Happy Birthday NPS

"We live on electronic media and often spend days seeing nothing but pixels. The [National] parks remind us life should be better than that. We can be strong and independent, self-reliant and brave. They remind us that Earth was not meant to be paved, and we were not meant to be the sole inhabitants of it, that true beauty does not hang on walls, but is ever-changing, unpredictable, dangerous, and awesome."
~Nevada Barr

I've used this quote before, and it is one of my favorites because it so eloquently describes what National Parks are. Hand it to a writer to put it down perfectly. National Parks are also a place where one can still stand in awe of something and feel like one is discovering something for the very first time. It is easy to understand how John Hillman must have felt when he came up over the side of the mountain to see Crater Lake. We discover it the same way today. I mean we arrived in a car and drove later to a hotel, but the visual discovery was the same.  National Parks hold wonders that we don't see in our everyday life, and they preserve the vast places of America. 

Our traveling adventures started as nothing more than a chance for mother and daughter to travel. In fact, they did not include National Parks until 2003. Of course, before then we had been to Mount Rainier and Hawaii Volcanoes, but those are like our backyard, not actual destinations. Yes, I get that one of those is Hawaii, but we have a long familial relationship with the place.  It's less vacation and more like a piece of home.

Exploration run in both the Rawlinson and Acton blood, thus, probably answering the question for sure about nature vs nurture.  We often mused about completing a National Park visitation map that includes several generations.  For now, we are working on our own.  On the birthday of the National Park system, we finally filled out our park map. Of 59 parks, we have, together, been to...16.  ???  The discovery felt like a deflated balloon, not a celebration. National Parks have become a part of who we are and what we value. How have we seen so few?  Of course, several courses were plotted, and plans were made. I wonder where T & L will end up next?  While you wait, here are a few of our favorite memories.  

Favorite Remote Picture (we do like these more than selfies!)
Ann: Great Smokey Mountains

Erica: Bryce Canyon


Favorite Park (if one can pick a favorite)
Ann:  Probably Haleakala.  (Erica frowns). Because of all the different ecosystems we went through and the interesting plants, like the silver sword.  Or..Crater Lake. Definitely Crater Lake.  (Erica's eyebrows go up).
Erica: Which is the one that had the ladder? (Ann frowns). Mesa Verde!  I loved the ruins. And I was glad you didn't fall off that ladder.  ;)

Favorite National Park experience
Ann:  Hiking the Narrows was the best. Crater Lake was amazing with Wizard Island too.  But the Narrows was physically challenging and amazing. So amazing.
Erica:  I was going to say the Narrows! I will say biking down Haleakala. That really was fun (terrifying too when I didn't have brakes, but that just added to the thrill!).  ;)

Favorite or Weirdest Motel
Ann: The weirdest was probably at Great Basin - that B&B. It was sort of lodgy, and they were getting carpet replaced...
Erica: Oh yeah - very B&B. Less like a motel, and more like someone's guest room.  

Worst Road (there are very few good roads...)
Ann: Between Deadwood and Mount Rushmore. Remember the deer? And it was curvy and dark. So stressful! I know it's not a National Park, but we were visiting National Monuments.
Erica: Where did we land on Kennicott Mine? Is that part of a park or a National Monument? That road was washboard and never ended. Never. Ended.

Park You'd go back To
Ann: Bryce. We didn't see enough of that park. 
Erica: I always want to say Arches.  

A Park You've Seen Enough Of
Ann: I guess, the Badlands.  
Erica:  Um, hello. Great Smokey Mountains. I would like another run at the signage on the other side of Gatlinburg. I'm still processing some of that.

Favorite Wildlife Moment
Ann:  Was that in a park when we went through that herd of buffalo? We must have been on the way to one!
Erica:  We have seen far too many Europeans enamored taking pictures of squirrels, and not enough buffalo!

Favorite or Weirdest Small Town
Ann: Makawao. Remember at the bottom of Haleakala where we got that great donut in that questionable shop? That place was weird.
Erica: I'm still in Cherokee Nation on the other side of Gatlinburg. Weird.

Favorite Historical Info
Ann: That there were bristlecone pines in Great Basin. I thought they were just in the Sierra Nevadas in California. And I was sad that we couldn't see them.
Erica: Okay... That is your "historical" information? Sigh. I guess there wasn't a plant question, so fair enough.  Although you already worked in plants in one other question!  My favorite information is on the big TR. I love that guy. I love that we see traces of him in so many parks and continue to learn about how he helped protect so much of our national treasures. 

Favorite NPS site (monument, landmark, memorial etc.)
Ann: Lincoln Memorial.  At night.  :) 
Erica: There's so much! Mount Rushmore. No -- National Mall.  Or Devil's Tower.  Nope -- you're right. Lincoln Memorial is something special. 

The Place that Took Your Breath Away
Ann: Crater Lake. That water was so blue. 
Erica: Grand Canyon. (At this point in the narrative, Thelma has started a geology monologue...).  

I really want to go...
Ann: Acadia National Park in Maine.
Erica: I really want to go to Katmai. Oh -- actually, I really want to go to Teddy Roosevelt in North Dakota. Buffalo!!!

Favorite Park Picture
Ann: Saguaro National Park

Erica: Zion National Park


Until next time...Find Your Park!!!

Harry Potter, Pocahontas & A Headlamp

Last night the lightning and thunder we had been experiencing all week finally caught up with us in a spectacular way. 9:00--the power blinked twice and then went out completely, the night sky flashing with lightning. You're not really living until you're wearing a headlamp in your hotel room. 

It's too bad you can't really see the clever way I affixed it to my hair towel. Very chic. The outtage didn't last long; within the hour we had found an open restaurant and were eating mashed potatoes and sipping margaritas. Aren't these the foods of hikers? 😉

In the summer of '95, Pocahontas came out in theaters. I had the best job--babysitting two girls I adored. Elizabeth and Jessica were nuts for this movie--I think we saw it in the theater at least three times. And then sang the tunes (over and over) the rest of the summer. 🎶 Today's hike of the Narrows, was truly...Just Around the River Bend. 

If you've never hiked the Narrows or heard of the Narrows, put it on your list. It was truly spectacular. Anyone can do at least part of it; the first part is the easiest. The bottom of the river is sandy or is covered with small rocks and the current is not as strong. I wore my new boots, which were awesome, and mom rented some stylish water boots. 

At the beginning it's a little like a Disneyland line, or a frat party, depending on which group you move through. You notice the crowds, but the setting is just too beautiful to go unnoticed. Plus, I reminded myself, all these people, while somewhat annoying, are outside in a  National Park.  Yes!! ☺️

Further up, the rocks are bigger and trickier to get around, and the water moves much faster. And this is where the latest version of Erica vs Gravity took place. When I fell off the bleachers in high school, I fell on my lab partner and broke his finger. When I fell during kickball my first year teaching, blood pooled in my socks and I managed to quiet an entire playground. When I fell in the river yesterday, the current carried me back down stream a ways and deposited a significant amount of silt in my shirt (to be found much, much later). 😁 Not everyone sees the river this way!

We hiked until the crowds thinned out and we conceded that we had to turn around, knowing our tired legs still had work to do in getting us home.  We kept going for a while just to look around the next bend in the river. 

 So that's a wrap! Currently we are flying out of Vegas on a plane full of slightly hung-over gamblers and concert goers. I blend right in having just had a sob session over finishing The Cursed Child and wrapping up what has truly been an epic story. Mom's feeding me pretzels and promising no one is watching. What a gal. ❤️

T & L have been on some epic adventures, but so far, this one rates near the top. Until next time--Find Your Park!! 

http://findyourpark.com/

We Begin with a Grammar Lesson

As the passenger (I confess, I rarely drive),  there are a lot of duties I have. Navigator, playlist curator, reader of passing signs, interpreter of cultural flybys, and sounding board for the driver. Sounding board for what, you might ask.  Well, on this trip it has been a specific road sign we have seen over and over again:  Watch For Falling Rocks.  We have driven through many storms and today, the aftermath of those storms. The driver may have lost her cool after swerving around the nth pile of rocks on the road: " FallING rocks?  What are the odds of seeing a rock fall?  It should say "Watch For FallEN Rocks!!!"   And there, today, is your grammar lesson.   ;)

Today we headed out to a...canyon!  Weather was much more stable today, but there was still a flash flood watch on the river, so we headed out to Kolob Canyon. Please don't ask me how to say it. It looks straight forward, and I usually have phonics on my side, but I end up botching the vowels and adding another syllable (or two). Anyway, Kolob is actually still part of the Zion Park, but is North...(Never....Eat....Shredded...Wheat)...Northwest of Zion proper.  It's a thing; I'm directionally challenged.

Kolob Canyon was another beautiful surprise. It's amazing how the red rocks just rise out of nowhere.  You think you've seen the most beautiful scene, and then you go around the next corner.

After Kolob Canyon, we headed for a place to have lunch.  This morning we had purchased picnic items and some ice. And a styrofoam cooler.  Will we never learn? I mean, yes, there are greener choices, but there are also quieter choices. It was not too long ago we drove across the dirt roads of Nevada with a styrofoam cooler. Our trip to lunch took us across the dirt roads of Utah, just outside of Zion, in search of a ghost town.  We moved the cooler several times, only to have it squeak more each time. The final time, we moved the cooler from the way back to the backseat, and began driving.  With the back door open. It's not our first rodeo, but sometimes you wouldn't know it!!!

We rolled in to Grafton, and even though it is relatively close to the "freeway" it was so quiet, and did feel like a step back in time. Grafton was settled in 1859 as a cotton growing project. Severe flooding and troubles with local Indians caused the abandonment  of the town several years later. A restoration project has done a lot to preserve the buildings without destroying their historical nature.

The first stop in Grafton is the cemetery where the deaths were attributed to the unimaginable amount of child deaths that were common at the time, diptheria, Indian attacks, and a swing accident (?).  Even abandoned cemeteries have a presence.

Moments after reading about said tragic swing accident, I found my travel partner doing this:

Always the adventurer!

It was over 90 degrees, so after exploring, we enjoyed our picnic...in the car.  ;) Plenty of time to get sunburned tomorrow. 

24 hours of? You be the judge... ;)

The flash flood warning/watch has been lifted, so we're off to the Narrows tomorrow! Yes!!!!!

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

Today's blog was going to be called "A Scientist and a Historian", but that was before we got caught in our second thunderstorm. A fairly extensive forest fire in the North Rim of the Grand Canyon has created landslides that come across several roads during heavy rains. We were lucky to drive to Walhalla Canyon today, because the road was closed yesterday, and I assume, based on the current rainfall, closed again. But back to the beginning...

The day started at Oscar's cafe with some killer iced coffee and French toast battered in Frosted Flakes. I kid you not. They were grrrrrreat! 😉 An especially amazing turn of events after I mistook the hotel mouthwash for shower gel. 😳  

After breakfast we headed to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We've both been to the other side (though not together!). Even being prepared for its vastness, it's breathtaking. 

We both have our breaking points with altitude. Thelma found her's at 12,000 at Yosemite. Louise found her's at 10,000 feet at Haleakala. New info today: at 8,000 feet Louise just cries. So when we stepped out of the car, L burst in to tears. And every other stop afterwards...  It's really so amazing. This is what National Parks are all about: natural wonders that take your breath away time and time again. 

As I said before, the original title was "A Scientist and a Historian". Or possibly: A Surveyor and Her Sidekick. One of us soaks in all the geology and seeks to always know her position on Earth. The other one solidifies herself in historical references, basking in the footsteps of the likes of Teddy Roosevelt. 

Honestly, what a gift these parks are, and thank goodness for the foresight of the people who sought to protect them so long ago. 

Besides the Canyon itself, we got a good look at the Fuller Fire aftermath: scorched land, erosion, and probably the most telling: a really dirty, weary NPS fire team. 

So, a full day! We're now driving into the lightning, dodging cows, mule deer, and singing to our duets playlists.

'Til tomorrow! 😘

Forty Degrees & Four States

We are happily ensconced in our hotel room in Springdale, after a somewhat harrowing drive from Mesquite. It's a little stormy tonight! Massive lightening on all sides, and a fair amount of rain. I don't think you can really see the amount of water coming down the street, but it was pretty awesome. And as such, tomorrow doesn't seem like a good day for hiking in a river. ;) Thelma (or is it Louise?) is figuring out our grand plan for tomorrow. Kolob Canyon? Grand Canyon? Bryce Canyon? Looking like it's going to be a canyon! Ha!

We left this morning from Portland, where I don't know exactly what the weather was, but I'm guessing somewhere in the high 60s. When we left Vegas this afternoon, it was HOT!!!!

Heading north out of Vegas, with Willie Nelson blaring, we headed for Valley of the Fire State Park (NV).  I believe it is called that because of the red tones on the rocks, but it might as well have been for the heat factor. Once you get the car cooled down, it's easy to forget that the earth is basically on fire! HOT!!!  

Valley of the Fire is a nice compilation of the best that is up ahead (and two states over) in Utah. There are arches, and hoodoos, beehives and other geographical wonders I can't remember.  ;) What's amazing, as with all geo-wonders, is how they just seem to pop up out of nowhere.

The park brochure was lacking in specificity, and there was no cell service, so you can make what you'd like out of our photos.  Much of it felt like Cars, the movie, or the "Gorignak" scene from Galaxy Quest.  That makes us sound like Chevy Chase travelers or something... But one must make connections!

The colors, the red rock against the brilliant blue sky, were what made this spectacular, but the black and white photos captured the starkness of the area, and somehow captured the heat a little better. 

On the way out of the park, there are these adorable "cabins" built by the CCC in the 30s.  Not only were they fun to explore, but it was a great chance to break in my new hiking boots.  

And then it was off through Arizona to our final destination here in Utah.  After the thunderstorms, it's settled at a nice 65 degrees, making us very happy, and our temperature gauges very confused.  We lost an hour somewhere across the state line, so it is night here. Other stuff happened: the social experiment of the rental-car tram, Albus Potter, a study in polka-dots, changing clothes in a parking lot, dinner with Peggy Sue, etc....but one (or two!), must sleep.  G'Night!!!