USA Photos

  • photo of prickly pear cactus with reddish-brown buds and rocky outcropping in the background
    Prickly pear cacti (see the reddish-brown buds?) were everywhere in NM, including this hike in the Sandia Mountains!
  • photo of one-story adobe buildings with brightly colored flags hanging against a blue sky
    The Indian Pueblo Cultural Center has a better representation of native history and culture, but Old Town Albuquerque features a classic Spanish colonial plaza, adobe architecture, and shops for tourists and locals.
  • photo of Al next to a sign for the Rattlesnake Museum and Gift Shop and a steer skull
    And then there’s the off-beat side of Western culture….
  • photo of Rachel's back as she looks across a steep valley toward rocky peaks
    As usual, we went for some great hikes and saw some amazing views, this one in the Sandia Mountains to the east of Albuquerque.
  • photo of Al's mom seated next to a handrail at the edge of a muddy, wide river
    Al’s mom, making her first trip to Albuquerque at age 90, got to see the Rio Grande along the Bosque (a tree-lined walking and biking path).
  • photo of the Monterey Motel sign against a bright blue sky
    Old Route 66, with its retro-style motels and diners, famously passes through Albuquerque on its way across the U.S. West.
  • photo of petroglyphs on dark rocks
    Proof that aliens visited the Petroglyph National Monument? See the spaceship on the right and creatures with antennae on the left? Hmm…
  • photo of tumbleweeds in front of a volcanic peak
    On Albuquerque’s outskirts lie three “volcanoes,” which we learned are the result of fissure eruptions along a 5-mile crack in the Earth’s crust 150,000 years ago. We were chased by aggressive tumbleweeds here, so watch out!
  • photo of brightly colored paletas (iced sweet treats on sticks)
    The local food and craft brewery scene is hopping in Albuquerque, and we sampled everything from blue corn waffles to lengua (tongue) tacos to these paletas, like popsicles made with fresh fruit, berries, caramel, and cream.
  • photo of Al and Rachel smiling against a backdrop of the Sandia hills
    Finally we want to thank ALL of our amazing hosts over the past 5-6 weeks as we traveled New England and the West. You have shown us your worlds and shared your lives, your homes, your food… We are so grateful for your friendship and hope we can host you sometime in Maine or wherever we are!
  • photo of snow-covered red rock cliffs and evergreen trees
    Dinosaur National Monument straddles Utah and Colorado. Across the border in CO, new snow prevented further exploration, but it sure was beautiful!
  • photo of footprints in the snow on a hillside with bright blue sky overhead
    And once we got to Steamboat Springs, the snow began to pile up! This is hiking on Hahn’s Peak—after rounding this bend, we were turned back by winter winds whipping across the summit.
  • photo of Rachel and Al overlooking a vista of a distant lake and craggy mountains.
    But we sure got a great view of Steamboat Lake and Sand Mountain!
  • photo of two yellow-leaved aspen trees with Steamboat Springs ski mountain behind them.
    Despite the snow, it was still fall in Steamboat, which was named for its sulphuric hot springs—French trappers thought they sounded like the chugging of a steam engine.
  • photo of a row of bare aspen trees in a field of dry grass with a mountain in the distance.
    Bare aspens also lined the trails on nearby Emerald Mountain, with the Sleeping Giant resting in the distance.
  • photo looking down from the top of a wooden ski jump platform to the lip of the jump and the landing hill below.
    Atop the 70m ski jump on Howelsen Hill, where future Olympians train. Not for the faint of heart or those with fear of heights!
  • photo of a wide field of native grasses and a lone aspen tree with mountains in the distance.
    The great plains end at the Rockies in Denver, and so did our visit to Colorado.
  • photo of adults and young children on a swingset
    But first, we enjoyed playtime at a family reunion for kids from 2 to 90!
  • photo of pink clouds over high mountains with dark plains in the foreground
    Rocky Mountain sunset in Denver. Next: New Mexico!
  • photo of two bison eating grass by the side of the road
    Who knew there were bison in Salt Lake City? (Actually on Antelope Island, a huge reserve in the Salt Lake.)
  • Photo of marina slips resting on the mud
    Unfortunately, climate change and drought have reduced the Great Salt Lake dramatically, as this former marina attests. It would be tough to launch a boat from here!
  • photo of a hiker reflected with clouds in a small pool of water atop a cliff, overlooking a canyon with mesas
    We saw some incredible vistas in the Moab region—this one is at Dead Horse Point State Park.
  • Photo of a huge, colorful canyon like the Grand Canyon, with the Colorado River curving through it.
    Here’s what Rachel was looking at, where the Colorado River’s Grand Canyon-like carving was on brilliant display.
  • Photo montage of 15 stone arches
    “Why do they call the park Arches?” (Actual quote heard while hiking among some of the 2,000 rock arches in the park.) We saw a fair number of them over 8 hours of hiking!
  • Photo of snow-covered Park City ski trails
    It seemed like every day we had another incredible view for lunchtime, this one overlooking Canyons and Park City ski areas topped by early season snow with late fall foliage all around.
  • Photo of a 6-foot-tall dinosaur bone fossil with a woman next to it for comparison.
    Dinosaur National Monument has preserved a hillside where thousands of dinosaur bones were unearthed, now partially or fully exposed, like this sauropod femur (Rachel is pointing to her thigh bone for size comparison).
  • photo of two people pointing at a cliff with lizard petroglyphs
    Dinosaur park also has preserved petroglyphs made by the Fremont people around a thousand years ago. And other parts of this huge park feature landscapes more than 150 million years old!
  • photo of three people walking up a steep, sheer rock cliff
    In Arches and Dinosaur, we scaled several smooth, steep rock faces like this one — some were a bit scary but sure got the adrenaline pumping!
  • Red leaves and berries frame snow-capped Mount Hood against a bright blue sky.
    Never expected to find so much red foliage in Oregon. Of course, it’s not all across the hillsides as it is in New England, but these red bushes contrasted beautifully with the blue sky and first snow of the season on Mount Hood.
  • Steps painted with "We live in a world that is full of beauty, charm, and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open.
  • Waves roll into the rock formation known as Spouting Horn and spray up like a geyser.
    The Oregon coast has sandy beaches, jagged rocks, and pounding surf. This is Spouting Horn, where waves shoot up through a hole in the volcanic rocks.
  • Sunlight streams through an old-growth pine tree forest.
    The coast also features hikes through massive old-growth pines that can be six feet in diameter and are far enough apart to let sunlight through.
  • Waterfall gushes into a blue-green pool amidst lush greenery.
    On the McKenzie River, waterfalls are plentiful, thunderous, and idyllic, like this one on the Koosah Falls-Sahalie Falls loop trail.
  • Panoramic photo of jagged snow-capped mountains
    We ended our Oregon stay in Bend, which has an endless number of amazing hikes near the mountains seen here known as Broken Top and the Three Sisters. Jagged mountains and hardscrabble volcanic landscape reached through ponderosa pine forests.
  • Two light brown small dogs curl up, asleep on a car seat.
    All that hiking made us dog-tired—but only Koozie and Pekoe got to sleep on the ride home.
  • Olive (a green rubber duck) poses with two pints of Bend Brewing Company ale.
    And hiking made us thirsty too! Fortunately Oregon has a thriving brewery scene. Even Olive was happy! #wheresoliveduck
  • The lake isn’t always this calm, but when it is, paddling a kayak is smooth and silky. And paddlers get double the view with what’s above reflected below.
  • We were privileged to meet this fluffy furball less than a day after its birth on the farm where we buy duck eggs. Miniature donkeys are able to walk as soon as they’re born — after more than a year of gestation.
  • When the cold north wind blows steady and hard across the lake, we seek refuge in places like this, a calm swimming hole sheltered from the wind.
  • goat pokes his nose through a fence
    This photo just makes us laugh. At nearby Turning Page Farm and Brewery, you can get delicious beer ‘n’ brats and hang out with goats. What a combination! This curious fella, known as #4, was our favorite.
  • dock on lake with low water level
    We haven’t had much rain this summer, unlike the rest of the East Coast. Somehow it has just passed us by, even when it’s raining 15 miles away. The result is the lowest water level in the lake I’ve ever seen. Keep in mind that these ramps were built to extend out over the water and we used to pull a boat into this dock!
  • photo of dock on lake with higher water
    And then we did get rain! A day after the previous photo, it rained for 36 hours. This photo was taken two days after the previous one, once the rain had stopped. The fish and loons are happy I’m sure!
  • photo montage of doing chores and fix-up work
    Retirement isn’t all lounging around! We had plenty of physical labor to get the cabin in shape. It’s very satisfying when the job is done. And Rachel did plenty too! She was just better at taking pictures of our progress.