulpher pot, a certain escapist fantasy developed. It was this first run-in with disillusionment that spontaneously coaxed my mind toward a happier existance. Given these conditions, it was not surprising that being a National Park Ranger seeped through my mind as a significantly better alternative. The great outdoors, hard brimmed hats, and well-cut uniforms all played into the dream. I guess there was also a lingering subconsious sense of escape due to the fact that everytime I visited a National Park I also happened to be (surprise) on vacation. Well of course, the reasoning went, if I worked in a park, life would be all vacation, all the time. Well, not quite. (more…)
Did this one in 2004. No weaknesses. Saw and did more great stuff in less time than any vacation I ever took. 10 parks total.
Day 1 -
Begin Las Vegas. Tip: Get there the night before and enjoy one of many incredible buffet breakfasts in the morning. Always good to start a trip with a feast.
Destination: Zion NP.
Accomodation: Stay at Zion Lodge or just outside the park.
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Almost everything about Yosemite is old. Old magnificent trees, old awe inspiring rock formations, and old, tall waterfalls. Unfortunately, not everything old is always good. Yosemite Lodge is, well… old. The design of the property puts the parking on one side and the strip cabins on the other resulting in a long distance luggage haul for most visitors. And if you arrive after dark as we did you may have difficulty finding a spot at all. (more…)
I saw an article today in the Wall Street Journal speculating on what America will be like when the population expands to 400 Million. Instead of speculating, folks should simply visit Cape Hatteras National Seashore. While visiting Hatteras, basically a hangnail off the coast of North Carolina, numerous times over the last twenty years it has evolved from sleepy, forgotten outpost to something approaching every other beach resort town on the east coast. Where there once were protections for the dunes that stretch on for miles there are now stilted vacation homes and the erosion they bring. There was once a time when on a mid-summer day beach stroll one might encounter at most a handful of fellow vacationers. Today, the shrinking beaches crowd up early and there are fees for entering the famous Cape Hatteras lighthouse. All symptoms of discovery by the ever surging masses. (more…)
When visiting Arches NP folks staying for more than 10 minutes will normally spend the night in the small town of Moab. Moab has gone from dot on the map thirty years ago to being a sought out recreation mecca. But along with rafting on the Colorado and serious mountain biking I recommend taking a Hummer tour through an area called Hell’s Revenge.
Webster’s Dictionary definition: boon*dog*gle
Function: noun
: a wasteful or impractical project or activity often involving graft
The Golden Spike National Historic Site in Promontory, Utah would be more aptly named Boondoggle NHS if the name was truly representative. Harsh? Let me explain. And I’ve gone to lengths to avoid the kind of bias that results from having visited the site on the final day of a two week vacation with my wife and two teenagers.
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