If Glacier National Park is the Crown of the Continent, its three grand hotels are its most precious jewels. Visitors from around the world book reservations far in advance to stay in these famous park lodges: Many Glacier, Glacier Park, and Lake McDonald. However, a smaller, lesser-known lodge, the Belton Chalet, was the first to welcome guests when the park opened in 1910. We think it’s a hidden gem.
Featuring a park in our home state of Washington on this episode, we discuss some of the highlights and must-sees at Olympic National Park. From the rugged coastline of the Pacific Ocean to the blue glaciers hanging off steep alpine cliffs, Olympic NP has something for everyone. Only a short day trip from the Seattle metro area, you can drive to many of the most spectacular sites within the park in a few hours. If you are a little more adventurous, backpacking through the park gives you a less-crowded perspective on the wild beauty of this “magical” place. We even give you a small peek into what it’s like traveling with us by playing an audio recording we made during one of our more challenging adventures.
Some topics we discuss include:
Yes? No? Maybe? Whether or not we plan to write another book
Four seasons of fun up at Hurricane Ridge
Where to go to see what’s left from the largest dam removal project in history, where you can peer into the canyon below at the newly-freed, rushing Elwha River
The myriad of activities at beautiful Lake Crescent: in the water, on the beach and on the nearby trails.
Our three-day adventure hiking the High Divide / Seven Lakes Basin Trail which started out with some wild weather
The magic of the Hoh Rain Forest
What we found–and didn’t find—during our backpacking trip along Shi Shi Beach on the coast of the Pacific Ocean
And more…
In the mail bag segment, we discuss some of our scariest hikes while traveling to all of the national parks.
While visiting Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks in the winter can feel like stepping into a Christmas card photo, staying in a nearby Forest Service cabin with no electricity or indoor plumbing isn’t always so picture perfect. In this episode, we talk about many of our experiences in these two parks during the magical winter season, as well as the thrills and challenges of staying in rustic Forest Service cabins when the temperature dips well below freezing. Spoiler alert: walking through the snow to a pit toilet in the middle of the night with only a headlamp to scare away the bears is both a thrill and a challenge.
Some topics we discuss include:
Matt’s latest obsession with organizing all of our travel gear
Our experiences snowmobiling in Yellowstone National Park during the winter
How Karen’s desire to get into the holiday spirit created our new tradition of visiting national parks every December
How to find and rent a Forest Service cabin
What it was like staying in a Forest Service cabin near Yellowstone with no heat, electricity or indoor plumbing, in December
What activities are available in Glacier National Park in the winter
Spending a few days in a Forest Service cabin near Glacier National Park
Our snowshoe experiences in and around Glacier
Would we rent a Forest Service cabin in the winter again?
And in our mail bag segment, we answer a question about whether we ever practiced shooting our expired bear spray, and if so, what did we learn.
It was a close call for sure. Had the government not stepped in to protect the land that today makes up these magnificent parks, the Giant Sequoias may have been lost forever. These amazing trees are a natural wonder everyone should see at least once in their lifetime. And the trees in the parks are not the only natural wonder. As John Muir observed over 100 years ago, the valley of Kings Canyon, surrounded by its towering cliffs, is as equally breathtaking as Yosemite. Yet today, only a small fraction of the number of people who visit Yosemite make it to Kings. In this episode, we talk about our visits to these parks and what it’s like to spend a few days walking amongst giants.
Some topics we discuss include:
When our Photo of the Day Contest began and how Karen ended up becoming the sole judge of our travel photos
How we found out that Sequoia and Kings Canyon are managed as one unit
Matt’s filing system for all of our park literature
Hiking to the largest tree in the world in The Giant Forest in Sequoia NP
Other must-see sites close to The Giant Forest like Moro Rock and a tree you can drive through
Staying at the Wuksachi Lodge in Sequoia and what Matt tried to buy in the gift shop
Visiting Grant Grove in Kings Canyon NP and the 2nd-largest tree in the world
Camping and hiking deep in Kings Canyon
And in our mail bag segment, we answer a question about which is better for hiking The Narrows in Zion National Park, trekking poles or one of those long, wooden poles you rent from a local outfitter.
We had all but given up on ever getting a permit to hike to one of the most sought-after sites in the American Southwest: The Wave in Northern Arizona. But in the fall of 2019, an email from a kind and generous stranger changed all of that. The adventure to this spectacular rock formation was as awe-inspiring as we’d heard it would be, and in this episode, we describe our experience at The Wave in January 2020. And if you think the excitement was over at the end of the hike, it wasn’t. The drive back to civilization on the half-frozen dirt road was an adventure all its own.
Some topics we discuss include:
What it’s like to participate in the walk-in lottery for permits in Kanab, UT
The process for applying for a permit online, and a few tips on how to increase your chances of winning
How to prepare for hiking to The Wave in different seasons of the year—spoiler alert: it can be dangerously warm in the summer with no shade
Advice on navigating the sometimes-dicey House Rock Valley Road on the 8-mile drive to the trailhead
What to expect if/when you finally make it to The Wave
And in our mail bag segment, we share some tips about how we’ve reduced the weight in our backpacks on overnight trips, including some of the gear that goes into our packs and what we leave at home.
Links to more information:
Bureau of Land Management site for The Wave where you can learn more about the site and find information about how to apply for a permit
To see our photos from this adventure, click here.
It is by far the most frequent question we get from readers and listeners: How much did it cost you to visit all 62 national parks? This bonus episode is essentially a detailed mail bag response to this very question. While we know everyone’s expenses will be different based on where they live, where they stay in and around the parks, how they get there, and how long they spend in each park, in this episode we discuss what it cost us to visit them. We also provide some tips on how to plan a journey to all the national parks and a few ways to save money along the way.
Some topics we discuss include:
Brief overview on the categories of costs incurred when visiting the parks
How we planned our journey to all the parks
How much it cost us to visit all of them
A discussion of another couple’s accounting of their costs when visiting all of the parks (see link below)
Some ideas about how to group parks together into a single trip to save on travel costs
How we find lodging, hikes, and hidden gems along the way
