Monthly Archives: January 2013

After enjoying Halloween and a show with my friend Sallie in Salt Lake City, Ken made a last-minute decision to fly to Los Angeles to visit his friend David. That left me with a car and a drive across Nevada. Before you think I did … Continue reading →

If there’s one thing Karen and I learned from the international leg of our trip, it’s that we can’t spend every waking hour together, day after day. Sometimes we need a break. So while Karen drove over to Death Valley, I … Continue reading →

From Mesa Verde to the Painted Desert to Albuquerque, we’ve seen a potpourri of petroglyphs, those mysterious rock carvings from long ago. A few points petroglyphic shone particularly brightly for us. Newspaper Rock There are several places with that name; … Continue reading →

We had seen the dire warnings and heard the cautionary tales. But we could not be dissuaded. We would enter the scorching crucible of the Fiery Furnace. Um, well, it’s not quite as dramatic as all that, though they do … Continue reading →

Many moons ago (in 1994, to be exact), Karen visited Arches National Park. Her intriguing photo of Delicate Arch hung in the sunroom of our Milwaukee home for years, taking on a mystical air. I had to see this place … Continue reading →

No, this has nothing to do with pie or creme brulee or anything tasty like that. Little signs dotting Utah’s national parks sported the phrase, “Don’t bust the crust.” The crust they are referring to is this: What looks to … Continue reading →

As if one “canyonland” weren’t enough, the Green and Colorado rivers divide Canyonlands National Park into three separate districts. As I pondered the park map, my head started to swim… the first symptom of canyon fatigue, an ailment common to travelers … Continue reading →

Anthropology, archaeology, geology, mineralogy… choose your -ology, and it’s represented here in the Southwest. As scenic as Hovenweep National Monument‘s natural sights are, it’s the human landscape that beckoned to me. The structures dotted around Little Ruin Canyon boast some of the finest construction … Continue reading →

After a holiday break, there are a few more sights from the American Southwest that we’d like to share with you. So flip the calendar back a couple months, and here we go… Driving in the American Southwest can be … Continue reading →

On New Year’s Eve a year ago, we finally tasted durian, with predictably extreme reactions. A few moments from Karen and Annette didn’t make it into the original video, so here they are: bonus reactions to the King of Fruits!