I absolutely love Joshua Trees. Much like the Saguaros are iconic to the Sonoran Desert, the Joshua Trees are iconic symbols of the Mojave Desert and it’s too easy to imagine human characteristics in both. Every time I pull into an area with Joshua Trees it makes me smile and feel happy. Interestingly, Joshua Trees aren’t really trees at all, but rather a tree-like member of the yucca family. They may have been given their name by early Mormon pioneers who thought they resembled the Biblical Joshua with his arms raised.
It is believed that people have been living in the region of Joshua Tree National Park for 10,000 years. The first people of European descent who laid eyes on the area were with Spaniard Pedro Fages who was pursuing Native Americans who had “escaped” the mission in San Diego. After the Mexican-American War, American settlers started moving in, building ranches and doing some small-scale mining. Franklin Roosevelt protected the area as Joshua Tree National Monument in 1936 and it became a National Park in 1994. The park covers 1,242 square miles - slightly larger than the state of Rhode Island.
I’ve visited Joshua Tree National Park several times before, but always in the middle of summer when it was boiling hot out. We might get out and take some photos, but long hikes were pretty much out of the question. I was really happy to get there this past spring when it was cool and pleasant and I could get out on the trails. I hiked the Short Loop Trail from Black Rock Campground, Ryan Mountain, and the Lost Horse Mine Loop among others and they were all fantastic. Joshua Tree National Park is a special place and while it doesn’t get the hype of our other western National Parks, it’s definitely worth a visit. I can’t wait to return. I hope you enjoy these photos from beautiful Joshua Tree National Park.
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument was one of the top spots on my list of places to visit during my time in Arizona. It’s a remote park, located two hours from anywhere and right on the U.S./Mexican border, but it’s the only place in the country that you can find naturally occurring organ pipe cactus. In addition to these beauties, there are so many other species of cactus and desert plants as well which has led to this region also being named a part of UNESCO’s International Biosphere Reserve.
Organ Pipe Cactus was made a National Monument by Franklin Roosevelt back in 1937. A special act was passed to allow mining in the area during World War II, an act which sadly wasn’t repealed until 1976. The park’s remote location on the Mexican border used to bring both drug runners and human smugglers through the area, making this America’s most dangerous park. This danger is memorialized in the Kris Eggle Visitors Center which was named for a park ranger who was killed protecting visitors from drug smugglers in 2002. In the wake of his death, the border was reinforced and I felt safe there during my stay.
It was unbelievably hot when I arrived on an afternoon in late April. So hot that I couldn’t actually do anything but hover in the shade of the restroom and wait until the sun started to go down. I did enjoy a wonderful evening hike and an early morning one the following day as well. The area is beautiful and it was great to see the Organ Pipes in their native habitat. It was definitely just a one night stop, but I’m very glad I went. I hope you enjoy these photos from Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
Petrified Forest National Park in eastern Arizona contains a beautiful collection of petrified wood and also includes the Painted Desert, Blue Mounds and an old stretch of Route 66. It’s a park best explored by car, but you won’t really appreciate it unless you get out and hike out into the wilderness. Petrified Forest was designated a National Monument back in 1906 and was upgraded to a National Park in 1962. I enjoyed my visit to the park and hope you enjoy these photos I took exploring the Petrified Forest.
After the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War in 1848, New Mexico officially became a part of the United States. Americans started moving west to try and stake a claim in this new territory, but were often met with hostility by Indians trying to protect what they believed belonged to them. In response, the U.S. government built Fort Union at the main junction on the Santa Fe Trail. The original fort was good enough for that purpose, but a second, stronger, fort was built during the Civil War and a third fort soon replaced the second. The fort served two main purposes which were independent of each another - one being a military post and the other, a quartermaster depot. The depot was the supply hub for the government in the southwest and received hundreds of wagonloads of supplies daily to support 46 regional posts. There was also an arsenal on the base which could have also been seen as a separate entity as it had its own commander and staff. In addition, the base hospital provided the best medical care for hundreds of miles around. Fort Union served as the jumping-off point for Union forces on their way to fight at Glorieta Pass, the last Civil War battle fought in New Mexico. After the Civil War, African-American soldiers with the 57th U.S. Colored Infantry arrived at Fort Union and later the 9th U.S. Cavalry, remembered today as the Buffalo Soldiers, would join them. When trains started rumbling across the country at the end of the 19th century, Fort Union became obsolete and was decommissioned in 1891. The last soldiers left on May 15th of that year. In 1954, it became Fort Union National Monument and its history is now interpreted by the National Park Service.
Most of the fort was built of adobe which, without regular maintenance, will melt back into the desert. Some exceptions were the stone jail and the brick chimneys which provide a glimpse into what Fort Union once was. This park site doesn’t get many visitors, but it’s a fascinating place to learn about the Santa Fe Trail and early American history in the New Mexico Territory. I hope you enjoy these photos from fascinating Fort Union National Monument.
Native Americans have been passing through the area we now call the Salinas Valley for thousands of years. As agricultural techniques developed, hunter-gatherer societies began to settle down, plant crops and build permanent communities. The communities which grew in the Salinas Valley combined the traditions of the people we call Mogollon with those of the Ancestral Puebloans. They traded with other Puebloan groups to the west and with the Plains Indians to their east.
When the Spanish arrived in 1540, Coronado was searching for the 7 Lost Cities of Gold. He never found gold, but found abundant salt deposits in these mountains which is where they get their name (“salinas” means “salt” in Spanish). While the treasure seekers were met with disappointment, the Franciscan priests who accompanied them found whole towns of souls they believed needed saving. They took up residence in these remote pueblos and oversaw the construction of massive churches. They brought with them items which changed these societies for the better like wheat, fruit, cattle, goats and sheep. They also brought disease and demands for the Native people to give up their rituals and traditions. Some of these pueblos contain kivas, the underground centers of Pueblo communities and religion which point to some level of compromise, since later missions had kivas filled in and destroyed. Spanish priests and governors were often in disagreement over how to treat the Puebloan people, and cultural conflicts would often erupt…
Magnificent White Sands National Park in central New Mexico preserves the largest gypsum dune field of its kind in the world. This dune field in the heart of the Tularosa Basin covers 145,762 acres and includes 4.5 billion tons of gypsum sand. This gypsum was left in the area after the Permean Sea retreated several million years ago, and water and wind shape the dunes we find there today. The dunes are ever changing, though, so you will never see the same landscapes on any two visits to the park.
People have been coming through the area for at least 11,000 years and we believe that a group we call the Jornada Mogollon were the first to farm the area (see my photos of their nearby petroglyph site here). Groups of Apache made their way into the area in the 1600s and European-Americans arrived in the 1800s. White Sands National Monument was created by Herbert Hoover in 1933 and it was made a National Park in 2019.
I arrived for my visit to the park just after dawn. The mountains to the east block the sunrise, but the skies were blue and full of amazing white clouds. I headed straight out to the heart of the dunes and hiked the wonderful 5 mile Alkali Flats Trail. The sun reflected brightly off the white sand making photography difficult, but I was grateful that there was no wind. In the late afternoon I set out to capture some of the beautiful plant life in the park, mainly different kinds of yucca, which contrast nicely with the white sand. I stayed to watch the sunset and found real peace and solitude out in the middle of the park. It was a wonderful day in White Sands National Park. You can find some of these photos for sale in my store , but please contact me if the one you want isn’t there and I’ll be happy to add it. I hope you enjoy these photos from my time in White Sands National Park.
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a beautiful park which stretches along Wisconsin’s Lake Superior coastline. The park extends over 21 of the 22 islands in the area with only Madeline Island being outside its boundary. In addition to the islands themselves, the park extends to the historic fishing area at Little Sand Bay and the beautiful coastline and sea caves at Myers Beach. Nobody is quite sure who gave the islands their names, but French maps referred to them as the Apostle Islands as early as the 1700s. The National Lakeshore was established in 1970, having been proposed by Wisconsin’s Senator Gaylord Nelson who is also considered the founder of Earth Day.
During my time in the park, I enjoyed a scenic cruise around the islands with Apostle Island Cruises. Our 2.5 hour journey took us around most of the islands with special attention paid to the beautiful, outer Devil’s Island and the historic lighthouse at Raspberry Island. Unfortunately, the islands were closed to camping during my stay so I wasn’t able to spend the night out there which I really would have enjoyed. Beyond the cruise, I spent some time learning about the history of the area at the outdoor museum at Little Sand Bay (which was also a wonderful place to watch the sunset). There were also recorded stories from rangers, historians and Native Americans in this section to listen to. On my last morning in the park I visited the Myers Beach section to hike the Lakeshore Trail to The Bowl to view the amazing sea caves and beautiful coastline. I was also pleasantly surprised by the number and variety of mushrooms I experienced along this trail. I had a wonderful visit to the Apostle Islands and hope you enjoy these photos from my stay.
The Ojibwa Indians called Isle Royale “Minong” meaning “a good place to be” and they certainly hit the nail on the head with that one. Isle Royale National Park consists of Isle Royale itself and over 400 smaller islands making up an archipelago in the middle of Lake Superior. Isle Royale is the largest natural island on Lake Superior and the second largest in the Great Lakes at 45 miles long and 9 miles wide. Some of Michigan’s earliest copper mines were established on Isle Royale in the 1840s, continuing the Ojibwa copper-mining tradition which stretched back hundreds of years. Commercial fishing operations also ran off of Isle Royale for many years, but it was the island’s beauty and ability to attract tourism which would create its lasting industry. Isle Royale National Park was established in 1940 and it was made a part of the UNESCO International Biosphere Reserve in 1980.
I had a wonderful 4 day/3 night visit to Isle Royale in the beginning of August. The island is only accessible by boat or plane, with ferries originating out of Houghton and Copper Harbor in Michigan and Grand Portage in Minnesota. I chose the Isle Royale Queen IV out of Copper Harbor which dropped me off in Rock Harbor on the island’s northeast side in about three and a half hours. After getting my backcountry permit from the ranger there, I headed off into the wilderness for the next three nights, staying at Daisy Farm, Lynn Cove and Three Mile campgrounds. I hiked about 25 miles during my time on Isle Royale and really found the island to be a beautiful place to be. After hiking all day, an afternoon dip in Lake Superior always felt great. I saw 9 moose during my visit and also a handful of beavers along with plenty of birds and toads. I really cherished my time on Isle Royale and hope you enjoy these photos from America’s least visited National Park.
Hello Everyone and greetings from Green Bay, Wisconsin! I have completed my two month journey through Michigan and have moved on to the Badger State. I spent the first half of the week out in beautiful Isle Royale National Park, a destination I was really looking forward to and which definitely lived up to my expectations. Returning from the park on Saturday, it was time for me to make tracks and get myself into Wisconsin. Summer is passing quickly and I still hope to get through both Wisconsin and Minnesota before winter sets in. It’s been a good week, and I’m excited to tell you what I’ve been up to.
I headed out to Isle Royale on the Isle Royale Queen IV out of Copper Harbor bright and early on Wednesday morning. There are three boats that make the trip to the island, and this one just worked better with my schedule. It was fast and made the 55 mile crossing in about 3.5 hours and I enjoyed chatting with a mother and daughter who I sat with on the way out. The mother owned the rock shop in Copper Harbor and had a grandfather who once lived and worked as a fisherman on Isle Royale. Her daughter was in Copper Harbor for the summer and working at one of the restaurants in town. I was surprised by how many people I met who had family connections back to Isle Royale before it became a National Park.
When we arrived on the island, the rangers gave us their briefing, issued backcountry permits and we were off and running. Most of the park is designated wilderness, so unless you are staying at the lodge near the ferry dock you are on your own for the duration of your stay. I shouldered my pack and made my way a little over 7 miles to Daisy Farm Campground on the east side of the island. It’s been years since I’ve carried a full pack that distance, but I have been doing a lot of walking and hiking and it really wasn’t too bad. I even saw my first of nine moose I would see during my visit on this hike. Because I was there alone, it was easy to hear footsteps which weren’t my own and an adult moose has some pretty heavy footsteps. I was able to see the moose through the dense forest and enjoyed spending some time with her before heading on to camp where I took up residence in one of the shelters they had there. I had my tent with me, but since the shelters were available it seemed like an easier option even though it only takes 5 minutes to set up my tent. I had my first dehydrated meal in many years, something which has improved dramatically since the last time I ate one. It was a beautiful campground right on the lake and even though it was pretty busy, people were spread out and it didn’t seem crowded. I met some really nice people in camp and found it easy to talk to people as we obviously had shared interests in hiking, camping and/or National Parks and had gone to some length to get to this remote island.
Stretched between the towns of Munising and Grand Marais along the shores of Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a magical place filled with breathtaking scenery. From historical lighthouses to picture-perfect waterfalls, this small and often overlooked unit of the National Park Service is sure to have something for everyone. I enjoyed hiking many miles of trails along beaches and through the woods, past the waterfalls and overlooks that have captured peoples’ attention for hundreds of years. During the lumbering era, the area was clear cut, but the forest has regenerated in the last hundred years and is healthy again. It’s no wonder that Pictured Rocks was America’s first National Lakeshore, gaining this new designation in 1966. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a must-see while visiting Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and a definite highlight of my time in the state. To truly see the rocks themselves, you do need to get on a boat and see them from the water. I chose the Sunset Spray Falls tour with Pictured Rocks Cruises and while I think the boat could have been better suited to sightseeing, it was a wonderful cruise nonetheless. If you’re ever traveling across northern Michigan, definitely plan on spending a day or two in beautiful Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. You’ll be glad you did. I hope you enjoy these photos from my visit.
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was designated by Congress in 1970 to protect the wonderful dunes and historic towns on the Lake Michigan shoreline between the towns of Frankfort and Glen Arbor. This region of Michigan is an absolutely beautiful stretch, with remarkable landscapes perched high over the magnificent lake. The park gets its name from an old Ashininaabek Indian story about a mother bear and her two cubs who were starving in Wisconsin and set out to swim across Lake Michigan. The way was long and the two cubs couldn’t make it. They went under and returned to the surface as the Manitou Islands. The mother bear barely made it and climbed up the dunes and turned into a dune herself, forever perched on high looking out at her two lost cubs. The scenic drive will take you to some of the best lookouts in the park including a view of the Sleeping Bear Dune, while two campgrounds allow for wonderful overnight adventures. The old town of Glen Haven tells the story of logging and industry in the area as well as early tourism. The park also covers North and South Manitou Islands, two beautiful islands an hour offshore. I had the pleasure of spending two nights on South Manitou Island and it was one of the top highlights of my whole two month visit to Michigan. The island is basically uninhabited save for a few rangers and a small handful of others, but toads, chipmunks and snakes abound. You can even find a grove of ancient cedar trees in the interior of the island. With the deepest natural harbor between Chicago and Buffalo on the Great Lakes though, South Manitou Island was once a busy place, and some of the old buildings around the island are very well maintained. I loved the old homesteads, the cemeteries and, of course, the lighthouse. In 1970, the ship Francisco Morazon ran aground off of the south shore of the island and while the crew was saved the boat still rests were it hit and is visible above the waterline. While the island is designated wilderness and camping is the only overnight option, you can visit the islands as day trips as well and tours are offered. I had a wonderful stay in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and highly recommend it if you are in this part of Michigan. I hope you enjoy these photos from my visit to Sleeping Bear Dunes and South Manitou Island.
Yellowstone National Park is one of the most extraordinary places on the face of the Earth. Sitting atop a volcanic hotspot, Yellowstone is home to more than half of the world’s thermal features with over 10,000 within the park’s boundaries. Yellowstone is also home to the greatest concentration of large mammals in the lower 48. Established in 1872 as the world’s first National Park, it has drawn visitors from every corner of the globe. Charles Kuralt once called the Beartooth Highway, which brings you in the northeast entrance to the park from Red Lodge, Montana, the Most Beautiful Road in America, and I agree with him. This road (which is only open in the mid- to late-summer months) will lead you to Lamar Valley, dubbed “America’s Serengeti” for the diversity of animals found there. Bison, moose, bear, wolves and coyotes can frequently be found in the valley if you get up early enough and have a keen eye. From there you’re off on the main park road which runs in a massive figure-8 around the park. Where to stop can often be overwhelming to first-time visitors, but a few of my favorites are Mammoth Hot Springs, Midway Geyser Basin (home of Grand Prismatic Spring), Morning Glory Pool, Old Faithful and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Don’t forget to stop in the beautiful Inn at Old Faithful, an amazing old log-cabin style hotel, where you can get some Moose Tracks Ice Cream and enjoy a great view of the world’s most famous geyser. Beyond those highlights, my biggest recommendation is to get out of your car and go for a hike. It can be easy to get frustrated by all of the other tourists in the park, but those frustrations will fade with the crowds when you’re a mile down the trail. I hope you enjoy these photos from the world’s first and one of my favorite national parks.
