Dear Diary, Well, this was fun! Mom and Dad were able to take me alllll over this Mammoth Cave Park – not sure why it’s called that because I didn’t see any caves. I think Mom and Dad saw some, but I was napping HARD during that time. The first day here, after we went over a scary ferry to the North side of the park, I got to run 4 miles with Dad, then “ran” with Mom for 5…
Thinking of going to Hawaii? Learn from my experiences and here are some recommendations for you. Get up early! All the hikes and activities were SO much better without a million other people around. Surfing and other water activities: you’re not as naturally good at things as you think. Get some lessons and an actual instructor. Oahu There are more hikes than you could possibly do unless you’re living there full time. Out of the ones we did, I would…
Haleakala is separated into a couple sections; park headquarters with the summit and the coastal area of Kipahulu Kipahulu is accessed on the Road to Hana, so we saw this side on our first day in Maui. It was definitely our favorite side. It is coastal so it’s a rainforest, with incredible bamboo forests. We hiked the Pipiwai Trail to see the Waimoku Falls – unfortunately, this area is prone to flash floods, so the trail was closed about a…
Squeeeeee! There’s just something so exciting about the first National Park… and unlike other firsts in a girls life, this did NOT disappoint! We arrived as quickly as we could when we landed on the Big Island; around 7:30am after an easy drive from the Hilo airport. However the visitor center didn’t open until 9 so we took a quick cat nap in the car. And by we, I mean Mike slept and I tossed and turned like a kid…
Mike and I spent three wonderful days on the Big Island where I earned my first Junior Ranger badge of this trip! Geoff took us to the airport at a time I didn’t even know existed unless you’re a 21 year old that’s making poor choices – 3am. What a good friend. We got dropped off to wait for the doors to open. Then waited in line for TSA to even show up. Then waited to board. All to be…