When you have time in Phoenix, you'd be crazy to not spend some of it hiking. One beautiful area to consider visiting is the White Tank Mountains Regional Park. It's about a 35-minute drive from central Phoenix in Waddell, but it's worth the trek. It's an expansive park with opportunities for horseback riding, hiking, picnics, mountain biking and exploring. Last time I visited the park was when I ... Read more
Camping at Schnebly Hill
With the Perseid meteor shower set to illuminate the sky, Graham and I headed north to get away from city lights and hopefully see the show. We chose the campgrounds along Schnebly Hill Road, accessible via the I-17. Our first destination was Schnebly Hill Vista, which overlooks the Sedona area. You get there by driving down Schnebly Hill Road past the campgrounds. Along the bumpy drive you pass ... Read more
Waterfall at White Tank Mountain Regional Park
The recent rains convinced Graham that the waterfall at White Tank Mountain Regional Park must be flowing. I have heard that it's usually dry, so I've only ever made the trip to the West Valley park to mountain bike. We hopped in the car and ventured west, all the way to the Cotton Lane exit on the Interstate 10. From there we made some wrong turns but ended up driving north on Citrus Road and ... Read more
Havasu Falls Camping: Lessons From My Third Trip to the Waterfalls
Update: Prices have changed since my three visits. They are now: $100 per person per weekday night or $125 per person per weekend night (Friday/Saturday/Sunday nights). See the Havasupai website for reservation details. Even on my third trip to Havasupai waterfalls I learned so much. It's always a new experience. The main difference between this trip and previous visits is that this time our ... Read more
Wildflowers in Sedona
As if the red-rock formations weren't scenic enough, our campsite in Sedona last weekend was surrounded by wildflowers. We camped along Forest Road 525 again, which we accessed from Arizona 89A. Few vehicles passed our site, mostly Pink Jeep Tours. You can camp on the left side of the road; most people didn't travel far on 525 to choose a campsite. But if you continue on 525 toward the Honanki ... Read more
A Wedding at the Red River Gorge, Kentucky
I was lucky enough to be invited to a wedding in the Red River Gorge of Kentucky last weekend. I knew it would be scenic but what I experienced surpassed every expectation. The Gorge was about a two-hour drive from Louisville. Luckily our rental, a Prius hybrid, boasted almost 50 miles to the gallon. We pushed buttons and more buttons trying to figure out how to turn it on, and after a few ... Read more
Wildflowers at Piestewa Peak
I'm on a mission to combat the effects of working at a desk job. It isn't always easy, but I try to get at least four days of exercise a week. This week, I decided to break up my fitness routine of running and yoga with a hike at Piestewa Peak in Phoenix. View from the Hopi parking lot. Many other Arizonans and tourists had the same idea on that weekday morning. I usually find a parking ... Read more
Grand Canyon weekend trip
It was a grand weekend. We took advantage of fee-free entry into national parks Sept. 29 to visit the Grand Canyon. I loved the change in temperatures and scenery on the drive there.Somewhere on Highway 180Many volunteers devoted their time that day to help with projects such as picking up trash. I admired them and hope to join in a future project.These canyoneers picked up litter blown, or ... Read more