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Winter in Anchorage, Alaska

15 Jan A Photo Essay: Winter in Anchorage, Alaska

Posted at 09:20h in Alaska, Blog, Photo Essay, United States

For some reason, Alaska has always seemed so unattainable. There’s so much to see over such a large area, and I figured we would need several weeks during both winter and summer to even scratch the surface. Well, after spotting cheap airfare last winter, we...

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Ice Castles, Stillwater, MN

12 Jan Ice Castles: Magical World of Winter in Minnesota

Posted at 09:30h in Blog, Minnesota, United States, Urban Adventure

There’s something magical about a winter wonderland and a castle made of ice. And, you will definitely find magic when you visit Ice Castles in Stillwater, Minnesota. Walls made of thousands of icicles surround you in every direction. During the day, the blueish-white walls glisten...

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Camping at True North Basecamp in Crosby, Minnesota

07 Nov Camping in Lakefront Cabins at True North Basecamp

Posted at 10:40h in Blog, Minnesota, Outdoor Adventure, United States

The adorable lakefront cabins at True North Basecamp offer an experience akin to glamping. Located in Crosby, Minnesota, the six onsite cabins come with several amenities while still offering a camping feel, which creates the perfect combination of comfort and nature. We were in desperate need...

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Toadstool Geologic Park, Nebraska

22 Oct Hitting the Trails: Hiking at Toadstool Geologic Park

Posted at 09:30h in Blog, Nebraska, Outdoor Adventure, United States

One of the most unexpected spots we have visited in the past couple of years has to be Toadstool Geologic Park. Would you believe these scenes are located in Nebraska?! I have to say we never expected to find landscapes like this in a state that...

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Brewery Hopping, Ale Trail Columbus, Ohio

14 Oct Brewery Hopping Along the Ale Trail in Columbus

Posted at 14:30h in Blog, Ohio, United States, Urban Adventure

Just as we couldn’t resist exploring the Coffee Trail and the Made in CBUS Trail while we were in Columbus, Ohio, we also couldn’t pass up the chance to delve into the Ale Trail. All three of these trails are based on a similar concept—each...

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Made in CBUS Trail in Columbus, Ohio

11 Oct Getting Local in Columbus on the Made in CBUS Trail

Posted at 09:15h in Blog, Ohio, United States, Urban Adventure

If there is one thing that stands out in our minds from our trip to Columbus, Ohio, it has to be the wonderful variety of locally owned businesses, restaurants, cafes, breweries, and boutiques. We spent a large portion of our time exploring the city on...

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Paisley Park, Prince Memorial, Chanhassen, Minnesota

30 Sep Paying Respects to Prince at Paisley Park

Posted at 09:30h in Blog, Minnesota, United States, Urban Adventure

Prince is a musical icon known around the world. Paisley Park, Prince’s private estate and production complex is located in a suburb of Minneapolis, and Prince had a special impact on the area that we call home. I’ve always enjoyed Prince’s creations; sure, I may...

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Halloween Haunt at ValleySCARE in Shakopee, Minnesota

25 Sep Ghosts, Zombies and Monsters: The Halloween Haunt at ValleySCARE

Posted at 13:30h in Blog, Minnesota, United States, Urban Adventure

Every year as autumn sets in, the zombies come out and the haunt begins at ValleySCARE. The lights go down, fog and screams fill the air, and monsters lurk around every corner. Mazes of horror appear, rides are roaring, and Valleyfair is transformed into a...

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Walker Art Center and Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, Minneapolis, Minnesota

21 Sep 3 Iconic Museums in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Posted at 09:15h in Blog, Minnesota, United States, Urban Adventure

There are many great museums in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and I visited three of them while exploring the city on a trip with Marriott. During my weeklong trip exploring my own backyard, we made our way to the Walker Art Center & Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, Mill...

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A Week in Minneapolis, Minnesota

16 Sep A Photo Essay: A Week Exploring Minneapolis

Posted at 09:15h in Blog, Minnesota, Photo Essay, United States

I always love exploring my own backyard, so when the opportunity came up to join a group of travel bloggers and writers on a weeklong adventure in Minneapolis, I happily agreed. Micah was gone for a work project for most of the week, so he...

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Hocking Hills State Park, Ohio

14 Sep Waterfalls and Hiking at Hocking Hills State Park

Posted at 09:15h in Blog, Ohio, Outdoor Adventure, United States

A healthy mix of nature and city adventure is always on our to-do list. As much as we enjoy exploring cities, we are ecstatic anytime we can sneak away for a dose of nature. When we were visiting Columbus, Ohio, we couldn’t resist heading an...

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Coffee Trail in Columbus, Ohio

05 Sep Sipping Java along the Coffee Trail in Columbus

Posted at 09:30h in Blog, Ohio, United States, Urban Adventure

I have to admit that I am slightly…ok completely obsessed with coffee. We have taken several coffee tours in the past, and thankfully, Micah has become a fan of this certain caffeinated beverage in the last several years. So, it goes without saying, when I...

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Another hike that we went on during our time in De Another hike that we went on during our time in Death Valley National was the Golden Canyon Trail with the Red Cathedral extension! We really enjoyed the landscape throughout this hike—it was another one of our favorite trails in Death Valley. The trail is 1.5 miles each way (3 miles round trip), and the last 0.5 miles of the trail, aka the Red Cathedral Trail, requires some scrambling, ledges, and low overhangs.

The Golden Canyon/Red Cathedral trail was so fun and we loved weaving through, under, and over tight rock formations. Plus, the views at the end of the trail were beautiful. Apparently, some scenes from Star Wars were filmed in this area, and I can see why—it looked like we were walking through an entirely different world!
At first, Badwater Basin in Death Valley National At first, Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park doesn’t look like much, but when you learn more about this piece of land, it’s quite interesting. Badwater Basin is the lowest elevation point in North America, at 282 ft below sea level. The land here is made up of a salt flat that stretches nearly 200 square miles. If you look hard for the tiny white sign in the mountains in the 5th photo (straight up above the Cruise America RV) you can see where sea level is. Standing on the salt flat and looking up at the sea level sign really puts the low elevation into perspective! We couldn’t help but imagine standing at the bottom of the lake that once covered this area.

We walked about a mile out onto the flats and loved seeing all the salt polygons and unique formations all around us. The farther we walked the less people we saw, and it was quite peaceful during our sunset stroll. We ended up visiting Badwater Basin twice during our trip, and I already want to head back again. There’s just so much to see if you take the time to look!
When standing at the Zabriski Point Lookout in Dea When standing at the Zabriski Point Lookout in Death Valley National Park, you overlook stunning hills and canyons of the Badlands. And if you look close, you might see people hiking far out on the landscape. One of the trails that runs through this area is the Badlands Loop, and it is a fantastic option for a hike!  Wandering through the narrow canyons and up along the hills of the Badlands provides a beautiful vantage point of this colorful area. 

The Badlands Loop is a 2.7 mile trail that runs through the gulch and up along the top of the ridges. There isn’t much shade on this trial, especially if you hike it during the heat of the day, so try to avoid a midday hike here when the temperatures are high. There are several trails that intersect in this area; you can connect to both the Gower Gulch Trail and the Golden Canyon Trail to make it one longer 7.8 mile loop hike. We hiked Golden Canyon earlier on our trip, so this time around we just hiked the Badlands Loop. Photos 1-8 are from the Badlands Loop trail, and 9-10 are from the Zabriski Point overlook the day prior when the skies were much more cloudy!
We spent 2.5 days exploring Death Vally National P We spent 2.5 days exploring Death Vally National Park this past winter, and we sure packed a lot into our visit. Hiking the wide variety of trails was our favorite way to explore the park. All of the trails were fantastic, but the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes was one of our favorite stops. We visited the dunes several times during our three days in the park, and each visit was at a different time of day. We were there for sunset, at night to see the stars, and at sunrise. When we went for sunrise, we hiked our way out to the summit of the tallest dune. The summit is roughly 1 mile from the parking lot, although there is no formal trail to get there and back. 

Along the hike, we spotted someone painting the sunrise from the top of one of the dunes. We couldn’t help but stop and chat with her and Micah snapped a few photos—we absolutely loved her artwork! We also enjoyed finding lots of animal prints in the sand. Even though the distance was short, the hike was tough as the sand is very hard to walk on. It felt like every step forward equaled two steps back! But the feeling you get from conquering the tallest dune is well worth it. It’s a beautiful portion of the park to explore!
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