August 30, 2025

Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Underrated, But Not Underappreciated (National Parks Trip #3)

This post represents another installment in the series documenting our West Coast National Parks trip in the summer of 2017.  Alan and I, along with our 18 year old daughter, Kyra, logged a total of 8,513 memorable miles of adventure over the course of five and a half weeks during the months of July and August.

When we left home in mid-July, I had no idea how quickly this 39 day trip would fly by.  Day #34 found us rolling into Medora, North Dakota, and we were due home at the end of the week.  Medora is home to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, and the Cottonwood Campground within the park would be our home for the next two nights while we explored the park.  “I would not have been President had it not been for my experience in North Dakota.”  Roosevelt’s time in North Dakota impacted him greatly, and our time in the National Park named for him left a lasting impression on me, as well.

August 17, 2025

Opposite Ends of the Travel Spectrum - Seattle and North Cascades National Park (National Parks Trip #3)

This post represents another installment in the series documenting our West Coast National Parks trip in the summer of 2017.  Alan and I, along with our 18 year old daughter, Kyra, logged a total of 8,513 memorable miles of adventure over the course of five and a half weeks during the months of July and August.

It wasn’t easy to pull up stakes from Salt Creek Recreation Area in Port Angeles, Washington.  Salt Creek had been base camp for our visit to Olympic National Park, and the spectacular views of the Strait of Juan de Fuca would be sorely missed.  But Day #31 of our West Coast National Parks trip was a gift waiting to be opened, and all three of us were eagerly anticipating the adventures ahead.