Outdoor Adventures

Jungle Lights at McKee Botanical Gardens

Jungle Lights at McKee Botanical Garden: A Candid Look Behind the Sparkle

Holiday time is all around us, but when traveling to a warmer region, I find it harder to get into the holiday spirit when I’m wearing shorts and looking at palm trees. Sometimes, the best travel moments are found serendipitously. This particular adventure started not with a detailed itinerary, but simply by driving past a

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Tanking the North Platte River

For about eight years now, a rather unique image has floated around in the back of our minds – a picture Justin stumbled upon in a magazine while we were making vision boards: people floating serenely down a river in what looked like a repurposed stock tank. It seemed utterly whimsical, perfectly quirky, and immediately

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My First Clothing-Optional Hot Springs Experience at Orvis (Ridgeway, CO)

I’m no stranger to the restorative power of hot springs. Over the years of living in Colorado, I’ve dipped into about ten different mineral-rich pools, from rustic riverside soaks to more developed resorts. Each one offers its unique charm. However, my recent visit to Orvis Hot Springs in Ridgway, Colorado, marked a significant first: my

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A Walk on Matanuska Glacier

When you think Alaska, you think glaciers, mountains, wildlife. When I was doing research into what to do when Justin was at work, I saw about a dozen tours to the Matanuska Glacier. I wanted to do it, but I couldn’t do it without Justin. My first glacier was supposed to be with him. Once

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Witnessing a Rocket Launch

We visited the Kennedy Space Center in 2022 and was fascinated by the exhibits, wouldn’t it be neat to watch a launch? When it turned out that a rocket launch would be happening when we were in the general area, I knew that we had to go to watch. It was the SpaceX Falcon 9

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Great American Eclipse

Viewing the Great American Eclipse from Dallas: 4 minutes of Totality Miracle

The date had been circled on our calendar for what felt like an eternity: April 8, 2024. The Great American Eclipse. And our chosen vantage point? Dallas, Texas, sitting firmly within the path of totality. We’d envisioned a flawless celestial spectacle – the midday sun swallowed whole by the moon, plunging us into an eerie

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