I didn’t know Gabby Petito personally, but after reading about her these past few weeks and looking thru her Instagram and Youtube posts, I know that the world has lost a wonderful soul and someone whom I would consider a kindred spirit. While the loss of any person as young and full of life as Gabby was is a tragedy, her loss seems to have hit me especially hard for a number of reasons.
depressing summer on the travel front. That is why it was really good to get out and do some traveling, even if it was only to some local spots in the Midwest United States. On a positive note, I was able to visit some locations that I have really wanted to visit for some time, but have been putting off because of larger travel goals. I think many of us forget how beautiful our own areas are when wanderlust gets a hold of us. In this travel journal entry, I am going to give you an overview of my Great Lakes trip and let you know what aspects of the trip I really enjoyed and which I found challenging.
Sometimes we get so focused on the far away places that we want to travel to that we forget to slow things down and explore our own back yards. While I am very excited for my trip to Egypt, Jordan, and Israel this autumn, I decided to stay closer to home for my summer trip and explore the beautiful Great Lakes region of the United States. If you follow my blog closely, then you probably know that I have been planning this Great Lakes road trip for some time. I have done a lot of scouring of Google Earth and other maps to find as many places to explore along my route as possible. Some of the destinations on my Great Lakes road trip itinerary, like Mackinac Island, I have been to before. Others, like the enchanting Turnip Rock in Lake Huron, I have dreamed about visiting for some time.
Yesterday was an amazing day. In addition to visiting with family, I got to visit a national park that I have been meaning to visit for years, but haven’t had a chance to previously. Pinnacles National Park is a beautiful park that doesn’t get nearly the attention it deserves. It’s one of the smallest parks in the US National Parks Systems, but is also one of the most underrated in my opinion.​
I am heading to Santa Barbara, California for the week to visit my brother and his family. Not only is it going to be nice to be able to travel again, but it will be great to get away from the sub-zero temperatures in Wisconsin, if only for a short while.
A look at my travel journal for our 2020 National Parks Road Trip for the Great Basin National Park segment of our trip.
A look at my travel journal for our 2020 National Parks Road Trip for the Canyonlands National Park segment of our trip.
A look at my travel journal for our 2020 National Parks Road Trip for the Mesa Verde National Park and Canyon of the Ancients segment of our trip.
A look at my travel journal for our 2020 National Parks Road Trip for the segment where I hike to the top of Grays and Torreys Peaks.
A look at my travel journal for our 2020 National Parks Road Trip as our trip begins.
