Sand Boarding at the Dunes For a small fee you can rent sand boards near the National Park, they do not rent inside the park. We rented for a the day and really had a blast around sunset. There were clouds rolling in, which gave us some nice shade. Definitely go early morning or near sunset, because the sand is super hot!! We went again the next day around 11 am and we didn’t last very long. The sand was unbearably hot! Zapata Falls
Short, easy, rocky hike to the creek. If you follow the creek upstream you will come to a beautiful waterfall. The water is ice cold! This is not in the National Park, but just down the road from the park entrance.
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Such an interesting National Park. Lots of history and some neat views of the ruins. Many pit houses and cliff dwellings. I would highly recommend booking a tour of a cliff dwelling. We weren’t so lucky. You have to book online at 8 am, exactly 2 weeks in advance. I missed it by a day and looked daily for openings with no luck. They no longer take day of reservations for tours, everything is done online…pretty disappointing. A guided tour is the only way to see the ruins up close. There are no more self-guided tours at Spruce Tree House. I does look like they have plans to renovate it in the future, so I really hope that happens. Also, summer of 2023 the park was doing road work. We were only able to see half of the park. We tried to make the most of our time at Mesa Verde even though we were unable to see the whole park and also missed out on a guided tour. Views from the OverlooksPetroglyph Point Hike This was a really fun hike. It was advertised as strenuous, and it was. You could walk just the top half to climb down to see the petroglyphs and go back, but I would suggest doing the whole thing. It was a beautiful hike! Dark Sky ParkWe stayed at many dark sky parks on this trip, but Mesa Verde was the best view of the stars due to a full moon at the other parks. I never figured out how to take a night sky photo with our Cannon camera, so my iPhone is all I could get!
Page, Arizona is a beautiful town. So much to see and do in the area. Some of our favorite excursions were near Page! Hiking The Wave, touring Antelope Canyon X, seeing Horseshoe Bend at sunset, and swimming at Lone Rock were all such fun experiences! The WAVEThis was definitely a bucket list hike! Months in advance I applied for a permit for this hike and somehow won! They only allow up to 20 groups and 60 people to hike per day. I really didn’t realize how hard it was to get a permit until we were here. Many locals were shocked we got one and said they knew people that were trying for years! The day before the hike, we attended their safety meeting. Road conditions, safety for hiking in the heat, and trail tips were all covered. Honestly, besides road conditions the rest we were already prepared for. The meeting actually was more of a scare tactic for us, we are pretty experienced hikers and this meeting made us be over prepared. The hike itself is about 3-4 miles one way, depending on how much you venture off to see surrounding features. I would say the hike is a moderate hike, about 1000 feet elevation gain. There were actually more trail markers than we thought and you can see other hikers tracks in the sand. We downloaded the AllTrails map and had no problems navigating our way. We even went to see some other rock formations that were off the trail. The hardest part of the hike was beating the heat. We started at sunrise around 5:30 am. It was going to be in the 90’s by 10:30 am so our goal was to be back to the truck by then. A sunrise start was perfect. We were in the shade pretty much the whole way to The Wave. Horseshoe BendPay $10 for the parking fee and walk about 1/2 mile to see the overlook. We went and sunset and saw some spectacular colors! Antelope Canyon XWe chose to take the Antelope Canyon X Tour because we wanted smaller crowds in the slot canyon. “X” is the same canyon as the iconic Antelope Canyon just a different part. We only had 13 people in our group and were given lots of time to wander around the slot canyon on our own. It was exactly what we were looking for in our slot canyon experience. Our guide was great and took pictures for us and gave tips on camera settings. Swimming SpotsWith the heat we definitely needed to cool off. We checked out two swimming spots. Lake Powell is huge, so I'm sure there were more in the area. Lone Rock Beach Lone Rock was an actual beach. You do have to drive on dirt roads and sand to get there, but we felt pretty safe since people had their campers right on the beach. It would be a fun spot to camp someday. However, when the wind picked up tents and sand were flying. Antelope Point Marina Beach
Antelope Marina was nice, but not much of a beach. You have to walk down the rocks and there were little nooks to hang out on, big drop offs though! The water was refreshing! North RimWe spend two days exploring the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We took a UTV tour to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon through Kanab Tour Company. It was a really fun way to see the Grand Canyon. Our guide, Colton, was great and happened to be the mayor of Kanab!! We did over 70 miles off-roading through the Kailab National Forest and were able to stop at multiple view points of the Grand Canyon! This was a pretty cool way to see the back country! Hiking Cape Final Trail About a 4 mile trail. Perfect if you don't have a lot of time. Mostly shaded through the forest, perfect for this hot day. The trail leads to some beautiful views! Bright Angel Point Trail Easy walk to a lookout, less than a mile. Close to the visitor center. Cape Royal Trail Easy paved trail, about a mile. Great views of the canyon and a natural bridge. Spear Grass Wars Our UTV guide showed the kids the fun of Spear Grass! All our hikes afterwards involved Spear Grass wars, LOL! Kanab was our home to see lots of amazing features in this area. We stayed at Crazy Horse RV Campground. It was very small, but had a really nice pool…exactly what we needed in this heat. It was high 90’s and even 100’s while we were there, so a pool was a necessity for our Wisconsin blood! Zion National ParkE-Bikes About an hour drive from our campground was Zion. We spent one day at Zion National Park. We chose to rent E-bikes from Zion Peddler, highly recommend!!! We picked our bikes up at 6 am and headed on the Pa’Rus trail in Zion. This trail is only for bikes, pedestrians, and shuttles! We didn’t see a soul until we hit the Scout’s Lookout trail! It was amazing! Seeing the park from an E-bike was so cool and so fun! Scout Lookout This is a very challenging trail, 3.6 with over 1,000 feet elevation gain. This is the trail that leads to Angel’s Landing. You can do all of the trail except for the last 1/2 mile of Angel’s Landing unless you won a lottery reservation, which we did not. Highly recommend doing Scout Lookout even if you didn’t get an Angel’s Landing reservation. It has some amazing views! The NarrowsThe Narrows This is definitely one of my favorite hikes of all time! It definitely lives up to the hype! We chose not to rent the boots, socks, and walking sticks, but its a great option if you don’t have your own equipment. Mia and I wore our hiking boots with wool socks, Travis wore an old pair of sneakers, and Jess wore his Keen sandals. I would say it all depends on your skill level and experience hiking through water. I personally need the ankle support on uneven terrain, so my hiking boots were perfect. Travis and Jess are more agile and don’t have the weak ankles so their choices worked for them. We hiked 8 miles in total and the further we got the less people we saw. The highest water levels we had to walk through was chest deep, Mia was happy to get a ride from her big brother! It was about 10:30 and a little cooler in the Narrows so she wasn’t ready to get soaked yet. By the afternoon, we were all swimming in the deeper parts to stay cool! The water was actually not as cold as I thought and with my hiking boots, my feet never got too cold. It was a beautiful hike! KanabSand Caves Fun little scramble up the sandstone to see the Sand Caves. Easy to get to, just park in the lot next to Moqui Caves and follow the path to the sandstone, scramble up and walk to the caves. Make sure to wear good shoes for traction, although my kids did it in their crocs…I wouldn’t recommend! Belly of the Dragon
Literally right off of the parking lot, fun little walk for the kids and a nice place to stay cool! Bryce Canyon National ParkOnly a 2 hour drive from Capitol Reef, we enjoyed a slow morning and took our time getting to Bryce. I would recommend taking the scenic route 12 if you have time and not a huge rig. We drove to Escalante the day before without the camper, lots of elevation gain, twisty roads, but very beautiful! Navajo Loop One of our favorites! This was our first look at the beauty of Bryce Canyon! On the Navajo Loop you will see the iconic Thor's Hammer and Wall Street. There are some fun switchbacks and some elevation gain, but a really fun trail! Queens Garden We combined this one with the Navajo Loop, it was a great hike. Steep coming up to the top, but worth it. Peekaboo Loop Another one of our favorite hikes! Very hard hike. We gain 1500 feet elevation during this 5 mile hike. So many cool spots to stop for pictures, which helps you catch your breath, LOL! Seriously, a great hike and so many great views of the hoodoos! Mossy Cave Trail Beautiful little hike to a waterfall! The water was really strong and very cold! Felt great on this hot day. Sunset Point to Sunrise Point
We missed the glow of sunset, I would suggest getting there at least an hour beforehand. The next morning we woke up early for sunrise and it was spectacular! Capitol Reef National ParkWe had a short 5 hour drive to Torrey, Utah. We were able to get set up and enjoy some pool time at our campground, Thousand Lakes. Then we headed to the National Park for a couple of fun hikes! Hiking at Capitol ReefSulphur Creek Waterfall Hike This is a easy 1/2 mile hike right behind the visitor center. Such a beautiful hike with a small waterfall at the end to cool off! Grand Wash Trail to the Narrows Another easy hike, we did this hike around 6 pm and it was mostly shaded! It was a stunning walk through the canyon. Lower Calf Creek Waterfall Hike This hike is in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. It was a little over an hour from Capitol Reef. This was a 6 mile hike to the Lower Calf Creek Waterfall. It was a very hot and sandy hike, but it was well worth the effort. The falls were beautiful and the water was extremely cold, but we all jumped in anyway! Cassidy Arch Trail This was a moderate hike with lots of elevation gain, around 700 feet. This hike tested my fear of heights. There were some really scary moments for me, which made this a difficult hike for me. If you are not afraid of heights, the hardest part is the first mile with the elevation gain. The arch is fascinating and you can even walk on top of the arch. I opted out of that, LOL! Petroglyph Trail On this easy little walk on boardwalks you can see a number of petroglyphs, pretty cool! Goosenecks and Sunset Point This is a great spot for sunrise or sunset. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the best nights for this with the clouds. It was still a pretty spot and easy walk/hike. Fruita
You can visit the old Mormon settlement of Fruita in Capitol Reef National Park. You can see the old one room schoolhouse, the Gifford House, and the orchards. You can visit the Gifford house for fresh pies each morning. It’s a great place to have a picnic lunch in the shade of the huge trees and the company of deer. WOW! This National Park is so underrated. We were here for two nights and only had time to explore the South Rim. Definitely worth the stop! We went to a lot of the viewpoints and hiked a little. We even took a drive to the bottom of the canyon. Rim Rock Trail This hike was a little over one mile one way. Really nice views of the canyon. We stopped at the campground and walked around one of the loops. Pretty flat trail, but I was dying. Hiking in elevation is no joke! Sunsets Our first night we caught a sunset at Dragon Point Overlook. Our second night, we went to Sunset Overlook. Both were spectacular, but I think Sunset Overlook lived up to its name. Overlooks on the South Rim Drive to the bottom of the canyon
Lake McConaughy Known to the locals as Big Mac Lake, Lake McConaughy did not disappoint. The lake itself is huge. There are many options for campgrounds on the lake, we stayed in Cedar View Campground. The campground was really nice and had great views of the lake. We were on the northwest end of the lake which seemed to collect all the driftwood. Not the greatest swimming on this end, but teepee building looked like a very popular activity. If you are up for boon docking, you can also camp right on most of the beaches! With this being our first stop on a 3 week trip, we needed electric to keep 3 weeks worth of food fresh! Would love to camp on the beach someday! Beach Days Not only can you camp on the beach, but you drive your truck right on the beach as well. Very nice not to have to haul all of our beach things. Being our first time, it was a little nerve wracking (mostly for me)! We didn’t get stuck, thankfully! There was a tractor that was cruising the beaches, looks like he was waiting to pull people out of the sand! We never saw him pull people out, but nice to know there was a back up plan. Ash Hollow State Park While in Ogallala, we toured Ash Hollow State Park. Here you can see ruts from the Oregon Trail. Kinda cool to imagine what these explorers had to go through. We climbed Windlass Hill and saw the steep hills the wagons had to cross without brakes. Very interesting. Storms
While here we had a thunderstorm overnight. First time we had hail while camping in the camper. The storm produced quarter size hail, or as the kids said bouncy ball size hail. Fortunately, the only damage was a crack in our shower sunlight. A little caulk fixed that the next day. We spent Memorial Day weekend at a new State Park. Merrick State Park is our 23rd state park visited. We really loved the campsite. It was so spacious, plenty of room to sprawl out, hang hammocks, let the kids run around, and have campfires. This small campground only has 25 electric sites in the North Campground. The South Campground and Island Campground were closed due to flooding. The campground itself was well maintained and very quiet. Nearby there are train tracks and trains go by quite frequently. We don’t mind the train noise, since we are used to it at our own home. Saturday Night at the Nature CenterEvery Saturday night, the Friends of Merrick State Park offer a free show at the nature center. Memorial Day weekend was their first show of the season and it was a great one. The RAD Zoo from Minnesota came to show off some of their fun reptiles and amphibians. It was an hour long show with the ability to touch some of the animals at the end. Very fun and informative, even the adults enjoyed it! GeocachingGeocaching is a fun activity for the family. This campground had 5 caches that we searched for over the weekend. There was one pesky one that we could not find, otherwise the rest were pretty easily found. Mia loves trading little trinkets in the caches. HikingThere isn’t much for hiking trails. There was one 3 mile trail that pretty much takes you around most of the park. There are some nice views of the Mississippi River along the way. If hiking is your goal, this is probably not the park for you because there isn’t a lot of options within the park. South Campground FloodsThe South Campground floods each spring from the Mississippi River. It was still closed when we were there, but we took a walk through it. It was still very muddy and very buggy. Lots of sites right on the river. If you can handle the bugs, it would be a cool spot to camp with kayaks when it opens! Other Things to Do in the AreaLock and Dam A few miles south is a lock and dam. You can’t see a lot, but there is some information to learn about the system. Rock in the House
This is just one of those weird attractions that you have to stop and see if you are there. It is a quick stop, but pretty incredible that this house is still standing. You can no longer go in the house, but you can definitely see the huge boulder in the house. Fishing and Boating This would be a great place to bring a boat or kayaks and do some fishing. We did not partake in those activities this weekend, but it would be a great option. Our trip down to Flordia was filled with dodging tornado warnings and lots of traffic, but we made it safely and spring break 2023 has finally arrived!!! We all were looking forward to this much needed break from our regular routine. Panama City did not disappoint! We enjoyed beautiful beaches, perfect weather, fun adventures, and most importantly lasting family memories. Beach DaysAll of us loved playing in the waves. We had only one yellow flag day and the rest were red flag days, which means we had big waves! Mia loved using her boogie board and riding the wave. Florida State ParksSt. Andrew's State Park St. Andrews State Park We spent two days hanging out at St. Andrews. The beach was beautiful and it's the only place we could find intact seashells and sand dollars. We definitely had to work for them by snorkeling and diving down to get them, but we found ‘em! Travis is great at this, I pretty much hold the net and he does most of the work diving down to get the shells. Another great thing about St. Andrews is you get a dolphin show right out in front of you. All the dolphin tours come to the spot to see them too! Jess was lucky enough to paddle board out and he had dolphins surrounding him on the paddle board, such a cool experience! St. Andrews was also the hot spot to catch Spanish Mackerel. We caught our limit on our fishing charter right off the jetty. People were catching them along the beach and off the pier as well. There is a nice calm side by the jetty as well, our crew opted for the big waves ocean side! There were also some trails through the marshy area where you could probably see some alligators too. It was a little to warm for us to do that. Grayton Beach State ParkGrayton Beach State Park We took a day to drive up to Grayton Beach State Park. This was one of the spots we tried to get camping with no luck. I was very happy we didn’t stay there since Travis and I found 8 Portuguese Man O’War jellyfish within less than a 1/4 mile of the beach. We ended up not staying to swim there, yikes! We brought all our snorkel gear to snorkel Turtle Reef, but on this red flag day it was too far to swim. Plus with all the Portuguese Man O'War jellyfish, we didn't even attempt it. Instead we took turns on the paddleboard on Western Lake. Although, after the fact we saw a sign to watch for alligators…oops! Good thing no one fell in and we didn’t stray too far. HOLY MACKEREL!!!We booked a 4 hour fishing charter and we will probably never be this lucky again. We caught our limit in Spanish Mackerel and just had a blast. We were busy reeling them in almost the entire time. Many times we had all four lines hooked, it was so fun! One of my favorite parts (not so much our captains), was having dolphins steal our fish off the line! We literally had to reel the fish in faster than the dolphin otherwise they would grab the fish and our line. View a quick video on YouTube! Dolphin stealing our mackerel! Each family ended up with about 35 pounds of fresh mackerel to take home! It is delicious, so there will be lots of fish tacos in our future! Shell IslandRight across from St. Andrews is a popular spot to get away from the crowds called Shell Island. You can take a shuttle over and it will drop you off and it picks up on the hour. We opted to rent a pontoon boat because for two families it was pretty close to the same price as taking the shuttle. We are so happy we rented our own pontoon. We were able to explore more of the island and we really enjoyed the peacefulness. We did not find intact shells on Shell Island, only broken shells. Jess and I walked for miles and nothing. Maybe if you snorkeled, you’d be more successful. We didn’t bring our gear on our walk oceanside and the waves were pretty rough that day so we probably wouldn’t be able to see them anyway. Ghost Crab HuntingMost nights we would take the kids down to the beach with flashlights and search for ghost crabs. It was a lot of fun catching the little crabs. The kids would try to beat our number caught each night. Our best night, we caught 50 ghost crabs! All ghost crabs were caught and released! Ocean Sunsets and SunrisesCatching sunsets and sunrises are one of my favorite things to do on vacation! New Glarus Woods State Park is a very small park in New Glarus Wisconsin. Jess and I tent camped here many years ago. This weekend we just visited for a hike. The kids found the one geocache in the park and they loved the playground, that was probably the highlight. Not much to see but woods.
This is a nice spot to stay if you wanted to visit the brewery or the cute little town of New Glarus. If you are coming for hiking the park doesn't have a ton to offer. The Sugar River Trail is a nice paved bike path through town and the State Park if biking is your thing. Yellowstone Lake State Park is located in Southwestern Wisconsin the small town of Blanchardville. The main attraction is a 455 acre lake that is used for swimming and boating. There is a decent sized campground and many sites offer electric.
We didn't have the warmest weather, but the kids did enjoy swimming a bit. Travis loved magnet fishing and found a small Spiderman fishing pool and hook. He didn't catch anything with his new pole though, haha! The bat program on Saturday night was very popular. We missed the information session, but arrived just in time for crafts and activities. Mia enjoyed that, along with watching the bats fly out of their bat houses for the night. Yoho National ParkEmerald LakeEmerald Lake was stunning! We enjoyed swimming in this glacial lake, yes it was really cold! Once again this lake was very crowded near the parking lot, but as you walk further away the crowds disappear. We enjoyed swimming and relaxing in a nice quiet spot along the lake! Emerald Basin HikeThis was a moderate nearly 7 mile hike with quite a bit of elevation gain. We were the only ones on the trail in mid-afternoon. It was a really hot day so we enjoyed a swim in Emerald Lake before and after this hike! We also encountered a black bear and a cub at the basin. The cub quickly scurried up a tree and mamma watched us closely from a distance as we continued on. Takakkaw FallsTakakkaw Falls is a must see in Yoho National Park! It is an easy walk from the parking lot and we had perfect timing with a beautiful rainbow below the falls! The falls was really roaring too, very cool to see such a powerful waterfall! Icefields ParkwayThe Icefields Parkway is one of the most beautiful drives in the world! Mountain views all along the way and many glaciers and glacial lakes to stop and see also! Wish we had more time, but these were our stops along the way! GyPSy Guide App I highly recommend downloading this app for the Canadian Rockies. The guide will point out all kinds of interesting facts and worthwhile stops as you drive! It is amazing and extremely helpful! Peyto LakeOne of my favorite stops was Peyto Lake, just stunning! Just a short walk from the parking lot you you get to witness this beauty! Columbia Icefields AdventureAthabasca Glacier This was such a fun experience. We got to ride the ice explorer onto the Athabasca Glacier. Columbia Icefield SkywalkThe Columbia Icefields Adventure includes the Athabasca Glacier and also the Skywalk. We loved the views from the Skywalk, but honestly there are beautiful views everywhere. We were amazed by the construction of the skywalk, what a huge feat it took to build the structure! We would definitely skip this if we come back to the area a second time though. AnimalsWe didn't come across a lot of animals on our trip. We did see grizzly bear and lots of big horned sheep on the side of the road. We came up on a black bear and cub on a hiking trail, but I didn't feel comfortable stopping to take a picture.
Via Ferrata at Mount NorquayThe Via Ferrata means "iron path." It is a trail made out of iron rungs, ladders, and permanently fixed obstacles. You can book a Via Ferrata tour at Mt. Norquay. There are a few adventures to choose from and you will have an experienced guide along the way. Unfortunately, Mia was not old enough for this adventure so the boys did the Alpinist 4-5 hour adventure while the girls enjoyed a day shopping and sightseeing downtown Banff. Mt. Norquay Ski Lift
Moraine LakeMoraine Lake The color of Moraine Lake is just unbelievable. Surrounded by the Valley of Ten Peaks, the lake is just stunning. We rented canoes to get away from the crowds. This is definitely a difficult lake to see because parking is limited. With a little planning ahead, you can book a shuttle. We were lucky to get a parking spot one day, but we also had a shuttle booked later in the week so we took in the views twice! Lake LouiseLake Louise Another very popular spot in Banff National Park is Lake Louise. You can book a shuttle ahead if you are worried about parking. Since the lake is a short distance from the parking lot, it was very busy. I suggest walking past the main entrance to enjoy the scenery. We also hiked up to the Fairmont Lookout (1.6 miles) to get away from the crowds. There were many more trails we wanted to explore, we just didn't have the time. Consolation LakesConsolation Lakes Hike (4.7 miles) The sign at the beginning of the hike recommended to travel with 4 or more hikers due to bear activity. We did not see any bear on this hike. The trail was fairly easy until you get to the lakes. The kids had a blast hopping on the boulders around the lake. Climbing the boulders reminded us of Devils Lake in Wisconsin, only here we were surrounded by mountains! Johnston Canyon Falls and Ink PotsJohnston Canyon lower falls-1 mile Johnston Canyon upper falls-3 miles Ink Pots-7.3 miles This is a very popular trail, so choose your timing wisely. We arrived around 2pm and there were only 12 parking spots left in both parking lots. The walk to the lower falls was extremely crowded. We chose to continue walking past all the view points for the lower and upper falls to try to beat the crowds. That strategy worked and once we past the upper falls lookout, we had the trail mostly to ourselves to the Ink Pots. At the Ink Pots, there were a handful of people, but not overly crowded. On our way back to the falls, we were able to stop at the viewpoints by about 5pm, the crowds died down. Johnston Canyon to Ink Pots HikeBoom Lake HikeThis is a fairly easy 6.4 mile out and back hike to Boom Lake. The lake was peaceful and no crowds! Not as popular of a hike, but still beautiful scenery! Lake Louise CampgroundThis was our last camping spot for our trip and it was our favorite! The campground is in a great location, great pull through sites, close to hiking trails, and beautiful mountain views!
Camping We camped at the St. Mary/East Glacier KOA Holiday for 6 nights. It was the perfect location to see a lot of the east side of the park, about 6 minutes to the entrance at St. Mary’s. It’s also about 30 minutes from the entrance of Many Glacier and 45 minutes from the entrance of Two Medicine. The campground also offers kayaking (the water level was too high for our stay), a nice pool and hot tub, and beautiful views of the mountains! Going to the Sun Road (GTTSR)-This road is the only road that will take you from east to west through the park. It will take you over Logan Pass and the Continental Divide. It's opening is never predicted because it all depends on snow removal and avalanche danger. Two years ago, we missed the opening to Logan Pass by a week. Before it is open to cars, hikers and bikers are allowed to travel unless there is a hard closure. Two years ago, we biked to Logan Pass, with actual human powered bikes...no electric! Don't get me wrong, that was an amazing experience and one we still talk about often, but we were really hoping to drive the GTTSR this year. Unfortunately, mother nature did not cooperate! Glacier had lots of spring snow, and the GTTSR had its latest opening to date (July 13th). So once again, we were denied driving the GTTSR! Instead we parked at the Jackson Glacier Overlook, and walked to the hard closure at Siyeh Bend, no Logan Pass for us this year! Just means we will have to come back! Beautiful morning on Many Glacier Lake!Many Glacier Boat Tour-We took the Many Glacier Boat Tour, which takes you across Many Glacier Lake, you hike about 1/4 mile to Lake Josephine and take another boat across to the other side. From there you have the choice to go back on the boat, or stay and hike and take a later boat ride back or walk back. Of course we hiked! Hiking These are the hikes we had time to complete. There are so many hikes in Glacier, you can’t pick a bad one! Grinnell Glacier and Grinnell Lake Trails-These are the hiking options from the boat ride. We did both. First, we took the trek up to the Grinnell Glacier Overlook, the complete trail was not open yet due to avalanche risk. It was our first sight of the beautiful blue/green glacial lake, just stunning! Unfortunately on this hike, Mia ate a protein bar that didn’t agree with her stomach. She made it all the way to the top, before she started feeling yucky. We brought hammocks in our packs and Mia enjoyed a snooze at the top of the Grinnell Glacier Overlook, not a bad place for a rest and snack. Thankfully, she felt much better after that! On our way back down, we spotted our first moose from a distance in the marshy area near Lake Josephine. After getting the amazing view from the top of Grinnell Overlook, we hiked over to the base of the lake and had another rest in the hammocks! Since we took the boat tour, we had the choice to ride the boat back to the Many Glacier Hotel, or walk the extra 3 miles back (the shorter trail on the East side of the lake was closed due to bear activity, otherwise I think it would have been 2 miles back). We missed the boat and had to wait another hour, so we decided to just walk back instead of wait. It was a pretty easy, flat trail. We ended our day with 11 miles hiked. Cracker Lake-This hike was our favorite! It was a long and challenging hike, about 13 miles round trip and 1600 feet of elevation gain. The first two miles of the the trail is also a horse trail, so we experienced how much hiking on a horse trail stinks…both figuratively and literally! On our way back, we also had our first bear encounter on the trail, yikes! The only time we saw others on the trail was when four men, stopped us to tell us they just turned back because a grizzly and her three cubs were on the trail ahead! So all 8 of us moved forward slowly, with bear spray in hand, on high alert. Sure enough, we turned a corner and there she was, this time with only one cub. The last thing we wanted was to get between her and her cubs. We all started making noise and she started to walk away. We continued forward, and spotted her once again along the trail, but this time she ventured back into the woods and allowed us to pass! Very scary experience and I'm glad those four men were there to warn us! Mia's response after the bear encounter was "mom, did you get any good pictures?" My response "No Mia, I didn't get any pictures...I was too busy playing mama bear myself!" All of these things combined definitely made the Cracker Lake hike memorable. My kids are starting to appreciate the hikes we have to work the hardest for because those are usually the most rewarding and memorable ones! Baring Falls, St. Mary Falls, Virginia Falls-If you had to skip one of these, I would say you could skip Baring Falls, but to do them all was about 7 miles and fairly easy hikes. St. Mary Falls and Virginia Falls are awesome! Definitely don’t skip those! We also spotted our second moose on the island right before St. Mary Falls. Virginia Falls is so powerful and you can get pretty wet! It was really roaring when we were there! Fishercap Lake and Red Rock Lake and Falls-This was our only rain day in Glacier, and it was an all day steady rain, unlike the brief storms that rolled through quickly. We really weren’t planning on going very far on the Swiftcurrent trail. Our goal was just to go to Fishercap Lake to look for moose. We did not see any, but lots of people say this is the location to spot them. We all had rain gear on and the trail was wooded, so we decided to just start walking and before we knew it we were at Red Rock Lake. We then went a litter further to Redrock Falls. If we were more prepared with snacks, we would have kept going to Bullhead Lake. But, since we have a teenage boy that eats every 15 minutes, we decided to head back to the car where the snacks were! Two Medicine Lake Paradise Point and Rockwell Falls-These trails are about 45 minutes south of the St. Mary entrance in Two Medicine. If you do not hike in Two Medicine, you have to at least drive to the lake. The drive is very scenic and a little scary if you are afraid of heights! At Two Medicine Lake we saw our 3rd moose, this time swimming across the lake and came out to Paradise Point! It was pretty cool! Beaver Pond-This was our last day and we were looking for something close and easy. I really didn’t have high expectations for this hike since it is so close to the Visitor Center. To my surprise, we walked up to a bull moose enjoying an afternoon snack in a pond. We were way too close, but decided to just sneak by while he was enjoying his lunch break. We then walked down to the lake and when we came back, the moose moved and was now on the trail. We took a detour through the woods to give him his space. This was a nice easy trail, with beautiful wild flowers in the prairie and views of St. Mary Lake. BEARS!!! And a few other animals we spotted!We did see a few black bears as well, but they were elusive. I never caught a good picture of them! All of these pictures were from the truck, I never got a photo of the grizzly and cub we encountered on the trail. Sunset at St. Mary LakeCamping and the town of Medora Our first stay was in North Dakota, our 28th state! We camped at Medora Campground. This was the perfect location for a one day and night stop. The campground is located right next to the entrance of Theodore Roosevelt National Park. We were lucky to get a nice pull through, full hook-up, shaded campsite. The campground is small and quiet and gives good views of the badlands. It is right along the Missouri River and families were enjoying swimming in the heat of the day. The water level was low and allowed for a little beach area at the campground. There is a city pool right next to the campground as well for a small fee. Theodore Roosevelt National Park This is our 13th National Park visited! We enjoyed the views from the Painted Rock Canyon Visitor Center. We also drove the scenic loop on the North Side. Rock Formations This park provides a lot of cool rock formations. My favorite was the capped rocks which looked like mushrooms. Driving through the badlands makes you feel like you are on a different planet. It is just so vast and you can see for miles and miles. Wild Animals We saw a lot of bison and were even stuck in a jam on our way to our sunset spot, almost missed sunset! The prairie dog towns were everywhere and they were fun to watch as well. Antelope, elk, and wild horses were also spotted on our drives. Sunsets
Wind Cave Nature trail offered a spectacular sunset! The views of the badlands with the Missouri River and bison in the background was unbelievable! Thankfully, we were able to get out of the bison jam in time to run up the trail to see the sunset! Camping We were able to reserve a spot at Gulf State Park for the week, we booked our site one year in advance. Immediately we could see why this place is so hard to get into, such a great location and absolutely beautiful! Not only does it offer full hook-ups for campers, but also a heated pool and splash pad. There are two fresh water lakes, Middle Lake and Lake Shelby, available for recreation. Also, there is lots of miles of paved biking trails. Our campsite was a couple miles from the ocean access, but it was definitely doable to bike to the ocean. There are sites much closer, we just weren't that lucky and didn't know better when booking! Sunrises and Sunsets This is one of my favorite things to do, can you tell?!?! Travis likes to get up early with me to see the sunrise at least once too. Parasailing This was the first time parasailing for the kids and they absolutely loved it! This was definitely one of their favorite activities on the trip! We signed up by The Pink Pony restaurant, but there are lots of different locations on the beach. Shelling
Another one of our favorite activities on beach vacations, is shelling. On the main beach downtown, we didn't find a lot of shells. One of our last days, we walked down the beach at Gulf State Park to a secluded location and found a goldmine! Travis found a little drop off about knee high (for him, LOL) and found a lot of good shells! We had a blast taking the Learn to Curl class at the Milwaukee Curling Club! Such a great experience and I would highly recommend it! The facility was amazing and the staff were extremely knowledgeable and fun! After your two hours of curling, included is the traditional broomstacking activity, where you socialize with the opposite team and eat and drink together. Such a fun time!
This boys trip was years in the making. Jess has been elk hunting with his uncle a few times, but he has been really looking forward to sharing this experience with Travis. Last year, 2020, definitely had a lot of disappointments and the boys elk hunting trip was just one more casualty of the year. Colorado along with many other western states, battled a horrible wildfire season. The trip was touch and go for a few weeks, but they were hopeful the weather would help get the fires under control. This ended up not being the case, the day they were ready to roll out Jess got news that their hunting area has been instructed to evacuate. Although they were extremely disappointed, I was thankful they didn't have to be that close to danger and was positive they would get another chance at this experience. One year later, they got the experience of a lifetime! Hunting SUCCESS!! Jess and his uncle both filled their tags within the first couple days of hunting. That left plenty of time for harvesting the meat and also gave them time for some sight-seeing. Rocky Mountain National ParkSkiing in KeystoneWe spent a long weekend exploring northern Wisconsin and the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Camping We stayed at a small campground called Apostle Islands Area Campground. It was minutes away from downtown Bayfield, had full hookup sites, open space, a playground with gaga ball, and a fun brew pub in walking/bicycling distance! Adventure Club Brewery This was a fun stop for both kids and adults. The kids loved getting the wolf to move and playing Frisbee Golf, while the adults enjoyed some locally made drinks. Hiking We hiked the Meyers Beach Sea Cave Trail at Meyers Beach. It was hot and sticky on this 4.5 mile hike. It made jumping in Lake Superior at Meyers Beach at the end of the hike feel great! The hike itself was very wooded and the majority of the hike was very well maintained. You really don't get a view of Lake Superior or sea caves until the end of the hike. It was very pretty, but I wish you could see the lake on more of the trail. Car Ferry to Madeline Island We took the ferry over to Madeline Island for a day. It was nearly $100 for the round trip, so make sure you have your day at Madeline Island planned to make it worthwhile. Things to do at Madeline Island
Boat Tour
There are so many kayak and boat tours in this area to choose from. We took a boat tour through Apostle Island Cruises. We took the Grand Tour, which was a 55 mile scenic tour around the National Lakeshore. We saw lighthouses, sea caves, and bald eagles. Ithaca is gorges! Ha, this shirt made me laugh, but it’s so true! There are lot of gorges and waterfalls in this area. We spent two nights in the Finger Lakes Region of New York. It definitely wasn’t enough time to explore everything this area has to offer. There were three state parks within 15 minutes from our campground and of course the beautiful Finger Lakes. Camping We stayed at Spruce Row Campground. It was a pretty busy campground, with a lot of seasonal sites. They offer a lot of activities. The weekend we were there was Glow Party Weekend. Saturday afternoon they had a color run through the campground. Mia was very excited for this and wanted to do it all by herself (thankfully, because I would have slowed her down!). She ended up running with about 20 other kids and finished in 2nd place! The kids also loved the large pool! Taughannock Falls State Park We walked the Gorges Trail, which was an easy flat 2 mile down and back hike to a 215 foot waterfall. It was pretty spectacular. You can also drive to a lookout which will give you a great view from the top. This park is on the Cayuga Lake. This would be a really fun area for a boating vacation. Robert H Treman State Park We hiked the Gorges and Rim Trail to a 115 foot Lucifer Falls. This area was hit with heavy rains, so swimming next to the waterfalls was not allowed this weekend. Both Robert H Treman and Buttermilk Falls State Parks have swimming holes right next to waterfalls and have lifeguards on duty during daytime hours. We were bummed we didn't get to experience swimming at these parks, maybe some other time! Buttermilk Falls State Park
Buttermilk Falls is right next to the entrance to the park and offers a swimming area right next to the falls. Unfortunately, all the swimming holes were closed this weekend because of the recent heavy rains. Camping We are staying at the Quechee/Pine Valley KOA. Really nice campground with a pool. We only have two nights here, so we only have a few things on our list to check out. Appalachian Trail
The Appalachian Trail is near this area. Rain was in the forecast so we wanted to hike a few miles to a shelter. We ended up hiking overall 7 miles. We made it to the Happy Hill Shelter. We had a snack and headed back, just in time. It started pouring rain when we got back to the truck! The Appalachian Trail is 2,190 miles total. We hiked a few miles in Tennessee and now in Vermont. Only like 2,180 miles left to explore, lol! It's a pretty cool experience to come across people hiking the entire trail, lots of people were moving pretty fast today in hopes to make it to a shelter before the rain. Maine here we come! Maine was our halfway point. It was our 25th state we slept overnight in (according to the kids, it only counts if we sleep there). Camping We arrived in Bar Harbor Oceanside KOA around 1 pm. Traffic through Boston was not bad at all, we were pleasantly surprised! We got set up and walked around our campground, it is right on the ocean! We got there in perfect time for low tide so we checked out the tide pools. Besides being right on the ocean, this campground has a lot to offer. There are lots of activities for the kids, they offer shuttles to Acadia and Bar Harbor, and they also have a little cafe that serves snacks and lobster dinner each night! Acadia National Park Acadia has been on my to-do list for a long time! This year I think Acadia was on everyone's list, it was extremely crowded! Hikes and trips had to be pre-planned and it was a little overwhelming. We booked our campground stay 7 months in advance and Cadillac Mountain summit and whale watch tour 2 months in advance. Not all of our gambles with weather worked out, but we still found a lot to do and had a wonderful time. Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School This was definitely our favorite adventure! We got away from the crowds and pretty much had the cliffs to ourselves! We rock climbed Otter Cliffs with a guide through Acadia Mountain Guides Climbing School. So cool!! This was the kids first time rock climbing outdoors and they did great. Mia and Travis were pretty nervous on their first repel, but were able to do it! It was so fun to watch them work through their fears and succeed! The scenery was amazing and our guide, Ron, was so great! Ron taught our family how to make the figure 8 knots, tying into belay, and how to belay each other. So it wasn't just an excursion, it was a fun learning experience! I hate heights, but am fine if I'm on belay! Something about the security of the harness and ropes allows me to enjoy the thrill of rock climbing without hyperventilating! Whale Watching I would highly recommend this tour through Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company! We got there early to make sure to get a seat outside and on the top of the boat. The weather was beautiful, however, it was pretty cold when the boat was moving. Fortunately, we were prepared for the weather. I was a little worried about the possibility of sea sickness, so I had peppermint oil handy just in case. Travis has a history of motion sickness, but all of us were fine on the boat. Not all passengers were as lucky, so I would suggest being prepared with motion sickness remedies if you have a history of it. We ended up seeing 6-8 different whales on our trip, a shark, seals, and lots of birds. Some whales were off in the distance and we could see the blows, but others were really close to the boat! There was tons of action and it was so cool to see! The kids were so excited. At one point we had whales all around the boat and a few came up really close! I feel like we got really lucky with this action, some reviews said they didn't see any whales or maybe one at a distance. The Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company gives you credit for another tour if you do not see any whales your first time. Hiking Acadia National Park If you enjoy hiking, Acadia is definitely for you! There are so many trails, that it was really overwhelming trying to plan without knowing the layout of the park. The park itself is huge and on multiple peninsulas so trying to coordinate multiple hikes took a lot of pre-planning. We didn't get to do all the hikes that I had planned, but the ones we did do were beautiful! Beehive Trail This trail is a little scary looking, but just know there are two ways to get up to the summit. Jess and Travis hiked the ladder trail which is on the face of Beehive. There are sections that have steep ledges and you have to climb up metal rungs on the face of the mountain. Comparing it to Devils Lake, they said it wasn't hard. They said there were a few spots I might have had a hard time (ledges and heights), but they thought I would have been fine. They were a little disappointed because of the crowds. They had to wait a lot for people ahead of them. Mia, Willow, and I took the trail around the backside of Beehive. Dogs are not allowed on ladder trails so that is why we split up. We started at the same trailhead, but there is a spot where you split off. Mia and I thought it was a pretty easy trail, lots of rock stairs and a lot of vertical spots, but definitely not scary. We met Jess and Travis at the summit of Beehive. The Bowl Trail This is a fairly easy trail. We did the Beehive-Bowl-Gorham Mountain to make it a loop, but you could do each one separately. I think it was 4-5 miles total so really not that bad to hike all three trails at once. Gorham Mountain This is a really beautiful hike. It would be a great beginner hike to get you ready for the ladder trails. It offers some fun bouldering opportunities and walking through the crevices of rocks and there is a beautiful summit. Thunder Hole Thunder Hole is a fun spot to stop a few hours before high tide. The waves roll up into this crevice and makes a thundering sound. We never really hit this at the "perfect" time, but we did get some fun thundering sounds! You definitely don't have to hike to this spot, you can just park and walk down. Or you could do the Ocean Path and get some miles in with this as a stop! Sand Beach It was definitely too cold to swim at Sand Beach, but the week before it was in the 90's and probably would have felt great after a long hike! We had to stop by for a few pictures because it is really beautiful! Star gazing is supposed to be wonderful here, we just didn't have the weather or the time to see the stars from here.
Bar Island On this rainy day, we headed to Bar Island at low tide. At low tide the land bridge opens up and you can walk and hike on Bar Island. Just make sure to get back in time so you don't have to pay for the ferry to come and get you! Jordan Pond This is a beautiful walk. The pond had some great reflections. The trail itself is pretty easy with some spots with boardwalks. The hardest part about getting to this trail was the lack of parking. We attempted to get parking multiple times throughout the week, but couldn't find parking until the last day. Fireworks According to www.visitbarharbor.com, Bar Harbor’s Fourth of July has been voted the #1 Fourth of July celebration in America by the Today Show, and recognized by National Geographic as one of the top ten in the U.S. The Bar Harbor fireworks were well worth the wait! They cancelled them on July 4th due to weather, but were able to do them on July 5th. They were spectacular! LOBSTA!!!
Of course when in Maine, you gotta try the lobster! So stinking good! We loved The Traveling Lobsta restaurant. It was all outdoor seating and delicious food. We also bought some live lobsters one night and steamed them back at camp. Camper's Haven Resort Cape Cod here we come! The seven hour drive had some stressful spots. Google Maps sometimes take us on crazy routes and this was no exception. The first hour was through twists and turns on mountain roads. We had one road that was an 18 percent grade downhill, pretty crazy with towing a 5th wheel. Once we got to the main highways, it was smooth sailing! We arrived at Camper’s Haven Resort in Dennis Port, Massachusetts around 3 pm. Just enough time to set up, check out the private beach, and jump in the ocean! Camper's Haven is a pretty packed resort with mostly seasonal sites. It was a little pricey compared to the state parks, but it did include a 300 foot private beach. To spend a day at the beach in this area, it is $25 for the day so the beach was already included with our site. It was located in Dennis Port, which is on the Nantucket Sound. The water was really warm and perfect for swimming. Chartered Fishing/Lobster Trip We scheduled a chartered fishing/lobster trip through Billingsgate Charters. I highly recommend this trip! Captain Dave is so knowledgeable about the area and at one point said Travis would hook a fish in 30 seconds or less and he did! His first mate, Eric, was also super helpful and friendly. These guys are definitely a class act! We all were able to catch striped bass, but unfortunately none of them were keepers. Then Captain Dave taught us all about trapping lobster. This was Mia’s favorite part because it was so hands on. Travis put the rubber bands on the lobster claws, Mia pushed the traps back in the water, and both kids took turns behind the wheel. Captain Dave brought up 15-20 traps and we were able to explore all the fun creatures he brought up. It was so exciting to see the surprises each trap had to offer. Puffer fish, small flounder, lots of different types of crab, snails, skates (looks like a small stingray), sand dollars, and of course lots of lobster! He taught us how to tell between a male and female and which ones are legal to keep. We ended up with 19 lobsters that were keepers and he let us keep 5 lobsters and a few of the big crabs! Needless to say, we ate very well that night! Provincetown and the National Seashore Today we drove up to Provincetown (P-town) for the day. It was extremely hot, so didn’t explore the town very much. We did walk to the marina, grabbed smoothies, and walked a couple blocks downtown. Next we headed to the National Seashore, Race Point Beach. It was absolutely beautiful, but the water was only 65 degrees. Only 35 miles south in Dennis Port the ocean is like 70-75 degrees. So much colder! On this 91 degree day, the cold actually felt really great! We all jumped in, but didn't stay in for too long. While hanging out on the beach, seals would pop out of the water in front of us. It was pretty cool. Probably a good thing that I didn't find out until after we swam there, a few days earlier a great white shark attacked a seal really close to shore...yikes! I guess sharks are a regular thing at Race Point Beach, glad we didn't see any!! Crab Creek Conservation
We started the day by going to Crab Creek Conservation Area, which is in Yarmouth, only 10-15 minutes from our campground. Here you can catch blue crab! You can use open top traps, nets, or a string with chicken attached and reel it in really slowly. We had the most success with using a net. We caught probably over 50 crabs, but only 4 keepers. It was still a blast! We brought the keepers back and steamed them up for lunch, yum! We finished our stay with chilling at the private beach, flying our kite, and playing mini golf. Overall, this was a great place to stay! So much more to explore here, but we just didn’t have the time. |
About The Author
My name is Angie. I am a wife, mother, and physical education teacher. I enjoy spending time and traveling with my family. We love the outdoors! Our biggest interests include camping, hiking, exploring our State and National Parks, and gardening. We raise chickens and tend to a few honey bee hives! Although we don't live on a farm, we try to embrace the idea of growing and raising our own food sources as much as we can. We are instilling in our children a love and respect for nature and adventure! I hope you enjoy reading about some of our adventures and I hope you get a chance to explore with your families as well! Archives
July 2023
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