One of South Dakota’s Great 8, Badlands National Park is paradise on Earth for nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts. A rugged, beautiful-in-its-own-way paradise, yes, but paradise nonetheless.The park is full of the colorful namesake badlands formations, vast prairies, and tons of unique wildlife — bison and bighorn sheep, in particular. To best explore this otherworldly landscape, e[...]
Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) is one of those parks you can visit over and over again and never have the same experience twice. Perhaps that's why it's consistently the most visited national park in the country...by a LOT. GSMNP welcomes at least 12 million visitors a year, whereas runner-up Zion in Utah draws "just" five million. The park's 522,427 acres are divided be[...]
Are you an occasional hiker or interested in getting into hiking? Or at the opposite end of the spectrum, do you regularly explore new trails with your family or put in for every famously hard-to-get hiking permit there is? Whichever applies to you, there's no question that high-quality hydration packs for women make a world of difference.A properly-fitted hydration backpack holds all you[...]
Arizona is arguably one of the most iconic states, synonymous with the Wild Wild West and the American Southwest. Aside from being stunningly beautiful and richly historic, Arizona is also insanely diverse. Seriously, how many other places can you go from sweating in triple digits in the harsh desert to needing a jacket in the high alpine forest in just two hours?! Regardless of what[...]
There's nothing quite like a Big Sky Montana summer — and in particular, Big Sky hiking trails in the summer. It's stunningly beautiful and (with a few exceptions) largely uncrowded, one of the few remaining places where you might actually have a trail or stream all to yourself. Might. If you're even remotely outdoorsy, summer in Big Sky is paradise. Waterfalls are flowing, wildflower[...]
I'm unquestionably adventurous, but I'm not necessarily a thrillseeker or what you'd call an adrenaline junkie. I love hiking and snorkeling, and floating the Snake River in the Tetons was one of my all-time favorite experiences — but you're not likely to catch me, say, skydiving. That's precisely why hiking Angels Landing in Zion National Park (or any other most dangerous hikes in th[...]
I remember every detail of my lunch date on January 1st, 2020. That was the day I found out about winning The Wave Arizona lottery — the first time. As we waited for our food, my lunch date said, "I just got my email about The Wave Coyote Buttes permit!" I assumed it was a rejection letter, identical to the one I received. But he started reading and it wasn't a rejection at all. It st[...]
Moab, Utah, is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts. From mountain biking and off-roading in Moab to hiking, camping, and much, much more, you’ll find it in this small but incredibly impressive mountain town. Being that the iconic red slickrock is some of the most famous terrain in the world and two of Utah's "Mighty 5" are here, it's common for visitors to research the best hikes in Moa[...]
You might be surprised to learn that I didn't get much exposure to Mother Nature as a child. I've always been drawn to the outdoors, but I didn't have many opportunities to experience it until later in life.We definitely weren't the family hiking and exploring national parks. I was born in New York, moved a lot — I lived in four states by the time I was 10 — and had what most would con[...]
