The Westward expanse of our United States of America is an attractive destination for travelers who wish to explore deserts, mountains, or forests. Utah is home to five national parks and fascinating landscapes. We explored Utah over the course of a nine day adventure.

We left Birmingham at 2 PM on Friday to drive to Dallas, Texas, and spend the night with Taylor’s parents. We weren’t able to visit for long, as the next morning found us on the road bright and early to Cortez, Colorado. We passed through Cortez after we decided to forego camping in Canyon of the Ancients and drove the entire distance to Arches National Park in Moab, Utah.

After our post-flight champagne toast, we drove 15 miles down Highway 313 to Canyonlands National Park.  We arrived at The Island in the Sky entrance where we took pictures and hiked around some rock formations a little bit. We kept driving through the park, stopping at every picturesque place we saw. After we got our fill of the park and realized what time it was, we headed to Arches National Park.  

​We saw all the major highlights like Balancing Rock, Double Arch, the North and South Window Arches, and Delicate Arch. We spent the entire day climbing all over the awesome orange clay formations and getting a true feel for the land. After our last hike up to the Delicate Arch, we were exhausted and found a campsite back near our balloon take off spot.

Capitol Reef National Park was a pit stop on our way to Bryce Canyon National Park. We examined petroglyphs, took a few pictures, and stopped at the visitor’s center to buy a few souvenirs before heading out of the park.

A meal from Cowboy’s Buffet and Steak Room at Ruby’s Inn prepared us for hiking around Bryce Canyon National Park.  Before we got into the actual canyon we stopped at the major sights around the park including Inspiration, Sunset, and Sunrise points. Seeing the hoodoos from above made us giddy for our hike on The Under the Rim trail to our reserved campsite. After a night under the stars and the hoodoos, we hiked back to the canyon’s rim and made plans visit the park again to hike all 22 miles of Under the Rim.

Arguably the most spectacular experiences of our trip awaited us at Zion National Park. A mesmerizing drive into the park included tunnels, bighorn sheep, and child-like wonderment. The drive was soon followed by a swim in the Virgin River and a meal from Zion Brewing Company.  

The Two Cranes Inn is where we laid our heads before braving the length of the splendid Narrows. The main hike of our trip was the 18 mile trek through The Narrows.  Our hike was an incredible journey with surprises around every turn of the thousand-foot high walls. After this exhausting hike we spent our second night at the Zion River Resort.

We had one last adventure planned in this magnificent park. We made the dangerous climb up Angel’s Landing via the West Rim Trail. One breathtaking view and one hot hike down later, we tearily said goodbye to Zion and started the last leg of our nine-day adventure.

Page, Arizona, is where we would eat our last local meal of the trip and make our final two scenic pitstops. Canyon Crepes may have provided the most hearty breakfast of the trip as we made the phone call to book a tour through Antelope Canyon.

Julie with Dixie Ellis Canyon Tours guided us through this incredible work of erosion as we attempted to keep our jaws out of the sand. After taking hundreds of pictures we headed to our last stop, Horseshoe Bend. We took in the views and gawked in its greatness while reflecting on how spectacular our trip had been.

A delicious meal from El Bruno’s in Cuba, Arizona, and a nights rest in Albuquerque later, we arrived in Dallas at Taylor’s family home once more. We were treated with a fantastic meal from the grill as we discussed just how satisfying our second visit to the American West had been. What will be life long memories were still fresh in our minds as we drove the final distance from Dallas to Birmingham the next day.

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3 Parks, 2 Forests, and 1 dog
​The Grand Canyon
Mesa Verde National Park

I can't say that I've explored many places to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, but it is difficult to imagine a better suited city than Chicago, Illinois. The Windy City hosts a wealth of delicious food and captivating sights to go along with the company of a few of Taylor and I's good-timing friends.
 
We arrived at the same time as a light snow that, against the quiet and early-morning streets, commanded the attention of my delirious mind and left me with a mystical first impression. If it were not for the Hotel Tonight app, Taylor and I may have enjoyed the views of the city from the backseat of the car, but we were able to book a room just minutes before we arrived at 3 am.
 
The next morning revealed a labyrinth of cold streets tucked into a blanket of fog that hid the tops of city towers. I marveled at the disappearing steel monuments as we made our way to Millennium Park in the New East Side of Chicago to see The Bean. The Bean was much larger than I imagined and was a fun mirror for silly faces and warped pictures. 

Our day continued on public transit as we made our way north to Ranch Triangle to meet our friends for breakfast at the Armitage location of Chicago Bagel Authority. Once we had filled our bellies with monstrous green bagels, we retired to a friend's apartment in Wrigleyville to catch up and let our food settle.

We  were soon on the L train headed to the The Bottled Blonde in the River North district. It was a great place to start our evening of shenanigans, but green beers and great friends make it difficult to dislike any establishment. Several bars and stories of glory days later, we were on our way back to Wrigleyville to patronize the batting cages at Sluggers.

Unfortunately, we had stayed out too late to be trusted with baseball bats, so we settled for a few games of air hockey before it was time to find some nearby grub. We found a local, late-night burrito eatery called El Burrito Mexicano conveniently located on West Addison Street between the Sluggers and our friend's house. The large, authentic burritos were the perfect way to end the night out. 

The next day Taylor and I woke up to a fog-less view of the city in its entirety. It didn’t take us long to decide that Giordano's Pizzeria was the place that we needed to be for lunch. After a quick walk, we came upon groups of people waiting outside of the door. We were in no hurry, so we found a place to lounge and watch the monstrous, deep dish pizzas being prepared in the kitchen. One tall, cold beverage later, we were seated and ordering what would be one of the best pizzas I've had. The enormous pizza pies stopped all conversation when they landed on our table approximately two hours after our arrival. They were worth every second of the wait.

Full from the delightful pizza, we took to the streets again to meet our party from the night before. We found them at The Boss Bar on West Hubbard Street, where we recapped the night before and fell right back into our typically absurd conversations. Lou Malanati’s on North Wells Street would be the next establishment graced with our rambunctious presence.

​More laughter was shared here than at any other place during our time in Chicago. We celebrated one another’s company as if we had been forcefully separated for decades. Delicious wines flowed as appetizers then entrees were devoured by all. It was a picture perfect ending to the joyful weekend reunion.

The morning of our departure found Taylor and I with adequate time to explore more of the city. We hadn’t been to the Navy Pier, and Taylor insisted that we must go. I couldn't be more glad that she did. The view of the city from the pier was stunning, even though the pier’s Ferris Wheel was closed.

Luckily, we didn’t have to top the Ferris wheel to see our choice for breakfast. The Kanela Breakfast Club provided a hearty breakfast that would stick with us nearly through Kentucky.

Chicago is a marvelous city, and we know that we've only scratched the surface. Rave-worthy restaurants, endless points of interest, and welcoming pubs dot the city. Lake Michigan may blow punishingly cold winds between the Illinois skyscrapers, but St. Patty's Day in The Windy City left Taylor and I feeling warm and welcome. 

As 2016 drew to a close, Taylor and I were invited to begin the new year in our nation’s capital. Washington D.C. was no new experience for Taylor, but this was my first visit. Our journey began in Birmingham, Alabama, and after a full day of driving, our first night's stop was in Roanoke, Virginia at The Snuggle Inn. We arrived in Roanoke as the first snowflakes of the year began to cover the Virginian capital city. 

Once we'd arrived in Washington D.C., our first destination was The National Mall. We walked to the Library of Congress, and among the expertly crafted institutional buildings that we saw, the Library of Congress may have been the most impressive. Its seemingly flawless design, captivating murals, and patterned ceilings and floors is a spectacular home for the personal library of Thomas Jefferson. The library holds some of the American republic’s most direct influences. Fittingly, we would move from a building whose walls hold the ideas that formed our nation to a building whose walls have heard the debates those ideals have encouraged.

Our couple of friends that had joined us for the day had different plans for the night of New Year’s Eve, but the evening would find Laine, Taylor, and I preparing to ring in 2017 at Don Julio’s in Arlington. We had been joined by Paige—a friend of Laine’s—by the time we left for Don Julio’s. The admission privilege for Don Julio’s was a bit expensive for my tastes, but the night was nothing short of what a NYE spent out on the town should be. We danced and celebrated as if it would be our last NYE to enjoy. ​
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Breckenridge is one of the most amazing spring break destinations I've been to. John and I chose to go to the Rocky mountains instead of the typical beach destinations. Keep in mind that we had a free place to stay, so this opportunity was also almost impossible to pass up. Luckily, we knew almost twenty friends who also had planned to go to Breckenridge or Keystone for spring break. 
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​After countless hours driving past windmills and farmland our very first Breckenridge stop was Crepes A La Cart, and this place did not disappoint. We ended up going there multiple times over the course of the week. Our crepe cravings have grown exponentially, and we have been on a hunt for more crepes since leaving Breckenridge.

We have to give major thanks to our wonderful hosts Fruit, Krissy, and Clapp for all of the cool things they were able to hook us up and help us out with. We were provided a free place to stay by Fruit and Krissy, free skiing passes and ski rentals by Clapp, and delicious food recommendations by all three that only locals could give. Our trip would have been nothing close to what it was without their hospitality. Thank you! 

​One of the aforementioned reasons that our trip was enhanced by their hospitality is that we would not have gone skiing if it wasn't for them. If you do plan to go skiing and have never been, you should definitely take a lesson. We did not take lessons, and I regretted it as many times as John fell. Even if you don't take a lesson and spend as much time learning to recover from a flop as you do actually skiing, it is truly one experience that would have been worth the cost.  

Since we were only able to ski one day, we spent most of our time enjoying the quaint ski town. We wandered up and down main street dozens of times, stopping in and out of shops and bars. One of those spots included a pancake-filled breakfast at The Blue Moose. Everything in Breck is extremely easy to access from the free-ride bus system. Plus, it's much easier than driving in the snow.

One day, we decided to take a trip to Keystone to see the friends who were also in the area for spring break. After a couple of quick bus rides, we arrived at our friend's rental house. We sat around and watched the snow fall through the windows while playing games and enjoying each other's company.

John and I had had worked up a bit of an appetite, so we decided to wander outside to find some grub. Through the snow, we saw the bright sign for Adriano's Bistro. It turned out to be a completely homemade, five course meal that will forever be as one of the best I have enjoyed. This place is the real deal, and I could never write enough about it to do it justice.

Our last day of the trip was Saint Patrick's day. We spent the day with our friends  bar crawling through the town, stopping at any place that served beer. One place was The Breckenridge Brewery, where we had been for dinner earlier in the week.

Spring Breck was truly one for the books, and it was the best spring break trip that I have ever been on. Along the long road home, we stopped at a few notable places. I cannot wait to make it back to Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado for a show. John cannot wait to make it back to the Osceola Cheese Company in Osceola, Missouri to stock up on delicious varieties of cheese. 

The midnight before we set out, I decided that I'd like to go to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. After checking out the map and reviewing other bloggers' reviews of trails on the nps.gov website, I settled on hiking the Angel Falls trail to a backcountry campsite and  hiking out on Deep Creek Trail the next day. It did not take much to convince John to join.

The two trails are connected by several shorter 'loop' trails. Unfortunately, John and I were illiterate to clearly marked trail signs and took a different connector trail than I had planned for us to. This connector trail was a steep one mile uphill and one mile downhill hike that took us prematurely to Deep Creek Trail. We continued on Deep Creek Trail  to our site, set up camp, and got some rest. 

​Navigational mistakes aside, the trail was beautiful. The stunning water falls were all at the beginning of Angel Falls Trail. This was nice, because it allowed us to take pictures and marvel at the falls before setting a pace for our hike. Both trails followed right along their respective creeks and provided wonderful glimpses of the mountains through the trees. ​

 All in all, the roughly 12 mile journey took us exactly 24 hours to complete. This was the best 24 hour trip I've been on and serves as proof that you don't need to spend a lot of time, money, or effort planning to have a great trip to a National Park.

The drive to and from the National Park is beautiful. We drove through Nantahala National Forrest and Cherokee National Forrest. Both were homes to events in the 1996 Olympics. 

[Other stops along the way included the Chattanooga Brewery and Urban Stack in Chattanooga, TN.] 

John and I have been to New Orleans several times for several different occasions. Regardless of the reason, we always have a fantastic time. If I could put together a perfect weekend, out of all of my favorite places, here is what it would be like:
 
First, we love the AirBnB's in New Orleans. Some of our favorites aren't listed anymore, but the Garden District is our favorite area to look. It's uptown and really close to Magazine street. (If you've never used AirBnB, use this link for a discout!)
 
We usually get to town on Friday evening and head straight to dinner. Trying new places is our favorite thing, but one of the best in Nola for an afternoon delight is The Original Gumbo Pot. It is just off of Decatur street with plenty of shopping and bars nearby, and it's only a few blocks from Bourbon Street.

As much as we love Bourbon Street, we always recommend going to Frenchmen’s Street and visiting the cluster of bars there. If bar hopping isn't your thing, go to my favorite “run of the mill pirate bar”, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar and enjoy a casual evening of piano music in candlelight. 
 
We like to get up early the next morning and head to Tchoupitoulas Street to grab a great “cali-mex” beachy brunch at Lucy’s Retired Surfers Bar & Restaurant. After breakfast, you might have a hard time deciding what to do in Nola, but here are a few of our favorite options:  
 
To start, if you aren't hurting too badly after your first night out, grab a drink from any bar and take it with you while you explore. We like the famous Huge Ass Beer.

You can always take a ghost tour. We chose the Haunted History Tour  and loved walking around the exclusive St. Louis Cemetery #1 while being lectured about its history and the history of the city. If guided tours don't appeal to you, hop on a trolley car and stop off when you see something that catches your eye.

Jackson Square is the most iconic place in New Orleans for good reason. This beautiful, centrally located park is surrounded by bars, restaurants, and artists. We've found the fence that surrounds Jackson Square to be, more often than not, covered in impressive works of art, and the Decatur Street side of the square is often host to an eccentric performing artist or two. 
 
Head over to Red Fish Grill on Bourbon Street for a great seafood dinner, but make sure to have a reservation ahead of time. You might not get to try this New Orleans classic if you don't! After dinner, keep heading down Bourbon Street and enjoy the New Orleans nightlife. Maybe even go sing some karaoke at The Cat's Meow  like we did on one trip with John's fraternity.

I grew up going to Atlanta for all sorts of things: lacrosse tournaments, Braves baseball games, Six Flags over Georgia, and the Coca-Cola Museum. Sadly, my most recent trip didn't allow for too many touristy activities, but I did make sure to check out some awesome graffiti spots before my work conference started! 

I was told that all the best spots were in Little Five Points, so I made the quick drive from downtown and checked out all of the coolest Instagram spots!

I parked my car near the awesome Vortex Bar and Grill, and even the parking lot had great murals that got me excited for what the rest of the area had in store!

Once exploring the graffiti and local record stores had worked up an appetite, I stopped for lunch at a great spot called The Corner Tavern. I finished my salad and kept walking until I hit the wall art jackpot at Euclid Avenue.

I met a few cool photographers snapping pics, and they told me there were even cooler places just down the street. I hopped in my car and kept looking. Sure enough, there were a few more spots on Euclid Avenue that I hopped out to take pictures of!

The Greg Mike Garage was right near the Krog Street Market on Edgewood Avenue. The entire garage was painted in bright colors and silly faces. Sadly, the biggest mural had construction vehicles in front of it, so I couldn't get a full picture.

The next spot was my absolute favorite. The Magnificent Popsicle wall on the side of A&R Ironworks on Decatur Street is inspired by the King Of Pops, popsicle brand. Everything on the wall is related to those sweet, fruity popsicles!

After all of my smiles and giggles at the popsicle artwork, I headed back to my car and was ready to  check into my hotel in Marietta. On my way, I found one last piece of artwork before I got on the interstate.

Going to school an hour and a half away from Memphis kept John and I visiting for various reasons. I've heard people express hatred for Memphis, but I tend to love it. I love the music scene, being on the river, and the barbecue.
 
If you want to have a great and safe time, here’s what we recommend for the weekend:
 
The first thing we like to do in Memphis is get some barbecue. Whether it's from Rendezvous, Corky’s, or Central BBQ,  you're bound to get some of the best the city has to offer. After that,  you might head to Silky’s for a “bucket” to wash it down.

If Silky's piano doesn't have you on the floor, step outside and follow the blues music to any of the Beale Street bars for a taste of Memphis nightlife. When Beale Street starts to slow and you feel like dancing until the dawn, head down 2nd Street South to Raiford’s Disco for all of the boogie you can handle.
 
The next day you'll probably want to take it a little bit easier. We like to have a few cocktails at The Peabody Hotel and watch the ducks or go to Loflin Yard when it is patio weather. If you’re lucky, the Grizzlies will be in town and you'll be able to score affordable tickets to the game!

If you have time to spare, Graceland, The Pink Palace, and The Pyramid are well-known tourist attractions that are all worth a visit. Graceland is the beautiful home of Elvis Presley. The Pink Palace is an inspirational collection of museums complete with a planetarium. The Pyramid is an engineering marvel with a view and houses a massive Bass Pro Shop.

There are a multitude of things to do in Memphis that we didn't mention like taking a Mississippi Riverboat ride, but you'll have a blast no matter what you find yourself getting into at the Home of the Blues.

Taylor, Maria, and I spent two nights and three days camping at The Land between the Lakes, outside of Paducah, Kentucky. We found a campsite on the shore of Lake Barkley suitable for viewing the coming total eclipse. 

We arrived at the Land between the Lakes just after noon on Saturday and began looking for our site. Once we had established our site for the weekend, we drove roughly thirty minutes to the nearest market in the Grand Rivers community to stock up on supplies. ​

We drove over to the Devils Garden area to sadly find out that part of the park was closed off for construction, but we were still able to explore around the Sand Dune Arch. We marched through the bright red sand and narrow canyon walls to find an opening with a great hidden surprise: a delicate arch with a giant slit in the middle. The formation looked as if two animals were frozen in a kiss for all of eternity, put on display for everyone to look at. As great as this formation was,  nothing could compare to the main treasure of the park that we would hike to next.

Hiking in the Smoky Mountains early in the fall was the perfect time to see the complete beauty of the season. Even though we went during the first cold snap of the year, it was delightful to wander through the forest. We traveled along the Deep Creek trail and admired the trees and the distant mountain tops that would periodically peek through them. 
             
Our campsite was positioned beside the creek with a path to the water. Massive boulders littered the banks and made for perfect platforms for observing the stars. Sleeping under those stars with the lullaby of gushing water was the most perfect way to fall asleep.
 
Hiking down the trail early in the morning before the fog had lifted made the forest seem mystical. It seemed as though we were the first ones awake and moving that morning. As we quietly hiked the last few miles of our journey, we felt grateful that we had been able to spend the time we did in such a wonderful place.
 
We can’t wait to go back and do more, longer hikes through the national park. 'Til next time Smoky Mountains!

There is a place in Missouri virtually midway between Springfield and Kansas City on Highway 13 that is what my dreams are made of. This place is called The Osceola Cheese Factory.

The cheese factory has hundreds of cheeses available for tasting and purchase. I find more satisfaction with every visit. The cheese factory also sells a variety of summer sausages, crackers, and cheese accessories (so you can eat it in the car immediately after purchase like Taylor and I did). If there’s a small chance you find yourself in south Missouri and you love cheese, do yourself a favor and pull over at the Osceola Cheese Factory. 

Nashville is one of my favorite cities. I love going there for any occasion, but going to celebrate a friend's 21st birthday may be my favorite. Thankfully, our party included friends who lived just outside of the city, so we were able to stay there and catch Ubers to and from downtown.

​To start off our weekend, we went to Desano’s Pizza. The main reason we went was to bring our own wine, but we stayed for the delicious pizza. Once there was nothing left of the two large pizzas, we walked over to a few bars on Demonbreun Street before heading to Broadway Street.

Mesa Verde is a special place whose uniqueness I could've never understood before visiting. The monstrous plateau and  breath-taking wilderness are incredible enough, but the ancient dwellings hiding among the cliffs are the most impressive aspects.

Taylor and I were a little too late to get tickets for a tour of the largest collection of dwellings, The Cliff Palace, but we were able to get tickets for the second largest tour, The Balcony House. Even though it was smaller, it cannot be less impressive.  

Mistake #1 – We went at the wrong time
 
Since the cave system is so ginormous, there are lots and lots of bats who call the cave their home. During certain times of the year, parts of the cave are closed to the public. We went one week into the winter season and only had three tours to choose from. There are much longer tours we would have rather taken, but we picked what seemed to be the best tour being offered at the time.
 
Mistake #2 – We didn’t get our tickets ahead of time
 
The national park website must have reassured us three or four times that the tours rarely sell out and they always have plenty of tour times. The reassurance would turn out to be misleading. We got there around 9:30 AM expecting to get on the 10 am tour. We found that the next three tour times were sold out, so we had to pick the only time offered before our reservation to kayak the  Lost River Cave just outside of the park. 

​Outside of those minor setbacks, we did do a few things right!

The Grand Canyon National Park has several areas that cater to visitors, but Taylor and I decided to spend our trip on the southern rim. The Rim Trail on the southern side is a leisurely walk through time, but Taylor and I had to journey into the canyon on the Bright Angel Trail. No matter the perspective, the canyon's harrowing heights, beautifully striped walls, and sheer size are absolutely breathtaking. ​

 The Rim Trail is scattered with dates and information. As we walked, we learned about the sediments and causes of each of the canyon's layers. We spotted several deer and several places to explore the rim beyond the educational path. Crowded and fenced overlooks near the visitor's center are no comparison to the ledges and sights to be found along the trail. We thought looking at the canyon from above was mesmerizing, but the views from inside would be even more incredible.

We set out on the Bright Angel Trail in the heat of the day and had our breath taken away by its difficulty and scenery. After countless descending switchbacks, we managed to reach Indian Gardens at the four and one half mile mark.

Indian Gardens provided a great change of scenery from layers of ancient rock to lush, green desert flora. I had not understood the height of the canyon's walls until I stood beneath them. Even though we didn't make it to the Colorado River, the change in perspective encouraged our appreciation of this Grand Canyon. 

It was a special place to be even when we realized that it was time for the trek back up. Needless to say, our legs were not prepared for it. I won't say which of us needed to take more breaks, but we both needed to use the rim's ice cream shop for motivation. We gazed down with pride upon reaching the top but soon realized that our motivational ice cream shop had closed for the evening. 

I grew up going to Chattanooga, TN for field trips and lacrosse tournaments, but John had never been until late last fall. We stopped for the night on our way to The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
 
The night before we arrived, we booked our stay at the Red Bank Charm Inn through Air BnB (Get credits towards your stay with this code: www.airbnb.com/c/johnd9471). We dropped off our bag, called an Uber, and headed downtown to Urban Stack for a delicious dinner.
 
After stuffing ourselves with juicy burgers, we drank a few more beers at The Chattanooga Brewery and played a couple of great board games until they closed. We got a great night’s sleep and woke up early enough to beat the crowds at one of the best brunch places in town.
 
The scrumptious and fluffy pancakes at Aretha Frankenstein’s were the perfect ending to our 12 hour stay in Chattanooga. We can’t wait to go back and spend more time in this amazing city. Next time, we want to try the hang gliding offered at Lookout Mountain.