I had never been to Arizona — now the 35th state I have checked off my race to all 50 — so you can imagine my excitement as I first laid eyes on the sign that read: “The Grand Canyon State Welcomes You”. My main objective was to visit that gargantuan hole in the earth that has entranced visitors for centuries. So, after finally making a stop at the damn dam and a nearby overlook of Lake Mead, I instructed the Google Maps machine to take me to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
Read More“Is this Heaven?” No, and it isn’t Iowa either. It’s Washington, baby, and the view from up here is one of the most breathtaking ones you will find anywhere in North America. Where is “up here”, you ask? “Up here” would be the summit at Crystal Mountain Resort, where, after a brief ride on a gondola, you are afforded one of the most fantastic views of Mount Rainier that you may ever see.
Read MoreFor once in my life, I looked around, surrounded by unfamiliar territory, and though I had the greatest urge to spout that age-old movie reference — “we’re not in Kansas anymore” — the fact of the matter was that, yes, we very much were in Kansas. I mean, in the very heart of America, in that region known as the Great Plains, you have some idea of what you’ll come across, but reading about it or seeing a photo or video is truly not the same as being surrounded by rolling green hills as far as the eye can see.
Read MoreKey West wasn’t necessarily high on my travel bucket list, but it was on there (as is just about every other destination on planet Earth). Regardless, I figured it was better to visit sooner rather than later; that is, before the Florida Keys succumb in their entirety to the catastrophic effects of unchecked climate change and become the newest version of the Lost City of Atlantis.
Read MoreMichigan is full of majesty, mystery, and might, each of which comes in many forms. This three-part series highlights just some of what the Mitten State has to offer, county by county. Welcome to Part Three, which covers the final 22 counties alphabetically, from Newaygo to Wexford.
Read MoreHidden in the 17.5 million acres of forest spread across the state of Maine are a number of abandoned sites. These include vacant paper mills, deserted homes, old forts, and underground bunkers. But one of the most interesting things you’ll find in the woods of northern Maine are a pair of long-forgotten locomotive engines, rusting away in the middle of nowhere.
Read MoreMichigan is full of majesty, mystery, and might, each of which comes in many forms. This three-part series highlights just some of what the Mitten State has to offer, county by county. Welcome to Part Two, which covers 32 counties alphabetically, from Hillsdale to Muskegon.
Read MoreIt would be very easy to write something here about the island of Anguilla not necessarily being anyone’s first choice when it comes to planning a Caribbean vacation. It would be even easier to say that you might instead consider destinations such as the Bahamas, St. Thomas, or the Dominican. And it would be tempting to remark that you could hardly be blamed for choosing one of those other destinations. So let’s not do any of that.
Read MoreAs you might remember, it began with an airplane — more specifically, the kind that flies right over your head as you stand on a tiny beach. That phenomenon, if you will, was what brought us to Saint Martin, an island in the northeastern Caribbean Sea comprised of territory belonging to the Netherlands and France.
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