In The Black Hills

The pine forests and granite peaks of the Black Hills of South Dakota are rich with Old West history, and despite the breathtaking natural beauty it's impossible to ignore the legacy of greed when you visit. These hills used to be rich with gold and freely roamed by a large community of America's native people. Now Crazy Horse and Mount Rushmore stand at odds, representing two very different versions of our shared American history. One side is told by the federal government, the other is remembered by the Lakota Nation. 

These photos are from a camping trip to Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park. Though small (and man-made) this lake was truly an oasis in the vast grasslands of Wyoming and southwestern South Dakota. 

Camping = Roughing it

Well, not exactly!

This cup made the trip all of the way from this event last year. Remember?

One morning, we hiked a riverside trail into Sunday Gulch. The scenery was gorgeous and the air was fresh and filled with the scent of ponderosa pine trees. 

We drove to Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial but didn't feel like paying entrance fees of $11 and $20, respectively. These are sculptures of mammoth proportions, and you don't exactly have to be up close and personal to see them and appreciate their scale. I don't have a picture of Crazy Horse, which is in the early stages of its construction, but to give you an idea of the scale and proportion: Mount Rushmore is 60 feet tall; the Crazy Horse Memorial will be 560 feet tall.

Hangin' Around the Mountain

Rocky Mountain Hikes: Hanging Lake

In the past few weeks I have rarely stayed in the mountains on my days off. Whether I'm in Atlanta for a wedding, Denver for a conference, or Boulder to search for an apartment and a job something always seems to be drawing me down from my high elevation. I decided that a staycation to explore the areas around Vail was in order. 

Colorado in the summertime is a pick-your-own-adventure outdoor-lovers' paradise. The internet is rife with articles ranking the best hikes, climbs, bike trails, and campsites. Habitually making the list of primo rocky mountain hikes is Hanging Lake: a 2.4 mile roundtrip hike to a gorgeous travertine lake atop a cliff. 

And so, for my most recent Monday-Tuesday "weekend" I found myself headed for the Hanging Lake Trailhead near Glenwood Springs with my sunblock, my sneakers, and my boyfriend. 

The trail gets steep and rocky but levels out frequently. There is plenty of shade and a cool breeze coming from Dead Horse Creek, which runs downhill alongside the path. The trail is relatively short but challenging. In terms of difficulty I'd say it was similar to the Delicate Arch Trail in Moab, but easier because it of the lush scenery, shaded trail, and motivation to get to the top.

I mean, this is difficult... 

But isn't this worth it?

The boardwalk surrounding the lake can be completed in 10 minutes or less. Contact with the water is not allowed to preserve the delicate ecosystem that the lake contains. After scrambling onto some rocks for a better view and posing for some photos, we continued uphill to Spouting Rock.

Spouting Rock is only one minute further along the trail past Hanging Lake, and it's totally worth it to get misted by this icy cold waterfall.

All said and done, we completed the hike in around two hours.

Before doing this I had no idea that Colorado could offer such lush scenery. Passing through the arid red sandstone desert that is often associated with this state on the way to the trail, it was really surprising to find this gorgeous turquoise blue lake resting so high in the cliffs of Glenwood Canyon.

I'd highly recommend it if you're staying in Vail and have half a day to make the hour(ish) drive to Glenwood.

Grand Canyon

After nearly 2,000 miles of open road, 36 hours in transit, the family reaches the Grand Canyon.

Charlie and Sam pretend to fall off...

Dylan and Amanda... do not.

Moab, Utah: Life Elevated

Day 2: Saddle & Paddle

Our second day on the road was absolutely packed: a two-hour ride through the Absaroka mountain range on horseback, three hours rafting down the Yellowstone River, and a four-hour drive around the upper loop in Yellowstone National Park.

Amanda and Spud

Our path wound by the empty Treventine mines, where I was kind of alarmed to watch my horse step over skeletons. Creepy for someone who lives back East and has never seen skeletons outside of museums or Hollywood movies! Back in the mountains, hooves trampling sagebrush released a heavy aroma and flowers of yellow, pink, lavender, and violet blue appeared in clumps.

Sam on Olie, Charlie riding Beans

My trusty steed, Black Tail (his eye makes him look kind of wild)

By the end of our six-mile ride I had shin splints and one hell of a sore derrière. I still kissed Black Tail for not throwing me off like Willie did to his rider - we were all pretty shaken up after he did, worried that our horses would spook, but what's an adventure without fear of severe injury or death?

The dry summer heat had us all psyched for white water rafting with our guide Parker that afternoon. Getting soaked was awesome. Parker confided in us that if his tour group had a bad attitude, he would convince them of the need to paddle non-stop for the duration of the trip (whereas the more laid back folks would get by with just a stroke here and there). I guess he liked our gung-ho approach and I'll-try-anything-once attitude because we only paddled a couple of times every few minutes.

Painted on the wall inside:

"If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water." 

- Loren Eiseley

My family went rafting with the Yellowstone Raft Company and riding with Absaroka-Beartooth Outfitters in Gardiner, Montana.