Destination
Outdoor Wanderlust recently visited Carter Caves State Park. We had a great time at a lesser known Kentucky State Park even with heavy rain. This park should be on your to do list if you’re passing through eastern Kentucky. Here is the full report of the lodge, nearby hiking trails, rock bridges, and Cave Tours. Read more “Carter Caves State Park Trip Report”
Camping
I have a confession to make. When the other half of Outdoor Wanderlust said we would add the Grand Canyon to our itinerary, I envisioned every cliché road trip from the comedy movies of my childhood. I lacked the wisdom at that time to understand why clichés are developed. Our stop along Hoover Dam on the way did not disabuse me of the idea the canyon would be underwhelming. I found Hoover Dam to be an impressive feat of human engineering. But, that much concrete just did not impress my outdoor loving soul. I was a fool to underestimate the Grand Canyon, however, and I’m not too proud to admit it. Read more “Exploring the Grand Canyon’s South Rim”
Destination
Just outside of Columbus, Ohio lies Hocking Hills State Park, a diverse outdoor destination with waterfalls, caves, rock features, and beautiful hiking trails. We took a trip here with our two dogs this past summer and had a great time. The unique rock formations and waterfalls were awesome but the crowds during mid-day were not. Read more “Exploring Hocking Hills State Park”
Camping
Our outdoor adventures have exposed us to a number of situations from no-cooking to campfire kitchens, to backpacking stoves. This article will talk a little bit about my favorite camp food staples while traveling and experiencing the outdoors. I have unique opinions in part due to the various dietary preferences I have explored over time, including veganism, vegetarian, whole foods plant-based, and the true omnivore experience. In this article, I will discuss some of the most simple foods I eat on the trail, on the go, or in the queue for the Sistine Chapel. Read more “Staples in our Camp Food Pantry”
Travel
5 am. Wake up. Pants on. Grab bags. Off to the airport. “Did I forget my phone?”… “Nope. Got it.” My brain doesn’t work this early in the morning. After 3 months of waiting, we finally get to pick up our Ford Transit Van (aka Griffin).
Fly to Kansas City to pickup our new 2018 Ford Transit Van at Matt Ford. Then drive 500+ miles back home to Kentucky. Stopping along the way at anything of interest. We were going to just sleep in the van but I had a certificate for a free night at the Marriott, so I might as well use it. Read more “Roadtrip home in our new Ford Transit Van”
Destination
As with many of our adventures, a spontaneous idea quickly transformed into an amazing experience. This particular time the idea landed us on top of Mount Colden in sub-freezing temperatures during the tail end of the winter season. The idea to bag a peak in the ADK came up while planning a sales trip to New York for my job with one of my colleagues who was pursuing the Adirondack 46ers. Hanging around for the weekend after our planned work events gave us the single overnighter we needed to bag a peak, play in the snow, and visit Lake Placid. My wife snagged a Friday evening flight and met me in Albany, NY for a late night gear check and pre-hike logistics. A hearty crew of seven met up early in the morning to drive north so we could leave the trail head by sun up.
Read more “Winter summit of Mount Colden in the Adirondacks”
Camping
We travel so much, that sometimes I struggle to keep everything straight in my mind. I am much more likely to remember moments and then work to place them in time and location. Several of my most cherished are from our trip to the Indiana Dunes State Park and Lake Michigan.
We drove up for a relatively short trip over an extended weekend, with our two dogs. We don’t often get to travel to truly new places with our dogs, and it has been a long time since we took a non-backcountry trip with them by ourselves. Since discovering mountain biking usually the dogs tag along on group bike trips. I love traveling with my dogs. Despite Ripley’s carsickness and resulting human stress, I always feel better when my dogs are with me. This trip was extremely dog friendly, we never had to leave them in the car while we ran into a restaurant or went for a ride or a hike. Read more “Dogs on the Indiana Sand Dunes”
Travel
In September of 2016 I visited the western United States including Arizona, Nevada, and California. Sedona, Arizona is certainly a highlight when I think back on all of my travel experiences. I completely fell in love with the outdoor opportunities and the foreign, captivating landscapes of red rocks. I also had one of my favorite tourist experiences in the Out of Africa Wildlife Park. In my opinion, the park was very reasonably priced, especially for the value of the experience. Our ticket (which included a tiger feeding and a Jeep safari tour) cost us less than our local theme park admission. I set my expectations low due to the reasonable price, but I was quickly pleasantly surprised. Out of Africa Wildlife Park offers a unique experience in which you can interact with a variety of animals. We split our day into four distinct activities: Solo Exploring, Jeep Safari Tour, Feeding the Tigers, and the ZipLine. Read more “Out of Africa Wildlife Park – A Safari in Arizona”
Trip Planning
Recently the husband and I took a 15 day trip through Europe. We each carried one backpacking-sized backpack, and at times I had one regular size purse/shoulder bag. That was the entirety of our luggage. Here are some tips and how-tos to realize your own minimalist packing dreams.
Packing this light offered several benefits for the trip. Having one backpack means you only have one thing you might lose. It is easy to keep track of. Our trip included five flights (a few were connecting legs of our overseas flight) and on only one occasion did we have to check our backpacks. Not having to check our bags means less chance for the airline to lose them. Our two bags fit nicely in every train storage situation we encountered. Also, having only one thing to carry and carrying it on your back, means cracks in sidewalks, stairs and running for gates is less of a problem than it would be if we were trying to drag along roller carry-on bags. Not having to pay fees to check bags means we could reallocate our funds for our experiences. That bit of money likely covered one of our more expensive meals and may have even gone a long way toward off setting our Disney Paris admission fees. Read more “15 Days of European Travel in One Backpack”
Hiking
We recently visited Stoos, a small town in mountains of Switzerland. What is normally a small ski town in the winter is a beautiful destination for hiking in the warmer months.
Getting to Stoos is a 45 minute train ride from Lucerne, Switzerland to Schwyz, Switzerland. Once in Schwyz you’ll need to hop on the #1 Bus to Stoosbahn and take the funicular to Stoos. The current funicular is about a hundred years old and will be replaced in 2018 with a modern funicular. The new one will be the steepest funicular in the world once opened.
If the weather is good, you’ll have a few options for hiking. Stoos has a few chairlifts available to reach the summits or you can hike the trail to the top. Our trip consisted of riding the chairlift up to Mt. Klingenstock where we met up with the panorama trail leading to Mt. Fronalpstock. At 6,338 ft., Mt. Klingenstock is the tallest peak along the trail.
Trip Planning
If you’re like me then you’ve done a lot of traveling in the U.S. but not so much internationally. Maybe it’s the cost, making time or the fear of the unknown. I plan to embark on 2 weeks in Europe this year and document the process of planning, navigating and making it a trip to never forget.
Pick a date or a time period when you want to go. Keep in mind that summer is peak season for tourism in Europe so if you want shorter lines and fewer crowds go during the shoulder or off-season. Committing to a time period is important so you can start looking for the travel deals and planning out the details like destinations, cell phone usage, etc. It should also go without saying but be sure you allow enough time to get a passport if you don’t have one yet.
Read more “Series: Traveling to Europe for Newbies – Part 1”