#And I also got to see the most famous parts of Yellowstone

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #374

“doctor, doctor, won’t you please prescribe me something?  /  a day in the life of someone else...”

Does someone have a crush on you but you don’t feel the same way? No. Who do you feel most beautiful around? No one. What’s one makeup item you cannot live without? I could live without any makeup. What’s the most expensive thing you own? My snake, I think. Or my laptop, idr. Are you more of a book person or a TV person? Book. Relationship status? Single. What color are most of your clothes? Black. Did you french kiss before you were 16? No, I was 16. Last song you listened to? "The Heretic Anthem" by Slipknot. Would you ever go back to any of your past relationships? Yes. What’s your favorite thing about life? That's a big question. I guess seeing acts of mass love and kindness, reminders that we're all in this together through all hardships. Who pays for the first date? Whoever asked the other person out, imo. Who has always been there for you? My mom. Have you ever written on a wall? No, at least not to my memory. Do you play any computer games, if so, what ones? I think anyone who reads these by now knows, haha. I don't much play anything else. I prefer console games. What would you name a baby boy if you had one? Probably Damien or Victor. What would you name a baby girl if you had one? Alessandra, no questions asked. What lyric means the most to you? I mean there's tons, but the first one that came to mind is "for such a little thing, you sure are in your own way" from "Get Up" by Mother Mother. Like in the big picture, we humans are so so so minuscule, but with brains that are too complicated for our own good. It's my own head that creates so many obstacles for me. Who is the smartest person you know? Probably my friend Girt. Have your parents ever been to jail? No. Do you share a bed with anyone? My cat, haha. Does it flatter you when guys open doors for you? It's flattering if anyone does, not just guys. Do you enjoy taking naps? Yeah. That's like part of my daily routine. If your friend asked you to hold their drugs, would you? Nope. Is there anyone you try to be a good influence for? My nieces and nephew, but I don't feel like I am. I'm a poor example of an adult. Do you own a pair of fishnets? No, but I have a pair of fingerless fishnet gloves. Which do you prefer: french toast, bagels, pancakes, waffles, bacon or cereal? All are great, but french toast. Yes or no: eyebrow piercings? I'd actually have one if I didn't have glasses. I think I'd look weird with one as I look now. When I say "The Beatles," what is the first song that comes to mind? "Hey, Jude." In your opinion, what is the very worst type of weather? Extremely hot and humid. You can only listen to one band for the rest of your life, who do you pick? Ozzy Osbourne, of course. Can you snap with both of your hands? Yeah, but it's harder with my left. What is something that you had to learn the hard way? For some people, promises don't mean shit. If you could re-paint your bedroom, what color would you paint it? Maybe like a light peach. When was the last time you got butterflies? I think not since Sara told me I look really pretty in eyeliner. ;_; <3 When was the last time you felt like your heart was actually breaking? There was this one time I was listening to "The Ghost of You" by MCR a while after finding out about Jason's mom's death and I just like... broke. When’s the last time you were in a line? When I was getting my second COVID shot. Do you trust the media? HA! Fuck no. If you could kill off one species of animal, which would it be? At first I was appalled by this question, but like... do wasps serve a purpose? Of all fauna, they annoy me the most. I mean bees are already endangered enough, and they prey on them. They don't pollinate, so like... why are you here. I may be mistaken and they have a valuable role, in which case I take all this back. Who’d you last say I love you to? My mom. What’s the most overpaid job in your opinion? I have on idea. Most jobs are underpaid. What’s the last thing you wrote down? I was doing some paperwork at the TMS office on my first day there. When’s the last time you heard a gunshot? I don’t know. What are you looking forward to? Now that my tattoo (which looks fucking stunning, by the way) is out of the way, I can focus on other things. I'm particularly looking forward to hopefully seeing the results of TMS manifest (which should take 3-4 weeks). It sounds horrible, but I'm also keenly awaiting this dog we're stuck with to go somewhere... The person who gave her to my sister to give my mom won't take the dog back, and we can't find another option that doesn't risk her being euthanized, which we absolutely do not want. We just don't know what to do, but she's driving Mom and me INSANE. Do you listen to online radio stations? No. Have you ever done something sexual that you regret? No. Have you ever said anything to the last person you kissed that you regret? Multiple things. Have you ever ate so much you puked? Ugh, no. That sounds awful. Do you care about what others think of your physical appearance? Very much, sadly. Would you rather eat cookies or brownies? I gotta say brownies. Which YouTuber have you learned the most from? I mean, this depends on the subject. From Mark, I've learned most about life and how (I think) to be a good person, but there's a lot of pet channels I watch that have taught me loads about proper husbandry. This answer just depends on what knowledge you're talkin' about. Who would you want to be the flower girl at your wedding? Probably a niece. Do you want to be married within the next ten years? It'd be nice. Do you feel like your life is too fast-paced, or do you wish it were busier? Ugh, I wish it was busier. My days are a COMPLETE, routine drag. What are some hobbies which you want to pick up? I want to just be more artsy. I wanna draw and write more, and I'd love love love to be in healthy enough shape to handle going on walks with my camera. There are sometimes I miss editing videos, too. I'm unsure about completely new hobbies. Does anyone encourage you to go after your dreams? My family and a few friends. Oh, and definitely my psychiatrist. What group are you most active in on Facebook? None, really. I mostly just observe. Are you ashamed of anything? A number of things. Primarily not having a job at my age or even being in school. What were your favorite Disney rides as a kid? I loved Splash Mountain, I think it was called. What were your favorite rides at Cedar Point? Never been. What are some places you want to visit that you’ve never been? South Africa, Alaska, Canada, Yellowstone National Park, Bahamas, Venice, Rome... What are some places that you’ve been that you’d like to go to again? Disney World, Chicago, and this one super clear lake I swam in once a few hours away that I don't recall the name of. Have you ever owned a succulent? No. While they're pretty, I've never been much of a plant person. Do you support small businesses? I REALLY want to start doing that more when I have the option to buy my own stuff/have my own income. As someone who wants to be a freelance photographer, I get it. Starting an independent business is hard as hell. If a brand were to sponsor you, which brand(s) would you prefer? Uhhh I dunno. Have you read the entire Bible? No. Do you make bucket lists for each season? No. That does sound kinda fun, though. How old were you when you first dyed your hair? I have no idea. Do you dye your hair regularly? No. :/ I desperately want to, though. It's just not something we can afford to spare cash on. What is the most comfortable type of pants, in your opinion? Pajama pants? haha Do you think you could ever be famous? No. I'm way too boring and don't want to be anyway. What are some jobs you’ve had in the past? Sales associate, cashier, and deli worker. None lasted long whatsoever. What are some jobs you want to or would like to have? List five. FIVE? I don't know. I just know I want to be a photographer. Well, being an artist or poet would be very cool. And a reptile breeder, maybe tarantulas, too, but that makes me kinda nervous with JUST how many babies they have. What are some jobs you have considered? In rough order from youth to now: paleontologist, vet, movie director, game designer, author/poet, artist, music video editor, wildlife biologist, photographer... Maybe there's more that just aren't coming to me. Are you thankful for social media, or do you wish it didn’t exist? Depends on the day for me, but I'm generally thankful for it so I can keep up with the lives of people who are important to me. It's just that it's a breeding ground for self-doubt and rampant comparisons that can easily depress me when I see some people are "further ahead" and more "established" than me. What are some of the best medications you’ve ever had? The combined efforts of Latuda and Lamictal saved my life. What was a video you watched over and over as a kid? There were lots of movies, like The Lion King, a certain Barney one when I was very young, and I watched Finding Nemo like crazy. Do you know a lot of people who were loving, and then turned cold? Jason????????????????? Is that you??????????????????????????????????????????? Do you own anything plaid? Ha, what a coincidence, I'm wearing my red plaid pj pants. Are you good at remembering names? Definitely not. Have the cops ever gotten on to you for anything before? No. What email thingy do you use? (yahoo, gmail, rock) ... Rock? lol anyway my main is Hotmail, but I inevitably have a gmail to have a YouTube account. What game system(s) do you own? PS2, Wii, Nintendo DS Lite, and a GameBoy Advance. Are you any good at Guitar Hero? I used to be; I played most songs on Expert, then some really tough ones on Hard. I was soooooo addicted to those games. I remember when I got the first one for Christmas, I literally played it all day. Have you ever played Call of Duty? Nah, not my jam. What is your favorite/most visited website? YouTube. Is your bed comfortable? Sure. I've definitely had way worse. Do you have a garage? No. Fun fact, I've never lived in a house with one. Should you be doing anything right now? What? There's a number of things I could be doing that are definitely more productive, like finishing decorating my damn room. Do doctors or dentists make you more nervous? Not really. I only ever get nervous to hear my weight at the doctor's. Did you ever think you were about to die before? I don't quite know. When I ODed, it was more like I didn't care if I did. Have you ever really had a near death experience? Was it cool? "Was it cool." Literally fuck off. I guess you could technically consider my OD a "near death experience," especially given how many pills I took, yet I somehow experienced almost no ill symptoms. Maybe because we got to the ER for fluids quickly enough, idk. I'm just glad I didn't die. What is your favorite kind of weather? Snowy! Like a steady snowfall of large flakes with no breeze and total silence. *chef's kiss* Ever tasted beer? Ugh, no. Just the smell makes me sick. It was my dad's drink of choice when he was an alcoholic so I just have a very negative association with it. Have you ever seen a dead body? Yes, at an open-casket wake. Ever poured salt on a slug? As kids, my sisters and I would get our parents to do it because they grossed us out. So, so cruel. I still have this weird but pretty extreme phobia of them, but I wouldn't torture the things like that.

[craftedincarhartt]

Shop Small with these Women Owned Businesses

It's that time of year again, when we're all looking to support the small businesses our communities hold dear. Purchasing goods and services from the pillars of your favorite neighborhood is the best way to show your support.

Below you'll find a list of 15 Women Owned Small Businesses. If you shop online this holiday season, don't forget these incredibly hard working folks.

1.) Messner Bee Farm

Rachael Messner of Messner Bee Farm in Kansas City spun her hobby into a flourishing business. Her operations began as a 900 square foot urban farm. Over years of never giving up despite what different seasons showered upon her, Rachael and her family now live on a full-fledged bee farm. You can even stop by for a tour if you'd like to know more about where your honey comes from.  

“Honeybees pollinate over one-third of all the fruits and vegetables we eat. Of course they also make honey! The best way people can help bees is by minimizing their use of pesticides, herbicides and fungicides, and supporting other organizations that do the same. Buy local honey, support your local beekeeper.” –Rachael Messner

Shop some of Rachael's products here. Read more about Rachael's story here.

2.) Woodward Throwbacks

Bo Shepherd and her partner Kyle started Woodward Throwbacks in 2013 as a means to repurpose much of the discarded lumber and abandoned antiques that plagued Detroit's streets. Their shop has moved from location to location, each time scaling up and offering even more goods and services.  

I started re-purposing found wood back in college but it became a serious hobby once I met Kyle. We used to bike around the city exploring different neighborhoods and during our excursions we noticed an abundance of wood from illegal dumping sites. We combined our love for the city and the idea that taking materials found in the street would also help clean our neighborhoods." -Bo Shepherd

Through their website you can shop salvaged doors, custom made and reclaimed furniture, and handmade goods. Read more about Bo's story here.

3.) Seattle Urban Farm Co.

Hilary Dahl is co-owner of Seattle Urban Farm Co. and host of the Encyclopedia Botanica podcast. The podcasts are quick lessons in farming, each one is easy to access—you can listen to them online and read the highlights.

Seattle Urban Farm Co. offers many services, and they differ from customer to customer. Their knowledgeable team can plan, build, and maintain the urban farm you always wanted but never thought you could personally manage—perfect for those of us who may not have a green thumb, but love the idea of homegrown tomatoes.

If you are an aspiring farmer or gardener, browse the different webinars Seattle Urban Farm Co has to offer on their website, ranging from soil health to harvesting techniques. These online lessons are a great gift (for yourself or loved ones).

Read more about Hilary's story here.

4.) Homestead Wisconsin

Brit McCoy is a woman of many talents. She’s a full time farmer, runs her own flower business, and works at her family's business, The Wood Cycle. Making strides in her career alongside her family is the most challenging and most fulfilling part of the job

Brit majored in Landscape Architecture at Iowa State University. Upon returning to Wisconsin, she and her husband Matt founded their own farm, first selling their ethically raised meat, eventually expanding their reach.

“My business started just like my father’s, to make our hobby our career. I started raising livestock as soon as I could afford to feed them." -Brit McCoy

You can order a box of their fine grass-fed beef and lamb here. Read more about Brit's story here.

5.) Blue Marble Ice Cream

Ten years ago, Jennie Dundas and Alexis Gallivan, opened Blue Marble Ice Cream in Brooklyn. Their products are entirely organic, made from only high quality ingredients, and absolutely no hormones, antibiotics, harmful pesticides or artificial additives. Manufacturing in New York with ethical and sustainable practices is crucial to this woman-run company.

“Nobody can really be sad eating ice cream, can they?” -Susan Jo, Ice Cream Chef

Ship Blue Marble Ice Cream straight to your front door here.

6.) Sustainable Crafted Wooden Goods by Alexandra Climent

Meet woodworker Alexandra Climent. She operates out of her own shop in Brooklyn. Her passion for the extraordinary wood she found in the jungle lead her to teach herself the trade.

All of the products Alexandra makes are set apart from other wooden goods. She sustainably sources her materials from the jungle, befriending locals and working with each regions’ governments along the way. The wood she harvests and brings back to her shop is ancient, packed tightly over years and years.

“The wood I use is some of the most dense in the world. When you put it in the water it sinks and termites can’t even penetrate it. It’s like working with steel, and it breaks pretty much any blade.” -Alexandra Climent

Shop Alexandra's one-of-a-kind creations here. Read more about Alexandra here.

7.) Sculptures by Amber Jean

From giant sculptures made from entire trees to carvings that fit in your hand, the interplay between humans and nature is the driving force behind Amber’s work. She put herself through college, finding work in the great outdoors that fueled her passion for earth and art.

Amber helped build the Continental Divide Trail, was part of the first all female crew at the Forest Service in Bozeman, fought forest fires in West Yellowstone, and was the first female wilderness ranger based out of the West Yellowstone District.

Amber was the first woman to carve in the country of Bhutan for the Prime Minister. She's created many large scale works that have earned her great recognition in the art community. And she even gave a Ted Talk about her work.

"I never wasted energy grumbling at, whining about or looking for prejudices. I just got to work, stayed curious, made lots of mistakes, and kept after it.” –Amber Jean

Shop Amber's sculptures here.

8.) Circa Ceramics

Nancy Witt and her husband Andy have been making their wares in the Chicago neighborhood of Ravenswood since 2001. Their signature style is iconic in the windy city, with their Chicago flag items constantly flying off the shelves.

Browse their online shop here. See behind the scenes into their studio here.

9.) Greta de Parry Design

Greta is a classically trained woodworker and sculptor in the Chicago area. She's been designing and making furniture since 2007. Her collection consists of clean lines and minimalist touches.  

Shop Greta's furniture here. Read more about her story here.

10.) The Little Flower Soap Co.

Michigan florist, Holly Rutt, started making soaps as a hobby. Combining her love for nature and interest in healing plant extractions and essential oils, she and her husband created a line of body care products. After realizing how much steam her side gig was gaining, Holly decided to devote the majority of her time to The Little Flower Soap Co.



“The maker movement is in full swing there has never been a better time to start your own small business. If you think your life would be better as your own boss in a creative field than get started and stick with it.” —Holly Rutt

Shop Holly's body care products here. Read more about Holly's story here.

11.) The Elk Coffee Shop

This charming coffee shop in the West Village of New York is owned by Claire Chan. Five years ago, she took over the space, renovated, and reopened with her grand vision in mind.

“I feel so proud of the all women-run businesses I see popping up, especially right now. At a time where women’s rights and female empowerment is more relevant than ever, it is important to express your ideas and exercise your values so that others will be encouraged to do the same. There’s strength in numbers, and it feels amazing to surround yourself with like-minded and strong women!” -Claire Chan

If you're in NYC, you can order The Elk's offerings straight to your door here. Read more about The Elk here.

12.) Amaltheia Dairy Farm

Amaltheia Dairy Farm in Montana is a family run operation.

“We have had our farm for over 20 years. We love the Bozeman area and our goats get to enjoy beautiful scenery and seasons we have here. It’s beautiful every day. The best thing about what we do is to provide nutritious, delicious organic goat cheeses, pork, and vegetables to people. Those people appreciate being able to get great food and are thankful. It is a symbiotic relationship.

We have been making cheese for 17 years, certified organic for 12 years. We are sustainable farmers and try to utilize all of our resources and byproducts responsibly. We use the whey from the cheese to feed organic hogs and compost and use all of our manure for fields and gardens." -Co Owner, Sue Brown

Ship some some of the famous Amaltheia Dairy Farm goat cheese straight to your front door here. Read more about the family here.

13.) Pewabic Pottery

Pewabic Pottery in Detroit was founded in 1903 by Mary Chase Perry Stratton. Her ceramics were nationally renowned, landing her a spot in the Michigan’s Women Hall of Fame. Mary went on to win several awards and established the ceramics department at the University of Michigan. The touch she had on Michigan and the arts and crafts community will always be remembered. The shop is still operating to this day and is now a National Historic Landmark.

Shop some of their trademark Pewabic blue pieces here.

14.) Live Edge Detroit

In 2016, Jenny, her brother Joe, and her dad Mike founded Live Edge. They now salvage the trees that Mike’s company removes. Once the wood has been cut and taken back to their warehouse, the crew mills them into new usable material.

“Our vision for Live Edge Detroit was to develop a branch of Mike’s Tree Surgeons, Inc. that focused on salvaging our local resources and making them available for the community to enjoy for many more years to come. Our long term goals are to uphold that initial vision and to see it bloom into a more sustainable and profitable branch of the family business. We aren’t planning to take over the world, but we want to make a difference within the community, and we feel that starts right here in our own backyard.” -Jenny Barger

Shop Live Edge's offerings here. Read more about the family business here.

15.) Five Marys Farms

A few years ago, Mary and her husband Brian were high-powered Silicon Valley lawyers/entrepreneurs who traded it all away to live the Carhartt way of life. Armed with a strong work ethic and the fearlessness to ask lots of questions, the couple and their four daughters who all share the first name of Mary – but who go by their middle name to keep things “simple” – have proudly become a fully-functioning ranch that sells its meats all over the country.

“I am so proud of the life we get to give our girls living and working together on the ranch,” Mary beams when talking about being the mother of four young farm girls. “I don’t think I gave my girls enough credit before we moved here,” she continues, “I made their lunches and filled their water bottles and did all of their laundry, not really expecting them to do too much. By necessity, when we moved to the ranch the girls had to step up to the plate and start helping more, and they are so much more capable because of it.”

Shop Five Mary's here. Read more about this amazing family here.

[bulgarianmermaid]

Twice named “Happiest Country in the World” and identified as the greenest country on the planet, Costa Rica is the global leader in eco travel and adventure tourism. Costa Rica is half the size of Nicaragua and half the population yet there is so much to see in this tiny country that even a month is not enough. It is the most visited nation in Central America with 2.9 million foreign visitors in 2016 and one of the few countries that focus on preservation of nature and renewable energy. Around 25% of the country’s area is in national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, the largest percentage of protected areas in the world. Costa Rica also possesses the greatest density of wildlife species.

Map of all the National Parks, Wildlife Refuges, and Protected Areas in Costa Rica

By 2016, 98.1% of the country’s electricity was generated from green sources (hydro, solar, geothermal and biomass) and by Aug 2018 the country was running completely on renewable energy and exporting green energy to its neighbors. Costa Rica does not cut trees for paper and has successfully managed to diminish deforestation from some of the worst rates in 1973- 1989 to almost zero by 2005.

Costa Rica also ranks high on longevity. Nicoya Peninsula in Guanacaste province (where Rapture Surfcamp is located) is one of 7 “Blue Zones” in the world where people live healthiest and longest. According to research, the main factors that contribute to such longevity are: staying close to nature, climate, family, faith, and farming.

Where is the beauty of not being rich in mineral resources you may wonder? For Costa Rica it was the opportunity to avoid colonization 🙂 Lack of resources such as gold and silver made Costa Rica into an isolated and sparsely-inhabited region within the Spanish Empire. Costa Rica was described as “the most miserable Spanish colony in all America”. Another important factor behind Costa Rica’s poverty was the lack of a significant indigenous population available for slave labor, which meant most of the Costa Rican settlers had to work their own land and couldn’t establish large plantations.

Unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own, it was not long before the early settlers turned to the hills, where they found rich volcanic soil and a milder climate than the lowlands. Costa Rica became a “rural democracy” with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class and abolished the army in 1949.

When you think of Costa Rica you may imagine endless beaches fringed by palm trees and while that is exactly the scenery on both coasts, in between there are numerous national parks, volcanos, cloud forests, wildlife reserves, waterfalls, and hot springs. So unless you spend at least a week in the middle of the country, you can’t really say you’ve seen Costa Rica. There are 14 known volcanoes in Costa Rica (compare that to 50 in Nicaragua), and 6 of them have been active in the last 75 years. I visited 2 – Rincon de la Vieja and Arenal – both active.

Rincon de la Vieja National Park is one of the driest in Costa Rica with one of the most endangered ecosystems. The active 1900m volcano is like a small Yellowstone with mud pots, boiling hot springs and other geothermal and volcanic features to be observed. If planning to hike a waterfall, choose La Cangreja for its sparkly blue lagoon where you can go for a swim. It is a 6km one way hike, so give it at least half a day and remember it gets dark early in the jungle.

Hacienda Guachipellin has the most amazing hot springs I’ve EVER been to! Experience the hot, hot, hot water (up to 120F) in a secluded natural setting alongside the river. Yes it burns, it also cleanses your pores and disinfects your wounds (comes handy for injured surfers 🙂 ) Try volcanic mud face mask and body painting, refresh yourself with a cold dip in the river ❤ To reach the hot springs you will drive for a while in the middle of nowhere. Don’t be discouraged, there are hot springs at the end of the forrest tunnel 🙂

Arenal Volcano last erupted in 1968 and formed hot springs at its base. The geothermal water, the volcanos (you can hike the Chato crater) and the proximity to the airport have turned the area in an overcrowded tourist attraction. If you decide to head that way, I recommend staying in Arenal (outside of La Fortuna). Hike a volcano or take a horseback ride around it, dip in the hot springs, see the waterfall, swim in the magma heated river, maybe do an outdoor adventure, THEN get out of there. 2 nights are enough 😉

On your way between Rincon de la Vieja and Arenal or from Arenal to Monteverde, stop by Rio Celeste for a day. The drive is long but it is a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime sight.

Monteverde is my favorite part of inland Costa Rica. Stay 3-4 nights and plan to be busy with every type of nature and adventure tour you have heard of (and even some I couldn’t imagine before – orchid garden anyone?! or observing nature at night (fluorescent frogs 🙂 ), making your own molasses out of sugarcane, riding a cacao-grinding bicycle ?!) To book your tours, stop by Ro at Monteverde Downtown Hostel (even if you are not staying there) and follow his advice. He was SO spot on I was able to see half of the local attractions with the most authentic vendors in 2 days.

Monteverde is the only place in the world where you can still observe an unspoiled cloud forrest – you have 3 public parks to choose from and a number of private reserves. Named after the clouds that travels east to west from the Caribbean to the Pacific and stop in the treetops of Monteverde, the cloud forrest produces water instead of using it.

The Continental Divide that dissects Costa Rica north to south also passes through Monteverde. Since I visited the Divide in Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, and Colorado, it was time to see it in Central America too. The Continental Divide splits the watershed into rivers that flow into the Atlantic and the Pacific.

Two incredible species I learned about in the cloud forrest were ferns older than dinosaurs and bigger than a human that protect the soil from erosion and trees that grow from top to bottom giving its host a tight hug with its roots until they reach the ground 🙂 🙂 🙂 #welcometothejungle My hopes to kiss a frog and find my prince in Costa Rica were shattered when I found out the golden toad has become extinct in Monteverde since 1989 🙂 🙂 🙂

A tour of the Orchid Museum was another highlight of my visit. I got to learn so much about these incredible flowers (jungle weeds to be exact) and I also stopped appreciating or buying the “supermarket variety”. While the orchid flower in nature lasts only a few days, the supermarket type can last for months. It is a hybrid which needs fertilizer once a week to once a month. The original color is actually white and the blue, pink, or purple hues are achieved with food coloring in the roots. First flowering is bright color, next one is color and white and the last one is completely white. PLEASE don’t buy them 😦

There are 30000 different orchids in nature and 1500 of them grow in Costa Rica. Ecuador has the largest number of species in the world in a single country (5000) while Monteverde has the most species per square mile. Guaria Morada is the national flower of Costa Rica. Orchids need indirect sunlight and water. Lower elevation orchids need water once a week, the mountain species need water every day.

The second largest sector of the Costa Rican economy is agriculture with bananas, plantains, pineapple, coffee, sugarcane, and exotic fruits being the main exports. Costa Rica is the 2nd largest pineapple producer in the world with >50% of the international market.

Sugarcane is non-native to America (Columbus first brought it to the Caribbean) but it grows really well in hot, humid climates. “El Trapiche” means sugar cane mill. While it is not typical in Costa Rica any more for small family plants to process the harvested sugarcane, it used to provide livelihood to many early settlers. Since harvesting the sugarcane is not only very laborious but can also be quite dangerous process (sharp leaves, snakes, insects) other countries burn the sugarcane plantations first and then harvest them. The stem contains all the sugarcane juice so it doesn’t burn but the fire takes care of the dangers on the ground.

Growing coffee is very popular in Central America with Costa Rica being one of the most famous producers in the world for single-origin high-quality coffee. All Costa Rican coffee is of the Arabica kind grown at over 1000m elevation. Take a tour of a coffee plantation in Monteverde to learn more about coffee growing and roasting processes!

Since going to the beach is an essential part of your visit in Costa Rica, here is a quick run down of the coast in the Guanacaste region. If you plan on surfing, add an extra week to your vacation, better yet add 2 weeks to properly enjoy the beach and learn new tricks 🙂 And go visit Rapture Surfcamps in Playa Avellanas! (The surf camp with the most amazing sunsets 🙂 )

Tamarindo is the party capital of the Guanacaste region. The local population of 500 swells up to 5000 with tourists in high season. My favorite night in Tamarindo was the Thursday Night Market (part of Rapture Surfcamps weekly activity schedule :-)) Another place I love in town is El Chiringuito Restaurant between Playa Tamarindo and Playa Langosta. Lunch, drinks, and sunset views are to die for! If you in the area during the day, take a tour of Las Baulas Natural Marine Park to see turtles, crocodiles, monkeys, birds, and other wildlife. Boats leave twice a day with exact time depending on the tides and it costs $25 p/p for group tours.

Playa Flamingo is one of Costa Rica’s most famous beaches for it crystal clear waters and pink skies at sunset. When visiting, have a meal at Loco Coco, it is absolutely delicious! Other famous beaches in the area are Playa Negra (filming spot of Endless Summer II), Playa Conchal (not sand but tiny shell pieces), Playa Hermosa (black volcanic sand), Playa Coco (great scuba diving and snorkeling spot), Playa Grande.

What I didn’t have the time to see but came highly recommended was Manuel Antonio National Park, Corcovado National Park, the village of Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast, Tortuguero National Park, Montezuma, Malpais, and Santa Teresa on the tip of the Nicoya peninsula and riding the ferry from Punta Arenas to Paquera (closed due to a strike when I was visiting).

You tell me now how a 2 weeks vacation is enough for Costa Rica? I suggest you take a month off, explore the country and send me info on everything I have missed!

PC: @rapturecamps

2 Weeks Around Costa Rica Twice named "Happiest Country in the World" and identified as the greenest country on the planet, Costa Rica is the global leader in eco travel and adventure tourism. 1,989 more words

[pandemicperipatetics]

36 Hours in Yellowstone National Park

The Verdict:

Yellowstone is the largest U.S. National Park outside of Alaska, and it has such an amazing variety of natural beauty -- geysers, hot springs, lakes, mountains, rock terraces, canyons, plains, forested areas...it is unparalleled. We clearly needed more than 36 hours here, and we can't wait to return someday. Pro Tip: Download the Yellowstone app (separate from the NPS app) for offline access to helpful information during your visit!

Day 1: Famous Geysers, Wildlife Viewing at Hayden Valley, and Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

1. Hot Water Features (Geyers, Hot Springs, & such): Yellowstone is well-known for its unusual water features powered by the remnants of volcanic activity. Driving up from Grand Teton National Park, we started our morning as early as possible driving to Old Faithful and then walking along the boardwalks and seeing the many stunning geyser sand pools of the Upper Geyser Basin, which was right next to Old Faithful and perhaps even more fun!

Old Faithful is one of a few Yellowstone Geysers that erupts on a near-predictable schedule. It's not the biggest geyser, and we're not sure why it's especially famous, but it definitely was very cool to watch it erupt. You can check for the next scheduled eruption using the Yellowstone app (just know the geyser schedule only updates in areas with connection -which isn't many areas of Yellowstone) or on a sign outside the Old Faithful Visitor Center. We lucked out to arrive just a few minutes before a predicted eruption (which actually occurred about 7 minutes after the predicted time).

You can watch Old Faithful erupt from the observation deck right in front of it -- this was already crowded when we arrived around 9:30 a.m., but we walked around to the side of the geyser and found a nice empty spot. Or you can hike ~half a mile to Observation Point for what we read was a less crowded view. We didn't make it there ourselves, though.

After watching Old Faithful erupt, we walked along the neighboring boardwalks to explore the Upper Geyser Basin. There were SO many geysers here and the whole area was gorgeous. We enjoyed using the Yellowstone app's Self-Guided Audio Tour of this area to learn a bit about the different hot water features. We unexpectedly got to see Sawmill Geyser, a geyser that hadn't erupted since 2017, go through a long eruption while we were walking by. We spent close to 2 hours visiting Old Faithful and this surrounding area.

Sawmill Geyser wakes up!

Logistics: Drive to the Old Faithful Visitor Center and park in the Old Faithful Parking Lot (there was plenty of parking when we got there on a Saturday morning). It's always nice to get to places like this early to avoid the crowds. We found it very cold in the morning (it was in the 40s) and wore our warmest jackets.

2. Grand Prismatic Spring: Just a few minutes' drive from Old Faithful is this famous area of the park. We first parked at the Fairy Falls Parking Lot (lots of potholes!) and walked 1.6 miles roundtrip, some of it surprisingly steep (but still family friendly), to the Grand Prismatic Spring Overlook. This is a stunning view of this gorgeous and colorful hot spring, and it was well worth the walk.

Then we drove further down the main park road to the Grand Prismatic Spring Parking Lot -- it was full with a long line of cars jockeying to enter, so we parked along the road and walked down to the parking lot (only a ~5 minute walk). There we walked along a windy boardwalk with steam from the hot springs fogging up our eyeglasses and condensing on our windbreakers. We didn't get great views of the springs from the ground level, likely in part because the wind was blowing steam everywhere and obscuring the view. Maybe it would be better on a less windy day, but we did notice that this area was much windier than surrounding areas of the park (we even felt a big difference just from the boardwalk to the parking lot). We preferred the view from the Overlook. Still, this is an iconic place to visit.

Standing in front of Grand Prismatic Spring

3. Yellowstone Lake: We then retraced our drive from the morning and continued further east to see Yellowstone Lake. We read it could be nice to get out at West Thumb to see the geysers and lake views there, but we skipped this for the sake of time. We stopped at a random picnic area along the lake, took in the beautiful views while eating our peanut butter sandwiches, and scurried back to our cars after shivering by the windy waters.

4. Hayden Valley: As we continued driving north along the loop that makes up Yellowstone's main road, we passed through this gorgeous area that looked a bit like what we expect of the serengeti. The area is purportedly great for seeing wildlife, especially in the mornings and evenings, and seems like a good spot to have binoculars. Though we unfortunately didn't spot anything during our afternoon drive, we really enjoyed stopping at Mud Volcano and listening to the Yellowstone App Guided Audio Tour for this neat area of unusual geysers and hot springs.

Hayden Valley view

Mud Volcano

Pool by Mud Volcano 5. Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone: We continued driving north past Hayden Valley to this scenic canyon with imposing waterfalls and scenic overlooks. It was really different from Grand Canyon in that there weren't long hikes deep into the canyon, and the waterfalls were accessible with very short walks. The canyon has two major areas -- the North Rim and the South Rim -- and each one has Upper and Lower viewpoints. You can take advantage of options to hike or minimize your walking by driving to the overlooks.

On the South Rim, definitely visit the famous, stunning Artist's Point -- you can drive there or hike down to it from the parking lot by Uncle Tom's Trail (the trail was closed during our visit).

On the North Rim, we read that the hike to the Brink of the Lower Falls is very nice, but we were a bit confused where to find that given there were so many different stops and lookout points. We stopped at many of them and really enjoyed all of the views.

Day 2 (Morning Only): More Wildlife + Mammoth Hot Springs

1. Drive from Canyon Village to Mammoth Hot Springs: We drove to Mammoth, on the northwest tip of the park, via Norris -- mainly because the other road (via Tower Roosevelt) was closed. We didn't expect much, but the drive was actually AWESOME. It was so quiet and especially scenic. We saw a bison along the road right by a hot spring!

2. Mammoth Hot Springs: We didn't know what to expect, and found that this was one of our favorite parts of the park. The drive right before Mammoth goes down into this insane valley overlooking pristine lakes and with the Yellowstone River cutting through, and there were lots of elk hanging out along the side of the road in the morning.

The main attraction is the Hot Springs area, which can be accessed via one of 3 parking lots (upper, main, and lower). This area look surprisingly different than the water features by the Upper Geyser Basin and Grand Prismatic Spring. The terrain is otherworldly! You can walk around the boardwalks and listen to the Yellowstone App Guided Audio Tour for some interesting information about what you're seeing. It's not very large; we spent likely under an hour here. 

Past the Hot Springs, you'll drive into a more built up area of some park lodging that looks pretty nice from the outside, a stunning US Post Office, and the unbelievably scenic Mammoth Hot Springs Campground (we really want to camp there sometime)! The whole area was so cute. As you drive past Mammoth and out of the park, there are some scenic overlooks with views of the Yellowstone River, and the Rescue Creek Trail hike that we'd love to try sometime. Though we hadn't heard much about Mammoth before, it seems like a place that would be great to spend more time in.

Driving out of Yellowstone to Missoula (via Livingston, Bozeman, and Butte): You'll drive through the stunning (have we used this word enough?) Custer Gallatin National Forest. It's one of the most scenic drives we've ever done. There are probably some terrific hikes near this drive that we'd love to explore one day.

We stopped in Livingston, MT and walked along the Yellowstone River by Sacagawea Park. It's a cute small town park and the river views were great. Livingston is also known for having good food & drinks, but we didn't test this out.

In Bozeman, we walked along Main Street in the downtown area -- there are tons of places to eat and shop, and it feels touristy but still with a small town feel. We stopped for lunch at The Farmer's Daughter just a couple minutes' drive from Main Street; the vegetarian options were pretty good (salads, sandwiches, avocado toast, smoothies) and especially refreshing after several meals of sandwiches while camping!

We continued our drive towards Missoula via Butte -- again a very scenic city with a stunning mountainous area, but we didn't stop. Overall, the entire drive to Missoula was very pretty.

Stuff We Didn't Do This Time at Yellowstone

Lamar Valley: At the very northeast part of the park, this is supposed to be one of the best places to see wildlife. Last time I was at Yellowstone I saw a wolf and bear cubs, and I'm *pretty* sure it was here. As a bonus, the drive in to Yellowstone to Lamar Valley is amazing, and staying at unbelievably gorgeous Cooke City, MT the night before is a very nice option. (As a bit of an aside, the drive through Bear Tooth Pass in Wyoming, on highway 212 leading into Cooke City, is one of the most gorgeous drives EVER). Once you're deeper into the park, just a bit beyond Lamar Valley, you can spend a night at Pebble Creek Campground, which seems like sleeping in a valley out in the wild -- it looks immersive and extremely cool.

Lots of other stuff! There is just SO much to see at Yellowstone. We'd love to go back and experience the most scenic campgrounds, do some more hikes, and see some of the less-visited places. They are probably so beautiful and extra special for being less crowded with visitors.

Lodging

Before our first day, we camped in the northern end of Grand Teton National Park. Our campground, Colter Bay, was just a 30 min drive from the Yellowstone South Entrance, and about 90 minutes total from Old Faithful (including a stop to refuel at a gas station in the park). It was a fine campground, nothing too special and nothing bad, but this saved us about an hour of driving compared to staying in Jackson Hole. We were glad for the early start given how crowded Yellowstone gets!

On our night in Yellowstone, we camped at Canyon Village Campground, which is just one mile from Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It was okay: not particularly scenic, and administered by Xanterra (a company that the National Parks Service contracts out to for providing lodging in some parks), which meant the check-in process was different and way more onerous than it was at any of the National Parks-administered campgrounds we've stayed at in Grand Teton and elsewhere. Still, the location was extremely convenient: waking up to the first sunlight within the park itself is an excellent way to beat the crowds!

[marcellusbitsandpieces]

Bits and Pieces - 25 Historic Places to See Before I Die  7/18/21

The other day I was having lunch with a niece and her two girlfriends visiting Saugatuck. In the course of the conversation, I mentioned that I was putting some of my things in order. Young people are rarely ever keen on hearing something like that.

Then today in my inbox, I got an email about the 25 Classic American Landmarks To See Before You Die. It hit my curiosity button to see how many of them I had seen. How about you?

1.       The Grand Canyon, Arizona – CHECK    Actually I have seen it more than once and have loved it each time. I have even seen the approach to the Canyon from the Colorado River on a whitewater rafting trip – great view either way.

2.       Mount Rushmore, South Dakota – CHECK   I have also seen this one more than once, including the long time ago before the big update when it was even more pristine. No matter, it is a thriller every time.

3.       The Delicate Arch, Utah – NOPE                    Been to Utah many times, but never to the Arches National Park. It is a great movie shot, so added to my bucket list.

4.       The Golden Gate Bridge – CHECK    Curt and I saw it, and I drove across it (twice) on our honeymoon. It was a clear day, thank goodness. Not sure I’d like to drive it in the fog with my fear of bridges.

5.       Old Faithful, Wyoming – CHECK    The eastern route was closed, so (rerouted) we made it with just minutes to spare. Curt said, “How long until it erupts again?” Someone in the crowd said, “Only two minutes, but who’s taking care of the birds at Rolling Hills?” I can’t take him anywhere he isn’t known to somebody!!

6.       Hoover Dam, Nevada – CHECK    The day after locking ourselves out of a running parked car in Death Valley, Laura Dunn and I went to see Hoover Dam. Along the route, we also stopped at the candy store of the famous Lucy Riccardo-Ethel Mertz candy packing scene.

7.       Half Dome, California – NOPE      We went through Yosemite National Park on our honeymoon, too, but didn’t see the Half Dome. A good reason to return there.

8.       Chimney Rock, Nebraska – CHECK    On a trip to Durango, Colorado to take the cool train ride, I saw this other important historic site.

9.       Oak Alley Plantation, Louisiana – NOPE   I have not seen this particular plantation, but I have seen many also with beautiful interlocking trees lining the approach and the grounds having an intense story of plantation life.

10.   Statue of Liberty, New York – CHECK&NOPE    Though I have seen the statue from the air as I was flying into Newark airport, I have yet to visit it in person. This is definitely a bucket list item.

11.   Devils Tower, Wyoming – CHECK    This was another stop on our trip to Yellowstone and The Tetons. It was impressive, but I thought The Badlands was overwhelmingly impressive. How did early pioneers traverse The Badlands in a wagon? (Wagon ruts still visible)

12.   Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C. – CHECK   I cannot count the number of times I have visited this site, along with the rest of the awe-inspiring monuments and memorials in D.C. Every year in which I took my 8th graders on the D.C. trip, I was as excited as they were. Seeing these places of honor at night was the most breathtaking way to remember them.

13.   Fort Sumter, South Carolina – CHECK   What a gorgeous city! I even went through the USS Yorktown with my sister, Chris, and her family. Just across the street from the Historic Charleston City Market is a delightful restaurant that makes THE best coconut (7-layer) cake – right, Laura?!!

14.   Antelope Canyon, Arizona – NOPE    I never even heard of this one. It appears to be more of a cavern than an open canyon. I’ve been to Mammoth Caves, and that will do it for me. I’m not fond of caves – too claustrophobic.

15.   Monticello, Virginia – CHECK   This site, Mount Vernon (Washington’s home), Jamestown and Williamsburg were all usually part of the D.C. trip for the students. I still get thrilled just thinking about the times I was there.

16.   Middle Fork of the Salmon River, Idaho – CHECK    Not only have I been there, but Curt has fished the Salmon River. He had a friend from bird convention days (BP = Before Paula), who invited him to come fishing at his place on the Salmon River. That was also the trip when I got to see the place Sacajawea met her brother on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

17.   The Breakers, Rhode Island – CHECK   When I moved to Michigan, my first job was Program Manager for JA in Kalamazoo. The Executive Director and I went to an annual conference in Boston. I saw the fireworks over the Charles River on July 4th, visited Harvard, Cheers bar and the JFK Library and Museum. We followed up the conference with a trip throughout New England. The Breakers was a stop with a photo op on the back patio(!) posing as Betty Grable.

18.   Crater Lake, Oregon – NOPE

19.   Space Needle, Washington – CHECK   Another convention opportunity with my friend, Anne.

20.   Portland Head Light, Maine – NOPE   Though this is the oldest working lighthouse in Maine, I have seen Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse and many other important lighthouses along the shores of Michigan.

21.   Denali, Alaska – CHECK  The day we saw this beautiful site, it was still named Mount McKinley. It was a clear day, and we were told how special it was to be able to see it. We went to the Visitors’ Center and saw a group of Amish emerging from a van with an Indiana plate. They turned out to be from Centerville, Michigan and one guy had Brad Hemenway’s pigs on his farm.

22.   Taos Pueblo, New Mexico – CHECK   This was a stunning visit. My sister, Chris, took me there on my last visit to New Mexico. Apartment complexes today couldn’t withstand the time or weather that these structures have endured.

23.   The Alamo, Texas – CHECK   Again, this is an historic site that I have seen often. Like Mount Rushmore, I was able to see this landmark before updating for tourists began. It wasn’t on the edge of town – I am not quite that old, but entering was primitive and exciting. The last visit was too commercialized.

24.   Southernmost Point Buoy, Florida – CHECK   The colorful buoy rests at the point of Key West only 90 miles from Cuba. Now, there is another bucket list item for me – Havana, Cuba.

25.   Jenny Lake, Wyoming – CHECK   Part of The Tetons, it was another special place in this national park.

I don’t need James Stewart to tell me that I’ve had a “wonderful life,” and I’m not done yet. Curt and I have “places to go (Seuss),” things to see and do yet. Hope you found that you have seen some of these and have more to go. See you on the road.

[katiebruce]

Year of the Silver Star

It’s taken me a while to sit down and right my annual end-of-the-year post. Normally, I’ve got this post done in the weeks leading up to New Year’s Eve, or, at the very least, the night before. Yet, here we are.

 I think part of it is my fear of letting go of what was such an incredible year for me. I know I’m basically alone in having had a great 2017—that’s okay, I’m usually an outcast anyways—but also a sense that I’ve peaked and will now plateau, if not avalanche, downwards into both my Saturn Return and my thirties. Whatever it may be, I owe it to both one of the best years of my life and one of the strangest starts to a new year I’ve ever had to document it.

 So, here it is.

 I started 2017 doing one of my favorite things: being out of the country. Sure, I was working, and sure, I wasn’t with my most favorite people, or in one of my favorite cities (not to shade Toronto, by any means)—but I had a good time. I had this overall feeling of excitement and change and that air of “anything is possible” that often accompanies the completion of a year--but somehow more than ever before. Something just felt right.

 I knew that starting the year off out of the country would provide ample travel opportunities and I made no hesitation in starting that right away. My best friend and I flew to Philly for a weekend—to see one of our favorite emo bands, mind you—and explored the frigid city in all its historic glory. About a week later, I flew to Vegas for my roommate’s bachelorette party, which, in and of itself, was easily one of the most eventful things that happened last year…

 February came and I turned 28 and celebrated with my girl gang at a library themed, Oscar Wilde bar. We got LIT-erary. I still find that fucking hilarious. We ended the night at our favorite watering hole, The good old Owl and ended up getting called The Spice Girls which was actually such a revelation for us (and even though Nicole wasn’t there, she somehow was the fifth we needed and the universe fucking knew it.)

 About a week or so later, me, Bethany and Lo flew across the fucking pond. We traveled London, Liverpool and Edinburgh for a week and froze our bloody arse’s off. In London, Lauren and I had a most memorable night where we were both kissed by a rose and wound up and a Beyonce bash, complete with face masks of Bey and all. I was catcalled in the most British way possible: “Oi, that’s a big bottom!” and I ended up meeting a guy we referred to as Mr. Grey for the better part of the year. He and I would, uh, well, fuck it. We’d have facetime sex at like, the most awkward hours and tbh it was sexy and made me feel great and I walked a little lighter and enjoyed how silly it was for a while. Of course, it ended a few months in, as these things often do, but I can’t deny the fun I had and I feel like I shouldn’t. Everyone should have sex with a sex monster (yes, that’s what I’m going to refer to him as now) at least once in their life. It was a wild ride.

 Beebs and I got inked in Liverpool on an absolute whim, and I had a sixty-year-old man tell me about the time he saw Bowie on the Ziggy Stardust tour as we listened to Lorde and he forever immortalized my love of The Thin White Duke on my forearm. This is when I really started letting go last year; I’m not very good at being impulsive. I may appear to be, but deep down I have grave anxiety about pretty much anything I do. I’ve just been lucky enough to have people who are willing to tolerate it and help me work past it in my adult life. But something changed in me in Liverpool, that drunken night where I not only decided I would get inked but thought up the concept mere hours before having it forever, and I can say I completely allowed this new girl to inhabit me and take over for the remainder of the year.

 I fell in love with Edinburgh and decided that, should I pursue a Master’s degree in the next few years, I’ll be going to school there. I’ve never felt quite as home as I did there. (I realize I’ve always said that about London, but trust me, if something was ever going to top Lahndo, it must be true love.)

 Me and the girls (all sexed up from chatting with all the foreign boys we did) had a most memorable night when we got home getting drunk at a sex store together and spending a collective $800 or so dollars on toys and lingerie. Self-care, bitches.

 In March, I watched as my roommates committed to a beautiful forever together. It was also my first time as a bridesmaid, and holy cow are weddings a lot of work. I’ve always said I’ll have a tiny wedding, if not just elope, but holy hell the experience from the inside only solidified that in my mind.

 Spring came and went and I grew my hair longer and cut it short again, yearned for warmth and visited my sister in Florida & flew to visit Kris in his newly adopted city of Denver. This is also around the time where I went on a few Tinder dates (Lord, help me) and fell, soul-crushingly head over heels for a guy I met one fleeting day at work…

 I took Acid on a third date which resulted in it also being The Last Date, but it made me see text messages as bubbles and I battled a dragon trying to get money from and ATM and watched a Star Wars for the first time (and last time) and had an evening of bad, trippy sex. Nothing like hallucinogenics to make you realize you are not in sync with another person, lol.

 So it goes.

 I traveled Europe for two weeks with Ellie which was lovely and exhausting. I returned to my beloved Italy, which was huge for me, as I always wanted to go before it had been ten years since the last time I stepped foot in the first foreign country I ever visited. We got drunk in San Marco Square and listened to battling string quartets and fell in love with foreign men we were too afraid to talk to and I was old enough this time around to know not to order a Long Island iced tea from a bartender who barely understood English in the first place…

 We eventually, by some form of absolute witchcraft, caught a flight to the tiny Greek island of Santorini and legit lived in a cave house for five days. We walked all over that tiny island and I let the sea breeze cleanse my skin and my hair and my heart and my mind. We watched the sunset every evening as if it were a spectacle to behold (it was—it always is) and just really let ourselves tell time by nature, and how it made our bodies feel. It was really a humbling experience to be in a place that’s so, so small. Going to Athens (via a ten hour ferry ride, mind you) was a bit of culture shock after being so confined for so long. Being in one of the most Eastern cities in Europe, however, really just made my itching to go to the middle east even more dire.

��I had a rough summer in terms of mental health; I hate summer flying (& the debilitating crush I mentioned above seemingly saved me—for like a week—and then left just as fleetingly as it arrived and left me in a pretty low place. I still dream about the guy regularly; I had two separate one’s last night.)

 I started taking Xanax again. Because, well, life is hard and my roommate has a prescription.

 I got to explore the beautiful, beautiful part of Wyoming that is Yellowstone National Park and got to see the beautiful, beautiful human being my best friend is becoming in the process. For a few days we camped, explored, and just really took in nature—even a death storm that threatened to turn our tent into a boat—it was a beautiful experience and I’m glad Nicole has found a place to call her home surrounding her with such beautiful, expressive people.

 August came and with the promise of September on its heels, I started to feel like myself again. Virgo season always does it to me; it’s my polar opposite and therefore, my most compatible sign. Ellie and I got another round of impulsive tattoos; strawberries—a quote stolen from Shakespeare that really just became a euphemism for our friendship throughout the year. We went to riot fest and I saw New Order and cried and Paramore (for the first time since I was, like, nineteen… and while we’re in a side note, let me just mention how much After Laughter was very much the soundtrack to my year and I’m not ashamed to admit it) and Ellie cried and we just had a very fun few days in the hot Chicago heat.

 I chose to recover from this by getting yet another tattoo; my largest & most intricate to date, so that made for an interesting, but wonderful day. It’s also worth noting that I got it in the south side of Chicago so, like, if I ever go to prison at least I’ve got that going for me.

 I returned to Milwaukee and had a riotous night with my girls where I got hit on by two famous band members and it was like, the stuff dreams are made of. I know it’s silly to assign worth to someone’s fame, but you have someone hit on you who has, like, a million Instagram followers & songs in like fifty different movies and see how it makes you feel & then judge me. This also started my love affair with the lesser famous band member who I’ve now entered into some weird “see you around Chicago” love affair thing for the past few months where we both flirt and ignore each other simultaneously. It’s wild.

 I saw so many bands and cried to so many songs and discovered so many artists and felt all the things.

 Friendsgiving came, and Nicole came, & along with her came The Con X tour. Without getting too into it, that was a huge shifting point for me & 2017 in general. The Con was an album that saved my life both metaphorically & also, like, physically, and to be able to stand outside of the depression that nearly took my life ten years prior and say, loudly, “I am still here and I like my life and sort of like the person I am but I am also trying to become better each and every day and it’s all very much worth it” is beautiful and powerful thing.

 My mom and I spent a wonderful weekend in Vancouver, exploring the cold north and even got to go whale watching, which was, honestly, one of the most breathtaking, awe inspiring experiences I’ve ever taken part in. Nothing will make you feel as small as floating in a yellow zodiac in the middle of the ocean surrounded by six Orcas and a baby (but fucking huge!) humpback whale will. Nature does a good job of reminding us of just how insignificant we are.

 The holidays just passed and I forgot about two ex-lover’s birthdays until days after each had past. I’m a big fan of dates; so this, too, was a huge thing for me. My Saturn Return stressed me out for months, yet finally arrived, subtlety, yet very directly. I assigned all my turmoil the Mercury Retrograde and the moon’s rotation yet also tried to use that bad air as a way to propel myself further into becoming better in some odd way. 

I spent a week at home in Tampa and the past week here in Chicago and I’ve been reflective and passive towards the new year, which is new for me. I celebrated the end of one of my favorite years, Year of the Silver Star, seeing Twin Peaks at one of my favorite venues in the world. I’ve lately adopted such a deep, profound love for Chicago that I can’t say was always there. I’ve always loved it here; don’t get me wrong. But lately I’ve just got this overwhelming sense of pride about living here and the person it’s shaped me to be. I truly live in the greatest city in America; it’s such a quiet, best kept-secret and it’s all fucking mine.

 So, in saying goodbye, I realize I am also going to be mourning the death of a good friend to me—2017—in the process. There’s a certain amount of fear that comes after having such a good year. Can anything else compare? Where will I go from here? What does the future hold for my small, insignificant experience on this planet?

 At least David Bowie can’t die again.

 2018 has had a slow, humble start. I think that’s going to be the theme, though—slow and steady. I’m cautious because I’m aging (twenty-nine in a few weeks. twenty-fucking-nine!) but also because of my fear and understanding of Saturn Return. I was just becoming comfortable with impulsive kb, and am now being faced with a wise, considerate version of myself. I’m really trying to act thoughtfully & with reason.

 I will not invite toxic relationships, old or new, into my life. I will not settle for less than what I what, just because I am afraid to voice what I do want. I will not let anything stop my travel plans—and boy, do I have a lot of them for this year.

 I will move out of my apartment, my home for the last seven years, in four short months. I will turn a new leaf. I will (finally) graduate college. I will likely have bad sex. But, I will also have good sex. Really, really good sex. I can feel it; it’s vaginal intuition. I will visit India and bask in the beauty of the Taj Mahal and dream of a love so wild that someone might dream of building me something so grand in order to express their feelings for me some day. I will visit Australia and New Zealand, Iceland, China and who knows where else. I will continue to learn about myself, slowly, humbly, and try to embrace the woman I am and the one I want to become.

So, 2018, Year of the Stardust, I salute you and your intrinsic ability to control what’s next for me. I know it’s going to be a transitional year; that’s inevitable. But I will do my best to accept your place in my life with open arms and love. I will try every day to better understand my place in this world, and what’s next for me. I will continue to grow up. I will end my twenties with you!

 I eagerly await your lessons and turmoil, & burn sage in beginning you, officially, tonight. (After all, it’s a full moon and that feels more like a fresh start than some mortal-made calendar, anyways.)

Cheers to you, Stardust. May the crumbling of my Silver Star bring only beauty within you.

[haleyheadswest-blog]

Yellowstone & The Grand Tetons: Leslie Knope Would’ve Been Into It.

Isn’t it funny how, when we’re at a famous site or landmark or location, we all pull out our phones, eager to capture what’s in front of us—even though it’s been photographed so many times before? How we try to keep our hands from shaking while extending them out, over other people’s heads, desperate to pause what we’re seeing, the legend of whatever site or landmark or location it is standing in front of us, how we save it or share it or send it to our loved ones, look where I am! Look what I see!

I’m thinking about this a lot at Yellowstone, overlooking a terrifyingly steep waterfall deep in the park, sandwiched between my parents and about forty other tourists milling about the concrete platform with selfie sticks and professional cameras and iPhones and even polaroid cameras. There’s probably a far better picture of this waterfall in the gift shop for sale at an admittedly steep price. There are definitely tons of perfect shots online, all a Google search away. And yet, here we all are, huddling over the edge of the fence, each of our lens pointed at the same thing.

But it’s impossible to fully capture the brilliance of it all—the way the water falls over the side of the rocks and darts in a white sheet of sheer force down to the water below, exploding in an swallowing splash and spitting down the river until it finally slows and calms in the shade of the valleys. A video can’t capture it all: the start, the climax, the slow finish. A picture most certainly can’t begin to tell this water’s story. It’s overwhelming and beautiful and scary all at once, and there’s no way any of our pictures can say all of that.

We’re in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone—perhaps a less creative name than what could’ve been, but it’s a canyon, and it’s grand, so it fits. We’ve been driving through the park all day, stopping at random to see steaming geysers and rivers and even herds of bison stand lazily in the barren fields. I think about how cars look so out of place here, metal and smoke against a backdrop of beige grass.

Regardless, it’s incredible that national parks exist—expanses of land, saved for their beauty! There’s little-to-no internet access here, and aside from those aforementioned cars and a few general stores and gas stations and lodges throughout the massive park, it’s the most natural place I’ve seen in a long time. No commercialization, no connection to the outside world, just the land, the animals, and the occasional sign warning people to carry bear spray.

I’ll admit it: I’m a little terrified of the prospect of bears. My mom found a book in one of the general stores all about ways in which visitors of the park have died. She tells me about one guy who hiked off the trail (against all advice) and eventually got mauled by a bear. What a wonderful thing to share with your daughter—the daughter that loves entertaining irrational fears and rational fears alike, a long list that now includes bears!

While in Yellowstone, we stay at a lodge with a main lobby and dining area in a grand wooden building. Guests stay in the tiny cabins behind this building. It costs $5 an hour to get on the WiFi. I swallow my self-hatred and type my credit card number into my computer. I guess the beauty of nature isn’t quite enough to keep me entertained.

Mom, Dad, and I agree that the food served at our Yellowstone lodge is the worst yet—cafeteria style, kind of cold, semi-terrible choices. We also agree that we feel like we’re at camp, eating off of plates on trays in a giant dining room, surrounded by muffled chatter and an air of excitement.

Our next day is spent in the Grand Tetons. We do a hike near Jenny Lake up to Inspiration Point. It’s beautiful, aside from the signs reminding us to keep bear spray at hand, which we do not have. Even more thrilling is the discovery of a dock at the end of the hike, where we are invited to get on a boat back to the parking lot from which we started. This is how all hikes should go: tough incline, stunning view, boat that luxuriously floats you back to the starting point.

We chugged water bottles and shared a bag of barbecue chips on our way over to Jackson, where we went up in cable cars over the mountains and ate a homemade waffle smothered in butter and maple syrup 10,000 feet up. And when we happened upon a mountain bike course where riders performed stunts on steep ramps and wheelies, we decided to settle in at a nearby restaurant patio with local IPAs and watch, mesmerized by wheels in the air and the helmeted people controlling them.

Our next lodge overlooks the stunning outline of the Grand Tetons, a stunning expanse of the Rocky Mountains. We have wine and a cheese plate while watching the sunset of the rigidity of them in the distance, and it’s beautiful, and here we all were, whipping our phones out to capture the beauty once again. Mine are all terrible.

But maybe the point of taking all of these pictures isn’t because they’re going to be the best. There’s no way—not with National Geographic photographers (among many others) capturing the uncaptureable better than the rest of us. Maybe we’re just trying to take a piece of it for ourselves, bottling up a feeling rather than a sight, an experience rather than something we’ll simply frame.

We leave the national parks early on Saturday morning, heading to the quaint town of Bozeman, Montana. I watch as my cell service slowly comes back, as the winding roads in the park slowly transform into the straight one that makes up I-90. I won’t lie—I love the world we’ve created, the one with easy communication and restaurants that serve beautifully plated food on aesthetically pleasing plates and air conditioning and a delightful lack of bears, but I suddenly feel an appreciation for the opposite of all that, for hills that host nothing but trees, for geysers that bubble and hiss and steam, for waterfalls that utterly terrify me, even for signs that remind me how delicate I am, that a bear could kill me if I’m not careful. Okay, maybe I don’t miss that part, but I took a picture of the sign anyway.

[j0sgomez-blog]

A backpacker in The Narrows in Zion National Park.

By Michael Lanza

We rightly think of America’s national parks as inviolable public treasures, protected in perpetuity to remain unchanged forever, always there for us to admire and enjoy. Zion National Park’s closure yesterday of one of the very best backpacking trips in the Southwest—the 16-mile descent of The Narrows from top to bottom—due to a landowner suddenly revoking public access to the trailhead where the trek begins, reminds us that even the best-guarded treasures can be looted.

Zion announced on Sept. 25 that “no trespassing” signs have been posted by the owners of the private Chamberlain’s Ranch, outside the park’s northeast corner, the location of the trailhead where backpackers and dayhikers begin the top-to-bottom hike through The Narrows of the North Fork of the Virgin River. While much of The Narrows remains protected within park boundaries, the park has closed all access to it above Big Spring, including all backcountry camping. Dayhikers can still hike from the Temple of Sinawava Trailhead, in Zion Canyon at the bottom of The Narrows, upstream about five miles as far as Big Spring.

The upper Narrows in Zion, now closed to the public.

Beloved by backpackers, The Narrows is arguably a hike without peer—indeed, perhaps the archetypal Southwest canyon hike and one of the most uniquely magnificent multi-day hikes in the National Park System.

Hikers beginning at the upper end descend a canyon that grows steadily deeper and more spectacular, squeezing down to only about 20 feet wide in spots, while its sandstone walls rise up to a thousand feet tall. The perennial river coursing through the canyon nurtures denser greenery than typically found in Southwest canyons, creating striking contrasts with the golden, crimson, and cream-colored cliffs on both sides. At every turn, the cliffs display a different face, a complex mosaic of curves, cracks, columns, pinnacles, and buttresses in a rich geological color palette. In fall, the leaves on the cottonwood trees change to a brilliant yellow.

  Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Subscribe now to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip. Please follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

  From the canyon’s constantly shifting character to oddities like a waterfall pouring from cracks in solid rock, creating a hanging garden clinging to the canyon wall, The Narrows is a geological and biological wonder.

In early November 2014, a friend and I took advantage of a window of unseasonably sunny, warm weather to backpack The Narrows. I’ve backpacked for almost 30 years in many U.S. national parks and wilderness areas and still consider The Narrows one of America’s top 10 best backpacking trips. I hope Zion National Park managers are able to negotiate access for hikers and backpackers to Chamberlain’s Ranch again, so that I don’t have to remove The Narrows from that list.

  Big Spring in Zion’s Narrows. Hiking upstream from here is now prohibited.

The late writer and historian Wallace Stegner got it right when he famously described our national parks as “America’s best idea.” The 59 parks, from the world’s first, Yellowstone, to other places whose names have become synonymous with American wilderness and values—Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Mount Rainier, Sequoia, Grand Teton, Great Smoky Mountains, Everglades, and certainly Zion, among others—still attract and inspire hundreds of millions of visitors from all over the country and the world every year. In 2017, national parks received 330,882,751 recreation visits, just shy of the 2016 record of 330,971,689 visits.

But our parks face many threats from outside their boundaries that create impacts on everything inside, from legal battles over whether to allow the hunting of grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone region to efforts to lift a ban on uranium mining in the Grand Canyon watershed, and many more. We’ve certainly seen that national monuments are not safe from the shifting tides of politics since the Trump administration radically shrank Utah’s Bears Ears (by 85 percent) and Grand Staircase-Escalante (nearly in half).

The greatest existential crisis to ever face our parks, climate change, is expected to precipitate the disappearance of namesake natural features from some parks—glaciers from Glacier, Joshua trees from Joshua Tree, and the list goes on—and create myriad impacts from the diminishment of Yosemite Valley’s world-famous waterfalls to the inundation of much of the Everglades by the sea.

  Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up for my FREE email newsletter now.

  A backpacker in the closed upper Narrows in Zion.

The abrupt loss of access to an iconic national park experience offends our sense of entitlement. This isn’t supposed to happen in our national parks. Imagine Yellowstone closing Old Faithful and the Upper Geyser Basin—or perhaps a more-apt comparison, backpackers losing access to parts of the Teton Crest Trail that lie within national forest outside the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park.

The closure of Zion’s Narrows serves as a stark reminder that the work of conservation never ends—not even for our national parks. It’s a clarion call to all of us to do something about it. As millions of people hike and backpack, ski, paddle, climb, fish, and sightsee in the parks every year, many people and organizations work behind the scenes to help enable the efforts of the National Park Service. Those groups need our support.

If you love and cherish the parks—or even just the idea that they exist—find an organization or more than one that’s doing good work to help protect them, and send them a donation. That’s the best footprint you could leave in any park.

  Tell me what you think.

I spent a lot of time writing this story, so if you enjoyed it, please consider giving it a share using one of the buttons below, and leave a comment or question at the bottom of this story. I’d really appreciate it.

  See my feature story about backpacking Zion’s Narrows and this photo gallery of hiking and backpacking in all five of southern Utah’s national parks: Zion, Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef.

You may also be interested in my story with a related theme about another top adventure in Utah (and Colorado), “Why Conservation Matters: Rafting the Green River’s Gates of Lodore.”

Read about my National Outdoor Book Award-winning book, Before They’re Gone—A Family’s Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks, which chronicles the year my family spent taking wilderness adventures in 11 parks imperiled by climate change.

  The Big Outside helps you find the best adventures. Subscribe now to read ALL stories and get a free e-guide!

[littlehammies]

Day 18 - August 6, 2020

Settled into our 10th campsite of the trip (11 if you count the rest stop in SD), we prepared to take Big Mama into Yosemite for the day. The park is beautiful. We kept trying to compare to Yellowstone and it’s hard to distinguish because both are equally amazing. Huge mountains, boulders, rivers with rapids, meadows of wildflowers, and not a cloud in the sky. There are no volcanos or bison here, but Yosemite is home to plenty of bear, deer and lots of little happy squirrels. Our first stop today was a drive up to Glacier Point. On the way, we pulled off to take in the scenery and snap pictures. We passed a whole section of burnt trees from where a forest fire once was. The grass below those areas was bright green since the sun was let in to help it grow. Once at the top, we had a great view of El Capitan and Half Dome. Both are famous rock formations that are larger than life. They were formed 100 million years ago during a glacier period. El Capitan is the largest wall face of a rock in the entire world and was the star in the Free Solo documentary about a rock climber who made it to the summit without the security of ropes. We all just sat on a rock and tried to absorb the enormity of the landscape. If you listened close enough you could hear the power of water rushing in the distance. This was coming from the upper and lower falls - a duet of waterfalls about midway down. From our vantage point, the falls seemed like two small white, slightly moving, brushstrokes in the painting we were looking at. But in reality, these waterfalls are huge. Next to the lower falls is a green patch of light grass. I heard other people near us talking about their hike to that meadow next to the falls. We also saw a few squirrels who were extremely brave, walking right up to us on the rocks.

After leaving Glacier Point, we went back down the mountain which seemed much faster than going up. At the bottom, Brian had found us a perfect spot to go next. We parked and walked down a short pathway to the river. This was a quiet part of the river - shallow and still with water so clear. The river was right at the base of El Capitan. Now we’ve seen this gigantic rock from all angles and this was the closest yet. The kids jumped right in the water and I even walked in up to my knees. This was far from the murky rivers we have seen before. It honestly seemed cleaner than most swimming pools. The boys found a log and rode it around in the water like a boat. Ella and I laid in the sun and stared at the big rocks on both sides of us. There were a few other groups there, but it was still really private. It’s one of those special places I wanted to soak in and remember as a “happy place”.

Back at camp, Tilly was so incredibly excited to see us. Actually, we were equally excited because we had not been away from her this long since we started the trip. It made me think about how we will adapt when we get back to school soon. If I missed the dog this much from a few hours away, I might really miss the kids during the day more than I expected to.

Brian then drove out to the store to pick up the new RV door handle. We had ordered it online to be delivered to the Walmart, but it wasn’t in yesterday when we stopped there. It was worth it to drive back and get it today because we are getting sick of messing with this broken door. While he was out, I took the kids down to the pool and we got dinner to-go at the lodge restaurant. We ate at the pool and the kids had fun doing splash contests. I tried to not make it too late of a night since we’ve had a few late ones in a row. After the pool we all showered up and calmed down with some reading and coloring. Ella actually started a project of tracing everyone’s hands on a sheet of paper and making a collage. Oliver wanted to do the same and they both stayed busy for a while working on drawing and designing the hands. I was so proud of them for finding something to do that wasn’t a screen for once. And I didn’t even force it on them! All is good today. Bellies are full, hair is combed, summer school work got done, no major fights broke out...and we have a new door handle!

[clamjumper5-blog]

Loba Pastry + Coffee

There were never any chairs at Bad Wolf Coffee, a beloved Chicago coffee shop known for its stellar pastries. You don’t think much about chairs until they aren’t there. There was a table customers could stand at, but the message was clear—don’t linger. When Val Taylor, a former Bad Wolf employee and supertalented pastry chef, took over the space a couple of years ago, one of the first things she did was add chairs. It was a small correction that significantly changed both the way the space worked and felt. Taylor also changed the name to Loba, Spanish for wolf, or more specifically she-wolf. The name is perfect.

Taylor moved to the states from Guadalajara when she was a teenager. Raised by women who cared about food and cooking, she gravitated toward it too, though she didn’t imagine pursuing it professionally. By the time she made her way to Chicago in her early 20’s, she found herself working a job she didn’t care about and searching the want ads for other opportunities. She saw that a restaurant called Blackbird was searching for a pastry assistant. Despite not having experience, or even a sense of what Blackbird was (one of the greatest fine dining rooms in the city) she talked her way into the job and under the wing of the pastry crew headed by Patrick Fahy. She liked the work, learned quickly, and before long she was confident that that was what she wanted to do. That initial training lead to a bunch of other experiences in impressive kitchens in Chicago and New York. Often staging for experience in between paid kitchen gigs. She had a lot of energy and was eager to learn everything she could.

But like many people who spend much time in the industry, Taylor gradually found herself feeling exhausted by the work and uncertain about her future. It seemed hard to imagine maintaining the fine dining restaurant grind—the hours, the repetition, the creative restrictions. She took a job working in an office in the suburbs because it seemed to make practical sense, but it quickly made her miserable. She laughs now remembering how often she would try to cheer herself up with a trip to Margie’s Candies after work, “Eventually they didn’t even need to ask for my order.” She’d found herself back where she started, working a job she wasn’t invested in and thinking about food.

Taylor had heard from friends about a coffee shop in Lakeview that was making great pastries. She woke up early one morning on a day off and decided to give it a try. She was existential crisis-ing and spent the walk contemplating her future. She knew when she entered Bad Wolf that is was something special and told the owner, Jonathan Ory, that she wanted to work there. He didn’t need an employee at the time, but somehow Taylor charmed (bullied?) her way into the kitchen, and found herself baking there in her free time.

When Bad Wolf closed (Ory moved out of state) it was resurrected and reinvented by Taylor (and partner Coyote DeGroot) as Loba, the name inspired by a story about an alpha female wolf in Yellowstone known for her dominance. It was Taylor’s opportunity to make the space her own. The name change brought with it those chairs, wifi, and smiles—a kinder, gentler, wolf, in some ways. In others, it was much more fierce—its potential realized. The physical space became more intentional, weirder, goth-ier (?). A collection of clocks on the wall tell us the time in Winnipeg, Chicago, Veracruz, and Belize, randomly (Taylor can’t explain it either). There is a possibly ironic shrine to Steve Dolinsky, famous headshot-wielding Chicago restaurant critic/shill; and a collection of miniature plastic body parts surrounding the tip jar. In a sense, the space became itself, or herself. It also features Taylor, a compelling character, and her small staff who spend the mornings greeting and chatting with regulars. It’s fun to get Taylor talking about her food, the excitement is contagious. She always humors me when I bombard her with questions about how something is made. Most mornings you’ll find her running up the stairs to check on something in her shoebox of a kitchen between pours of coffee and conversation.

And that kitchen is the most important change, the pastry game became smart and adventurous, and for me, some of the most exciting stuff in Chicago. It really howls. Taylor often draws on flavors and forms from her native Mexico. She makes a remarkable Tres Leches cake using sourdough, cajeta caneles, and a mole croissant (although, philosophically, she’d like everyone to get over their obsession with “fucking croissants”). But there are other influences, a matcha cheese danish, a violet-glazed buckwheat cake, a ham and cheese kouign-amann (vestiges of her fine dining days?). She’s as likely to make something vegan or gluten free as she is not. A Pineapple and Sourdough muffin I recently ordered was both it turned out, but I would’ve been sure it was mostly wheat and butter. Her decisions to include or exclude seem determined by outcomes rather than diet concerns. She also plays with sweetness, pushing into savory territory at times.

On a recent visit I asked Taylor about why the shop hasn’t gotten more press—I remain confused by how under the radar it has flown, despite my own excitement and proselytizing. I hypothesized that it is partially a pastry problem, historically the most neglected part of kitchens, which of course is wrapped up in gender problems—they’re often staffed by females. She didn’t disagree, but she also suggested it was partially her fault. She admits to being bad at seeking out press and also, “I’m a punk. I’m too unpredictable.” She explained that what has happened in the past is that something she made would get press, a chocolate cardamom muffin, let’s say, and then customers would show up wanting to try one, but it wasn’t there. Usually because Taylor got tired of making it and moved on to other things.

This becomes part of the deal you strike as a regular at Loba, it’s unpredictable. You might find something you truly love, and you may never see it again. You gotta trust in Taylor—trust that the thing you love will be replaced by something equally delicious. It leads to another kind of regular, the kind of regular who is game for whatever. A devotee. It keeps things interesting for Taylor, she’s operating on her own terms and every day can be an adventure. Her years in kitchens taught her a lot about what she needs to sustain this work for herself and she is not going to get stuck making the same thing every day. She has found creative freedom (and better hours) at Loba, and we all benefit.

One of the few things that show up regularly in the Loba pastry case is Taylor’s Pepita Crunch Bar, inspired by florentine cookies and palanquetas de cacahuate. It is a good example of why she is so great, and the recipe works like a dream for home cooks. An oat bar base is topped with a mix of nuts and seeds bound together by a honey caramel sauce. The recipe can easily be made vegan by subbing the butter for Earth Balance (something she does regularly) and the honey for golden syrup. Makes a whole bunch, so be prepared to share with friends or strangers. The nut/seed mix can be adjusted to taste as long as the weight stays about the same—though this combo is pretty perfect (“because aesthetics” says Taylor)

Loba Pastry + Coffee is located at 3422 N Lincoln Avenue in Chicago.

Pepita Crunch Bar by Val Taylor of Loba Pastry + Coffee

Oat Base:

250g all purpose flour

200g old-fashioned rolled oats

5g baking powder

200g Earth Balance baking stick (If using dairy butter bump it to 220g)

225g light brown sugar

2g of salt

Caramelized nut topping:

125g roasted and unsalted peanuts (no skins)

50g slivered or sliced almonds

25g black sesame seeds

75g sugar

40g honey (use golden syrup if making these vegan)

3g salt

3 tablespoons water

100g Earth Balance (or equal amount of dairy butter)

Preheat oven to 375F. Line a quarter sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.

To make the oat base:

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy, stopping occasionally to scrape the sides and bottom of bowl. Add the dry ingredients in three additions and mix until fully combined and dry ingredients are no longer visible. Dump dough out into prepared pan and use your hands to flatten it into an even layer.

Bake for 14-17 minutes, or until light golden brown. Allow to cool while you make the caramelized topping. (oat base can be made a day in advance)

To make the caramelized nut topping:

Combine the nuts and seeds in a small bowl and set next to your stove.

In a small saucepan combine the sugar, honey, salt, and water and cook over medium-high heat until a golden sunset tone–kind of a medium amber. Turn down heat to lowest setting and whisk in the butter, a couple of tablespoons at a time, until you have a smooth caramel. Immediately add the nuts and seeds and stir to coat. Working quickly, pour the caramelized nut topping over the oat base and use an offset spatula to spread it into an even layer. The topping will get more difficult to spread as it cools, but don’t sweat it because you’ll get another chance….

Return the pan to the oven for 7-10 minutes, which will help bond the topping to the base. When you remove the pan from the oven, you can now spread out any of the caramelized nut topping that had clumped up. The warmth of the oven will have loosened things up.

Allow to cool to room temperature before cutting into bars.

Source: http://www.lottieanddoof.com/2018/04/loba-pastry-coffee/

[resultnorth1-blog]

Loba Pastry + Coffee

There were never any chairs at Bad Wolf Coffee, a beloved Chicago coffee shop known for its stellar pastries. You don’t think much about chairs until they aren’t there. There was a table customers could stand at, but the message was clear—don’t linger. When Val Taylor, a former Bad Wolf employee and supertalented pastry chef, took over the space a couple of years ago, one of the first things she did was add chairs. It was a small correction that significantly changed both the way the space worked and felt. Taylor also changed the name to Loba, Spanish for wolf, or more specifically she-wolf. The name is perfect.

Taylor moved to the states from Guadalajara when she was a teenager. Raised by women who cared about food and cooking, she gravitated toward it too, though she didn’t imagine pursuing it professionally. By the time she made her way to Chicago in her early 20’s, she found herself working a job she didn’t care about and searching the want ads for other opportunities. She saw that a restaurant called Blackbird was searching for a pastry assistant. Despite not having experience, or even a sense of what Blackbird was (one of the greatest fine dining rooms in the city) she talked her way into the job and under the wing of the pastry crew headed by Patrick Fahy. She liked the work, learned quickly, and before long she was confident that that was what she wanted to do. That initial training lead to a bunch of other experiences in impressive kitchens in Chicago and New York. Often staging for experience in between paid kitchen gigs. She had a lot of energy and was eager to learn everything she could.

But like many people who spend much time in the industry, Taylor gradually found herself feeling exhausted by the work and uncertain about her future. It seemed hard to imagine maintaining the fine dining restaurant grind—the hours, the repetition, the creative restrictions. She took a job working in an office in the suburbs because it seemed to make practical sense, but it quickly made her miserable. She laughs now remembering how often she would try to cheer herself up with a trip to Margie’s Candies after work, “Eventually they didn’t even need to ask for my order.” She’d found herself back where she started, working a job she wasn’t invested in and thinking about food.

Taylor had heard from friends about a coffee shop in Lakeview that was making great pastries. She woke up early one morning on a day off and decided to give it a try. She was existential crisis-ing and spent the walk contemplating her future. She knew when she entered Bad Wolf that is was something special and told the owner, Jonathan Ory, that she wanted to work there. He didn’t need an employee at the time, but somehow Taylor charmed (bullied?) her way into the kitchen, and found herself baking there in her free time.

When Bad Wolf closed (Ory moved out of state) it was resurrected and reinvented by Taylor (and partner Coyote DeGroot) as Loba, the name inspired by a story about an alpha female wolf in Yellowstone known for her dominance. It was Taylor’s opportunity to make the space her own. The name change brought with it those chairs, wifi, and smiles—a kinder, gentler, wolf, in some ways. In others, it was much more fierce—its potential realized. The physical space became more intentional, weirder, goth-ier (?). A collection of clocks on the wall tell us the time in Winnipeg, Chicago, Veracruz, and Belize, randomly (Taylor can’t explain it either). There is a possibly ironic shrine to Steve Dolinsky, famous headshot-wielding Chicago restaurant critic/shill; and a collection of miniature plastic body parts surrounding the tip jar. In a sense, the space became itself, or herself. It also features Taylor, a compelling character, and her small staff who spend the mornings greeting and chatting with regulars. It’s fun to get Taylor talking about her food, the excitement is contagious. She always humors me when I bombard her with questions about how something is made. Most mornings you’ll find her running up the stairs to check on something in her shoebox of a kitchen between pours of coffee and conversation.

And that kitchen is the most important change, the pastry game became smart and adventurous, and for me, some of the most exciting stuff in Chicago. It really howls. Taylor often draws on flavors and forms from her native Mexico. She makes a remarkable Tres Leches cake using sourdough, cajeta caneles, and a mole croissant (although, philosophically, she’d like everyone to get over their obsession with “fucking croissants”). But there are other influences, a matcha cheese danish, a violet-glazed buckwheat cake, a ham and cheese kouign-amann (vestiges of her fine dining days?). She’s as likely to make something vegan or gluten free as she is not. A Pineapple and Sourdough muffin I recently ordered was both it turned out, but I would’ve been sure it was mostly wheat and butter. Her decisions to include or exclude seem determined by outcomes rather than diet concerns. She also plays with sweetness, pushing into savory territory at times.

On a recent visit I asked Taylor about why the shop hasn’t gotten more press—I remain confused by how under the radar it has flown, despite my own excitement and proselytizing. I hypothesized that it is partially a pastry problem, historically the most neglected part of kitchens, which of course is wrapped up in gender problems—they’re often staffed by females. She didn’t disagree, but she also suggested it was partially her fault. She admits to being bad at seeking out press and also, “I’m a punk. I’m too unpredictable.” She explained that what has happened in the past is that something she made would get press, a chocolate cardamom muffin, let’s say, and then customers would show up wanting to try one, but it wasn’t there. Usually because Taylor got tired of making it and moved on to other things.

This becomes part of the deal you strike as a regular at Loba, it’s unpredictable. You might find something you truly love, and you may never see it again. You gotta trust in Taylor—trust that the thing you love will be replaced by something equally delicious. It leads to another kind of regular, the kind of regular who is game for whatever. A devotee. It keeps things interesting for Taylor, she’s operating on her own terms and every day can be an adventure. Her years in kitchens taught her a lot about what she needs to sustain this work for herself and she is not going to get stuck making the same thing every day. She has found creative freedom (and better hours) at Loba, and we all benefit.

One of the few things that show up regularly in the Loba pastry case is Taylor’s Pepita Crunch Bar, inspired by florentine cookies and palanquetas de cacahuate. It is a good example of why she is so great, and the recipe works like a dream for home cooks. An oat bar base is topped with a mix of nuts and seeds bound together by a honey caramel sauce. The recipe can easily be made vegan by subbing the butter for Earth Balance (something she does regularly) and the honey for golden syrup. Makes a whole bunch, so be prepared to share with friends or strangers. The nut/seed mix can be adjusted to taste as long as the weight stays about the same—though this combo is pretty perfect (“because aesthetics” says Taylor)

Loba Pastry + Coffee is located at 3422 N Lincoln Avenue in Chicago.

Pepita Crunch Bar by Val Taylor of Loba Pastry + Coffee

Oat Base:

250g all purpose flour

200g old-fashioned rolled oats

5g baking powder

200g Earth Balance baking stick (If using dairy butter bump it to 220g)

225g light brown sugar

2g of salt

Caramelized nut topping:

125g roasted and unsalted peanuts (no skins)

50g slivered or sliced almonds

25g black sesame seeds

75g sugar

40g honey (use golden syrup if making these vegan)

3g salt

3 tablespoons water

100g Earth Balance (or equal amount of dairy butter)

Preheat oven to 375F. Line a quarter sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.

To make the oat base:

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy, stopping occasionally to scrape the sides and bottom of bowl. Add the dry ingredients in three additions and mix until fully combined and dry ingredients are no longer visible. Dump dough out into prepared pan and use your hands to flatten it into an even layer.

Bake for 14-17 minutes, or until light golden brown. Allow to cool while you make the caramelized topping. (oat base can be made a day in advance)

To make the caramelized nut topping:

Combine the nuts and seeds in a small bowl and set next to your stove.

In a small saucepan combine the sugar, honey, salt, and water and cook over medium-high heat until a golden sunset tone–kind of a medium amber. Turn down heat to lowest setting and whisk in the butter, a couple of tablespoons at a time, until you have a smooth caramel. Immediately add the nuts and seeds and stir to coat. Working quickly, pour the caramelized nut topping over the oat base and use an offset spatula to spread it into an even layer. The topping will get more difficult to spread as it cools, but don’t sweat it because you’ll get another chance….

Return the pan to the oven for 7-10 minutes, which will help bond the topping to the base. When you remove the pan from the oven, you can now spread out any of the caramelized nut topping that had clumped up. The warmth of the oven will have loosened things up.

Allow to cool to room temperature before cutting into bars.

Source: http://www.lottieanddoof.com/2018/04/loba-pastry-coffee/

[swipestream]

Sensor Sweep: Algernon Blackwood, Irish Dogs, Snipers, Battle Angel

RPG (Tenkar’s Tavern): We’re very excited to announce the next release in our Original Adventures Reincarnated line: Expedition to the Barrier Peaks! As with previous releases in the OAR series, this one will include scans of the original 1E editions, a conversion to 5E, and new 5E material filling in some gaps from the original 1E module.

OAR3: Expedition to the Barrier Peaks is slated for a September release. It will be solicited to distributors soon and will be available for pre-order once the book is at the printer.

      Anime (Fantasy Literature): “They say if you try making anime for 3 days, you’ll never be able to quit and that in 3 days you’ll also be broke. But even if I were to go broke, I still don’t think I’d be able to quit.” These words from Tezuka, upon receiving an award late in life, express his passion for his work in anime, but he had an equal passion for manga.

      Fiction (James Reasoner): I backed the Kickstarter for this anthology, and now that it’s been published and I’ve read it, I’m glad I did. It’s an excellent collection of military fiction, some with contemporary settings, some historical. I’ve always liked war stories, and these are very well done. My favorites are “A Place More Kind Than Home” by Ron Farina, a tale of a Marine coming home from Vietnam that does a perfect job of capturing the mid-Sixties era.

    Fiction (DMR Books): So, there I was rereading my Altus Press edition of “The Moon Pool.” As I’ve noted elsewhere, this edition features all of the great Virgil Finlay illos for “The Moon Pool” as reprinted in Famous Fantastic Mysteries. As I gazed once again upon Finlay’s striking illustration of the moment when Dr. Throckmartin’s colleague, Charles Stanton, is taken into/devoured by the Dweller in the Moon Pool, a thought occurred to me. The estates of Merritt and Finlay really missed the boat when they did not take the opportunity to have Finlay’s illo made into a black light poster.

  Cinema (Jon Mollison): Up for some pro-Russian propaganda? I got a flick for you. Be warned, though. It’s half cool, half head-slapper.  A Sniper’s War presents the story of Deki, a Serbian who enlists in the Russian backed “Ukrainian Separatist” movement that sprung up in the district between Ukraine proper and Russia proper during the big NATO-Russia standoff. He wanted to show his gratitude to Russia by shooting the NATO types that ruined the best country on earth – his beloved Albania. It’s a message film with an odd mix of messages. Part pro-Russia, part pro-Communist, and part pro-Orthodox Church.

  Dogs (the Journal.ie): Paul Howard, the creator of Ross O’Carroll Kelly, once remarked that “the social contract between humans and dogs might be the best bit of business we have ever done”.  I find it hard to disagree.

While cats briefly ruled social media in the early 2010s with a strong run of viral videos and memes, dogs have reclaimed their prime position since 2016. Some people attribute this to the simple goodness of dogs as being a welcome antidote to the avalanche of bad news which descended during that year.

  Cinema (The Dark Herald): First things first.

I am approaching this subject from a place of familiarity.  I first saw the Battle Angel OVA when I was stationed at Camp Lejeune better than twenty-five years ago.  And there is no getting around it, this film is basically an expanded version of the OVA. Yes, I understand that its supposed to be about the first few books in the manga series but sorry, no. It’s the OVA with some background material thrown in.  That was clearly and obviously the inspiration for the whole project.  James Cameron is a nerd with a taste for hard science fiction, it’s hardly a surprise that he fell in love with Alita.

  Fiction (DMR Books): Algernon Blackwood was born one hundred and fifty years ago today in the English shire of Kent. Blessed with a name seemingly custom-made for an author of weird fiction, he went on to influence generations of horror and fantasy writers.

As detailed in Mike Ashley’s Algernon Blackwood: An Extraordinary Life–a biography I highly recommend–Blackwood spent the first thirty years of his life roaming Europe and North America. After that, he made up for lost time, penning reams of tales–the exact count is still unknown–some of which are considered among the best in the entire weird fiction canon.

  History (Men of the West): Hotel is a French term, derived from hostil, a lordly house, a palace. The designation Public House, signifying a house of public resort for refreshment and conviviality, is a modern substitute for Tavern, derived from the Latin taberna, a hut, a wooden booth; frequently also for Inn, or rather, as originally written, Inne, which expressed the Anglo-Saxon for a mansion. And here we may at once observe that by far the majority of our mediæval inns and Hostelries [see Hotel] grew out of the mansions of the nobility during the prolonged absence of their owners.

  Fiction (Hi Lo Brow): J.-H. Rosny aîné’s children’s atavistic adventure La Guerre du feu (Quest for Fire).

At some point during the Ice Age, the people of Ulam — a proto-Franco-Belgian Neanderthal tribe — are attacked by a rival tribe, and their precious fire is stolen. (Although they know how to tend a flame, they can’t generate a new one.) The tribe’s leader promises a woman to whichever young warrior succeeds in bringing back life-giving fire to the tribe. This is a slim novella, but it is action-packed: Naoh, our protagonist, and his two comrades encounter monstrous beasts, alien hominid tribes (some of which appear to be proto-Asian, proto-Scottish, etc.), and must use their wits to overcome all sorts of obstacles.

    Gaming (Sentinel Hill Press): Perhaps the most impressive memorial to Keith is the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society’s titanic radio play production of his Fungi from Yuggoth/Day of the Beast campaign for Call of Cthulhu – The Brotherhood of the Beast.  They didn’t just bring it to life in audio form (complete with 4 different endings), but they produced a plethora of HPLHS-quality props that would be just as useful for a table-top game.

    Comic Books (Barebonesez): When Pa passes, the three Cartwright boys (not Hoss, Little Joe, and Adam… the other Cartwright boys) find themselves with a heapin’ helpin’ of farm land to take care of. Aaron and Horace want to continue in the footsteps of their father, who made the land pay off for him, but third brother Jack wants to dump the dump as quick as possible.

      Cinema (James Reasoner): I was surprised to come across a Clint Walker Western I hadn’t seen before, since he’s been a favorite of mine for many years. I was a big fan of his TV show CHEYENNE when I was a kid, and I remember watching YELLOWSTONE KELLY and other movies starring him at the Eagle Drive-In. FORT DOBBS was the first film in which he starred, and you could almost imagine it as being a longer episode of CHEYENNE.

Sensor Sweep: Algernon Blackwood, Irish Dogs, Snipers, Battle Angel published first on https://medium.com/@ReloadedPCGames

[goldeagleprice]

Community Voice Responses (August 14, 2018)

From the July 20 Numismatic News E-Newsletter:

Are Morgan silver dollars overrated?

Here are some answers sent from our e-newsletter readers to Editor Dave Harper.

  I think so. I don’t think the design is particularly inspirational (or aspirational). The obverse is basically a curly-headed blog, and the reverse is yet another tired eagle. Probably OK for the time, but not particularly interesting.

Peace dollars, on the other hand, are pretty awesome!

Henry Mensch Syracuse, N.Y.

  What other coins from the 19th century are readily available in uncirculated condition at affordable prices for most collectors? Morgan dollars have a unique place in numismatic history. Hundreds of millions were minted, then kept in storage vaults until the 1960s. There is nothing quite like holding a silver dollar in hand, especially for a child. The heft of the coin, the brilliance of luster or flashes of colorful toning come in a size many can enjoy without magnification. For the serious collectors, there are the VAM varieties to be found that can be like a treasure hunt. Morgan dollars exist from all the U.S. Mint facilities in operation between 1878-1921. The brilliance of an 1881 San Francisco minted coin can be contrasted with those from New Orleans or Philadelphia. The Carson City minted dollars add a romantic charm to lovers of the Old West. The 1921 Morgans are unique in that they were struck from new hubs copied from those in use in 1904 and earlier. It is the only year we have examples from the Denver mint. Morgan dollars are unique, beautiful, available, affordable and enchanting. How can a coin with so much to offer be overrated?

Timothy Scharr Aviston, Ill.

  Yes. Morgan dollars are the very definition of overrated. Most dates are common as dirt even in high grades. One could walk from one end to the other of an ANA or FUN show walking on only Morgan dollar slabs from dealer cases stacked like paving bricks and never touch the flooring. V. Kurt Bellman Harrisburg, Pa.

  Morgan silver dollars may be over graded sometimes, but they are not overrated. They are highly desirable works of art, very beautiful in Mint State grades. They survive in adequate numbers to be affordable as a type coin for the average collector.

All of the Morgan dollars are over 100 years old, except for the last year of issue. By definition, they can be considered antique. Not many antiques have retained such great beauty after so many years.

Bruce R. Frohman Modesto, Calif.

  Yes, I think the Morgan is overrated. But, it is so beautiful. Maybe the reason it is so popular.

David Donovan Address withheld

  I wanted to let you know that the Morgan dollars are overpriced and with them being rated by another agency will raise the price. As much as I wanted to buy, I will not buy because I’m not going to pay a premium.

Robert Odulio West Covina, Calif.

  Morgan dollars have long been a favorite item of collectors. Visions of the Old West and casinos can’t help but come to mind when even speaking of the Morgan dollar. Coins from the Carson City mint with the famous CC mintmark have always interested collectors. The New Orleans mint, now a museum, brings visions of the Old South during the later part of the 19th century. The San Francisco mintmark can’t help but make one think how many “S” mintmark Morgans were lost in the earthquake of 1906. The fact that holding a Morgan dollar can remind someone of all that history can never make them overrated. Even in XF and AU, these coins evoke interest and are still affordable.

A quick look at a guide shows some Morgan dollars get pretty pricey in MS-65, and only time will tell what effect the recent hoard of the 16,000 pristine Morgan dollars will have on the overall Morgan dollar coin market. Thousands of MS-67 Morgan dollars will certainly have an effect. Then you have to think how many hoards are still out there? I, for one, never thought Morgan dollars were over priced. But I do not have any MS-65 Morgan dollars. Actually, my favorite Morgan dollar is an 1892-O that I would grade in maybe XF-40. I hold it, flip it, spin it, and even like to listen to it as it clanks on a granite counter. I can also SEE it without a magnifying glass. That is a biggie for older collectors. And it will always be worth the price of silver. Try doing that with a coin graded MS-65 or, now, MS-67.

So my take on the Morgan dollar is that it can never be overrated because it is rich in history. And NO the Morgan dollar is not overpriced for new or educated Morgan dollar collectors. Morgan silver dollars and the Henry repeating rifle are American treasures.

Dom Cicio Groveland, Fla.

  How can you overrate a coin that has zillions of examples, many varieties, countless publications, and a reasonable price? Some collectors are of the opinion that, “If you ain’t Morgan, you’re nothing,” which is fine for them but not for the rest of us. Go for it, guys, but leave me to collect what I want.

Bob Fritsch Nashua, N.H.

  I do not think Morgan dollars are overrated at all. They are big silver coins. Attractive. Historical. A big set with many different ways to collect. There are enough “common” ones to go around. They make great gifts. A 1921 Morgan $1 (and a 1922 Peace $1) got me interested in coins.

Ginger Rapsus Chicago, Ill.

  Absolutely not! They are beautiful coins with much interesting history. They can be very affordable while offering a variety of collecting options. These options include varieties, dates, mintmarks, and condition factors. These are coins that some of us grew up with, and we have great stories to tell! And perhaps best of all, the Mint is no longer involved in their production, pricing and distribution!

Story No. 1: Circa 1958, my family took a trip to Yellowstone National Park. On a gas stop in one of the Wyoming towns, my Dad got a silver dollar in change. I was intrigued by the coin because I had never seen one! To the contrary, my Dad had a hissy fit because he did not want to carry that bulky object around in his pocket. Memory fails me, but hopefully I was able to negotiate that silver dollar as an advance on my future allowance!

Story No. 2: Many years ago a friend in the coin business was called upon to do an appraisal for a local bank of uncirculated silver dollar bags that had been held in the bank vaults for many decades. A fascinating story in and of itself, but it actually gets better! A longtime employee of the bank recently told me [and Paul Harvey] the rest of the story. The bank went up for sale. Careful evaluation of their financial statements showed that the silver dollars were listed at face value, common accounting procedure for the banking industry. The buyer of the bank proceeded to sell the silver dollars for the then-current market value. This resulted in proceeds that exceeded his cost of buying the bank!

Max Stucky Colorado Springs, Colo.

  Silver dollars of any condition, mint, grade, or type are never overrated. Overpriced? Maybe. But never overrated. Still one of the most recognized and iconic coin designs ever!

Bret Swanie Address withheld

  They are common as dirt; they were created only to prop up the wealth of Western mine owning plutocrats, so they have negligible historic interest; very few of them were ever used in commerce; and most people who collect them are much more interested in the numbers on the little piece of paper in the plastic than they are in the big, round, shiny thing that’s also in the plastic. So, yes, most definitely, they are.

Bill Eckberg Address withheld

  The sure are. An accompanying article in this issue of Numismatic News revealed that another hoard of these worthless dollars has been discovered in a bank in New York. Oh, great, there goes the value of dollars we had spent a considerable amount of money to add to our collection.

The lies being told over the years about millions of these dollars being melted by the government and/or collectors for the silver content are nothing but that, lies. Those millions of melted dollars just keep turning up in more and more hoards. I think professional coin organizations or companies are intentionally creating this whole fake mess. And anyone who does like that article states about “being excited and get out your checkbooks” is nothing but a fool being separated from his/her money.

Can’t wait for the next “newly discovered” hoard of Morgan dollars.

Alan Anderson Tucson, Ariz.

Editor’s note: Whatever your opinion of the Morgan dollar coin, 270 million were melted under terms of the 1918 Pittman Act and 40 million more were melted during World War II to recover silver for use in other coins.

  This article was originally printed in Numismatic News. >> Subscribe today.

   More Collecting Resources

• Subscribe to our monthly Coins magazine – a great resource for any collector!

• Start becoming a coin collector today with this popular course, Coin Collecting 101.

The post Community Voice Responses (August 14, 2018) appeared first on Numismatic News.

[j0sgomez-blog]

A backpacker in The Narrows in Zion National Park.

By Michael Lanza

We rightly think of America’s national parks as inviolable public treasures, protected in perpetuity to remain unchanged forever, always there for us to admire and enjoy. Zion National Park’s closure yesterday of one of the very best backpacking trips in the Southwest—the 16-mile descent of The Narrows from top to bottom—due to a landowner suddenly revoking public access to the trailhead where the trek begins, reminds us that even the best-guarded treasures can be looted.

Zion announced on Sept. 25 that “no trespassing” signs have been posted by the owners of the private Chamberlain’s Ranch, outside the park’s northeast corner, the location of the trailhead where backpackers and dayhikers begin the top-to-bottom hike through The Narrows of the North Fork of the Virgin River. While much of The Narrows remains protected within park boundaries, the park has closed all access to it above Big Spring, including all backcountry camping. Dayhikers can still hike from the Temple of Sinawava Trailhead, in Zion Canyon at the bottom of The Narrows, upstream about five miles as far as Big Spring.

The upper Narrows in Zion, now closed to the public.

Beloved by backpackers, The Narrows is arguably a hike without peer—indeed, perhaps the archetypal Southwest canyon hike and one of the most uniquely magnificent multi-day hikes in the National Park System.

Hikers beginning at the upper end descend a canyon that grows steadily deeper and more spectacular, squeezing down to only about 20 feet wide in spots, while its sandstone walls rise up to a thousand feet tall. The perennial river coursing through the canyon nurtures denser greenery than typically found in Southwest canyons, creating striking contrasts with the golden, crimson, and cream-colored cliffs on both sides. At every turn, the cliffs display a different face, a complex mosaic of curves, cracks, columns, pinnacles, and buttresses in a rich geological color palette. In fall, the leaves on the cottonwood trees change to a brilliant yellow.

  Hi, I’m Michael Lanza, creator of The Big Outside, which has made several top outdoors blog lists. Click here to sign up for my FREE email newsletter. Subscribe now to get full access to all of my blog’s stories. Click here to learn how I can help you plan your next trip. Please follow my adventures on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

  From the canyon’s constantly shifting character to oddities like a waterfall pouring from cracks in solid rock, creating a hanging garden clinging to the canyon wall, The Narrows is a geological and biological wonder.

In early November 2014, a friend and I took advantage of a window of unseasonably sunny, warm weather to backpack The Narrows. I’ve backpacked for almost 30 years in many U.S. national parks and wilderness areas and still consider The Narrows one of America’s top 10 best backpacking trips. I hope Zion National Park managers are able to negotiate access for hikers and backpackers to Chamberlain’s Ranch again, so that I don’t have to remove The Narrows from that list.

  Big Spring in Zion’s Narrows. Hiking upstream from here is now prohibited.

The late writer and historian Wallace Stegner got it right when he famously described our national parks as “America’s best idea.” The 59 parks, from the world’s first, Yellowstone, to other places whose names have become synonymous with American wilderness and values—Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Mount Rainier, Sequoia, Grand Teton, Great Smoky Mountains, Everglades, and certainly Zion, among others—still attract and inspire hundreds of millions of visitors from all over the country and the world every year. In 2017, national parks received 330,882,751 recreation visits, just shy of the 2016 record of 330,971,689 visits.

But our parks face many threats from outside their boundaries that create impacts on everything inside, from legal battles over whether to allow the hunting of grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone region to efforts to lift a ban on uranium mining in the Grand Canyon watershed, and many more. We’ve certainly seen that national monuments are not safe from the shifting tides of politics since the Trump administration radically shrank Utah’s Bears Ears (by 85 percent) and Grand Staircase-Escalante (nearly in half).

The greatest existential crisis to ever face our parks, climate change, is expected to precipitate the disappearance of namesake natural features from some parks—glaciers from Glacier, Joshua trees from Joshua Tree, and the list goes on—and create myriad impacts from the diminishment of Yosemite Valley’s world-famous waterfalls to the inundation of much of the Everglades by the sea.

  Find your next adventure in your Inbox. Sign up for my FREE email newsletter now.

  A backpacker in the closed upper Narrows in Zion.

The abrupt loss of access to an iconic national park experience offends our sense of entitlement. This isn’t supposed to happen in our national parks. Imagine Yellowstone closing Old Faithful and the Upper Geyser Basin—or perhaps a more-apt comparison, backpackers losing access to parts of the Teton Crest Trail that lie within national forest outside the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park.

The closure of Zion’s Narrows serves as a stark reminder that the work of conservation never ends—not even for our national parks. It’s a clarion call to all of us to do something about it. As millions of people hike and backpack, ski, paddle, climb, fish, and sightsee in the parks every year, many people and organizations work behind the scenes to help enable the efforts of the National Park Service. Those groups need our support.

If you love and cherish the parks—or even just the idea that they exist—find an organization or more than one that’s doing good work to help protect them, and send them a donation. That’s the best footprint you could leave in any park.

  Tell me what you think.

I spent a lot of time writing this story, so if you enjoyed it, please consider giving it a share using one of the buttons below, and leave a comment or question at the bottom of this story. I’d really appreciate it.

  See my feature story about backpacking Zion’s Narrows and this photo gallery of hiking and backpacking in all five of southern Utah’s national parks: Zion, Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef.

You may also be interested in my story with a related theme about another top adventure in Utah (and Colorado), “Why Conservation Matters: Rafting the Green River’s Gates of Lodore.”

Read about my National Outdoor Book Award-winning book, Before They’re Gone—A Family’s Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks, which chronicles the year my family spent taking wilderness adventures in 11 parks imperiled by climate change.

  The Big Outside helps you find the best adventures. Subscribe now to read ALL stories and get a free e-guide!

[andrea-cristina-travel-blog]

Four MUST DO Authentic Western Mountain Towns

FOUR (No, not five) MUST DO Western U.S. Mountain Towns (You’ve Haven’t Heard of Until NOW)! Sandpoint, Idaho You say you like gigantic, picturesque fresh-water lakes, boating, skiing and endless low-cost adventure in a breathtaking four-season picturesque mountain backdrop? Shame on you for never casting your yearning gaze upon Sandpoint, Idaho. Just south of Canada, this magnificent little town (population 7,984-ish) has every convenience without compromising access to some of the Northwest’s most scenic alpine territory. There’s even an adorable city beach (on the magnificent and ultra-deep Lake Pend Oreille) if you’re not a boater. And if it’s skiing you’re after – the local ski mountain is called Schweitzer, but trust us, you won’t miss it. Just look up. Now, if its spectacular food with a view to match, check out Trinity at City Beach or Spuds Waterfront Grill. Oh, beer and “finger foods” are all the rage here thing here. So, pop into Connie’s Café in town and do order North Idaho Finger Steaks (think tempura prime rib strips.) Yummmmm. Where to stay: White Pine Lodge, Schweitzer Mountain Resort Idaho Livingston, Montana Sitting on the Yellowstone River, just North of America’s most sensational National Park, this sleepy little town of 7,044-ish has never been accused of suffering from a dearth of natural, scenic beauty. You will find all the wildlife you can handle and just like most Mid to Western Montana spots, the fishing here is well, just about better than anywhere else in the whole wide world. What’s great about Livingston is it’s a destination unto itself. It’s not one of those “near the national park” towns that is gas stations, rock stores (though you’ll find some), branded hotel chains, and gimmicky pancake houses. This place, like the others on this list, are places you can go to unwind, relax and enjoy yourself without the pressure of feeling that you are missing something. Check out Pine Creek Trail for a majestic woodsy adventure and then replenish your nutrients at Montana’s Rib and Chop House – it’s “hella” good – or grab yourself some local brew and catch at Neptune’s Brewery. And while this is not a foodie article, breakfast & pie at The Northern Pacific Beanery is literally worth flying in for. Oh, and if you’re here in winter and never been dogsledding – Livingston has quite the reputation (and opportunities). Yes, there’s skiing too – FYI. Okay, so where to stay? We’ve got just the place for you: The Murray Hotel (Yes, Anthony Bourdain fans, he also HIGHLY recommends this little gem.) Sheridan, Wyoming They don’t call this place “Wyoming’s Jewel” for nothing (other than marketing, perhaps.) Nevertheless, for whatever reason it was coined, this place deserves its nickname. Voted True West Magazine’s Top Western Town, this spot summons seldom used urban descriptors like resplendent and dazzling. Even quaint understates its charming quaintness if that’s a thing. Okay, enough empty sobriquets, here’s why Sheridan is so cool. A bit larger than the last town, she boasts a population of around 17,954-ish. She sits at the entrance to Bighorn National Forest and is ideal for the hike and explore crew. Shell Falls (and surrounding Shell Canyon) is gorgeous and one of those places you can go to on consecutive days and never quite get enough. Moreover, unlike some other dusty western towns, the nightlife in Sheridan hops. Lots of cool retro bars and clubs makes Sheridan an around-the-clock destination, equally good for couples and families. Oh, by the way. Okay, just because you asked, here’s where you should stay: Historic Sheridan Inn (William “Buffalo Bill” Cody was one of the original co-owners and contributors. True story.) Kanab, Utah The WaveThis would be considered a sleepy little town, BUT there is so much to see ‘round these parts – there is a steady influx of tourism. The year-round settlers’ population hovers around 4,526 but the local action feels a bit bigger. This one is just north of the Arizona border and you can clearly get a glimpse of that famous Northern Arizona red rock here – but that’s just the beginning. In fact, you better book a few days because you’ll need to check out the Moqui Cave, The Wave (one of the slickest natural rock formations you’ll ever see and explore), and the pure majesty of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park. Yeah, Nike said it first but, Just Do It! And all that is just the basics. There’s Buckskin Gulch, Cottonwood Canyon’s Wash Narrows, Paria Canyon … are you starting to get the picture here. You simply must add “Shish” Kanab (no, nobody really calls it that, but we couldn’t miss the opportunity.) There is even the country’s coolest animal sanctuary, BEST FRIENDS, complete with four daily tours where you may actually befriend and adopt a furry or in some cases, feathered friend. Oh, Bryce Canyon’s right here too and so is Zion National Park. I know, I know … you’re welcome! If you’re hungry there is plenty of great fare from Rocking V Café to Escobar’s Mexican Restaurant (maybe Pablo will stop by). And when it comes to lodging, you guessed it … Have we got a place (or two) for you: Canyon’s Boutique Hotel, Canyon’s Lodge So, why not five you ask? Well, there are a handful more that are among our favorites – so splendid, that one must graduate to them. Okay, that’s not quite true. As bloggers, it’s always a good idea to save some content for later.   Note: There is ONE secret town, in ONE of the states mentioned above that we left out intentionally. Why? Because it is literally so perfect, we didn’t want to spoil it by singing its praises to the content-loving public. But, we’ll reveal it IF you can guess it (in the first 10 attempts in the comments. One try per reader, please.) So, have at it!!!! The post Four MUST DO Authentic Western Mountain Towns appeared first on Must Do Travels.

https://mustdotravels.com/four-must-authentic-western-towns/

[luckybouquetnachous-blog]

New Hampshire Is Extremely Beneficial For A Vacation

If you have never heard of Caborca, Mexico, don't be stunned. Think about how you are going to get pleasure from your free time and make plans to visit locations you might be interesting in. Print out or jot down notes so that if you find yourself on vacation you are ready to make the most of your holidays. So when you are deciding which Mexico trip package to take, you'll want to discover out what the climate will probably be like in that area, and discover out what there may be to do fro household actions, or romantic couples. It has a number of restaurant, golf, tennis, mountain biking, snorkeling, scuba diving, horseback using, and all the things that you have to do while enjoying your time and travels. The choices for seaside resorts in Mexico are extra varied than you'd think about. As soon as issued, the passport card can be legitimate for the same period of time (10 years for adults, 5 years for children) as a typical passport ebook. While they might intensify abruptly and sometimes they travel quickly, hurricanes don't abruptly spring up without warning. They're believed to be the artists behind the mysterious petroglyphs, virtually 2000 years ago. Excursions by historic downtown Puebla are given on double-decker busses letting vacationers benefit from the metropolis's structure, museums, and monuments without the difficulty of finding these places on their very own. With Prohibition in the 1920's the wine making died out, to not get began once more until 50 years later in the late 1970's. Since a few of the most popular cruise destinations are positioned in hurricane-susceptible waters, cruise ships monitor so-referred to as "weather occasions" very carefully. Know that if a cruise ship does change plans due to the climate, it is not a decision that's made evenly. An fascinating fact about Cancun is that previously it was just a deserted place. When a giant area rock slammed into Earth sixty five million years in the past on the northwestern nook of the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, not solely did it wipe out loads of dinosaurs, it left behind a huge crater and, inside that pock, an even greater mystery. You'll get to see some marine life in the Santa Maris bay. This is only one excellent way you could appreciate a cost-effective getaway with a higher value. Our daughter grew up with periodic visits to Casa Santiago. The Blessed Sacrament was hidden inside radios, drugs cupboards, behind books in a bookcase, in a number of the very unlikely locations with the intention to avert the Lord falling into the flawed hands. Tulum is saltwater flats and deep sea fishing, kayaking lagoons and a growing Mecca of yoga; it's mostly green and pure with the 1.three million acres of protected Sian Ka'an wetlands with protected low influence access. These activities often included guided excursions that require horseback driving, kayaking, mountaineering, or biking. It is usually a good idea to photocopy your passport (the page with the picture on it), cruise tickets, and some other paperwork. cheap flights sydney to brisbane It's also a fantastic place to purchase affordable art items and souvenirs through the weekly Saturday Artwork Market. A Cabo cruise is one thing totally different to the standard energetic Cabo San Lucas activities. Properly, I'm certain after reading this article you may absolutely develop an interest in these beaches. Bonita Springs has among the most beautiful beaches in all of Florida and it's no surprise, since the word "bonita" in Spanish translates to mean just that. The U.S. State Department has issued a journey alert for residents touring to sure components of Mexico. It's widely suspected that police target vacationers in rental vehicles, particularly these en path to the airport. If you want the very best deal simply stroll 1-2 blocks away from the Zocalo in any course and find a native restaurant. Many people assume hiking or biking by means of tough terrain, but that isn't what Mexico guided excursions are all about. Once you cross the border from San Diego into Mexico, you cross straight into Tijuana. If the well being traveler picks an excellent hospital, it is rather doubtless that he or she will be able to have the visitor stay inside the constructing. Many of these brokers and businesses have traveled to Mexico themselves - all of the while enjoying the motels, attractions, and different luxuries offered on this country. This new requirement may also affect sure international nationals who currently aren't required to current a passport to travel to the United States. We were actually extra intrigued with some of the places in the ship that this tour takes you such because the engine room and an indoor swimming area, all sparsely lit to make them as spooky as potential. The truth is, the realm has attracted thousands of surfers and crusing fanatics over time, along with the hordes of school college students from the U.S. who have made Baja California their unofficial dwelling away from house throughout spring break. Cash from these tours go to the village fund to construct a highway. So forgive me lovely locations of the world for sharing a little bit about a spot called paradise, Tulum. Yellowstone Park: Yellowstone is one of the places that you simply just cannot actually recognize till you've got seen it for your self. In fact, many people who've cosmetic surgical procedure in Puerto Vallarta are capable of be up and walking around the city's famous Malecon boardwalk within a couple of days, having fun with the sunshine and vacationing. In the Western Hemisphere, there are rich deposits of amber found in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and the state of New Jersey. The folks go to the graves or mausoleums of their relatives and so they place elaborate floral arrangements and candles on them. 7. Cancún - While some top metropolis officers of this well-known vacationer destination have been tied to drug gangs, visitors have nothing to be afraid of right here. The gorgeous seashores round Puerto Juarez are excellent for snorkelling, scuba diving or simply lazing underneath the clear blue sunny sky. With their four-year completion of this system, some graduates seek additional education in a residency or fellowship program for a year or two. You will also by no means have a problem knowing the place to stay as there are many resorts and seashore resorts found all over the space. There are lots of different excursions you possibly can take depending on what you like to do. You may go explore Mayan ruins, take a zipper-line through the jungle or snorkel in underwater caves with sea turtles. (1) Le Meridien Cancun Resort and Spa is likely one of the most popular seashore resorts in all of Mexico. After you educate your self a bit extra on the Mexican marketplace you additionally want to find out what kind of support your new found prospects will need in Mexico. There are even more family pleasant places for you and your family to spend their Holiday Vacation. ATV jungle tour guides are widespread, however they'll solely be found in restricted areas. San Miguel de Allende actually is a lovely place with amazing 17th-century structure, botanic gardens and many beautiful guesthouses. 5. Tacos Campechanos - These are tacos made with meat, Mexican chorizo, salsa and potatoes. Particularly if you're touring to Cancun, Acapulco, Ixtapa, or any of the many different trip kind locations in Mexico, trip bundle deals are properly worth exploring. Some have made us really feel like we are their long-misplaced American cousins who have finally come home to the place we belong. The best time goes in April and kick start with the Vintner's Pageant, which exerts a pull on lots of of wine mongers from throughout countryside and homes all the wine producers at one place. The security executive states the next crime related incidents have been reported throughout one week in April 2011 in numerous Mexican states. Another kind of package is the guided tour, usually of a number of cities and typically with resorts and transportation included. Seashores, jungles, and deserts are all located within a sort distance of each other in the Acapulco space. What most people consider as Mexican food elsewhere on this planet, really is New Mexican meals. The capital might be performed on a budget for a handful of dollars a day as a backpacker, and throwing in a number of more dollars will get the traveler an improve to raised facilities with quality service. Located within the oriental a part of the Yucatan Peninsula, the Mayan Riviera goes from Puerto Morelos, (32 kilometres south of Cancun's international airport), up to the picturesque fishermen's village referred to as Punta Allen, already contained in the Sian Ka'an's Biosphere. This is the locations the place aficionado's of wine, beer and spirits can enjoy on the zeal of ingesting they usually know what is being served and mixed for the concoctions and their finer elements of the drink being sipped on. Right here persons are known as ‘drinkies', the place there is tradition of wine and beer. In fact if you want to get round at a slower tempo, you possibly can always go for a hike on the various trails in the San Pedro Martir National Park or within the Sierra Lagunas. And thankfully, Mexico's rising economy and urbanism nonetheless have not reached the traditional states in Mexico that I discover so compelling. Though well being travelers will find that almost all medical travel destinations offer weight loss surgical procedure, Mexico surgeons are likely to recommend Tijuana for this specific type of process. It's due to Massive Brother Sweden that among the home mates that have stayed in the confines of the Large Brother home actually acquire the superstar way of life they wished and yearned for. Subsequent is Williamsburg, Virginia which is great for educational enjoyable, you can cease by Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens Europe theme park and Water Country USA. Pork is often used in dishes served with a candy-and-bitter sauce and you will notice the usage of limes, lemons and oranges added to fish dishes with crab, octopus and squid to provide a style that's 'out of this world'. The hotel is stocked with fashionable lodging, but the structural designs of the hotel takes you again into time. According to fable, a band of angels appeared earlier than one of the founders of Puebla, Bishop Julian Garcés, instructing him on where to find the brand new city. The Yucatan tours and expeditions are protected learning experiences designed for anybody who wants to have fun exploring and enjoying the native pure and cultural wonders. Ryan Murdock's pursuit of journey literature has taken him to among the world's most unforgiving locations, together with Mongolia, Tibet, Nicaragua, and North Korea, by Russian jeep, motorbike, dugout canoe, horse and camel. Simply speaking about cruise vacations is an efficient option to see who else is interested within the topic. It has been mentioned elsewhere (see Franz and Havens) that there are many ways to get around when in nation. Most foreign travelers prefer the deluxe buses or the primary-class ones, which usually provide motion pictures, comfy seating, rest rooms, and an easy schedule of many departures a day. It's the largest complicated in retail and entertainment, an indoor aquarium, imagination heart and under water world and is in Bloomington. However as costs have continued to rise, thousands of Americans have been traveling abroad for real medical conditions, such as knee replacements, by-cross operations, coronary heart valve replacements, and different serious issues. So, which was your favourite Mexican beach resort option? The passport will likely be comparable in appears and measurement to a drivers license and can make for quick identification and recognition at all border crossings. They show much more respect than we Gringos deserve considering how we've historically handled Mexicans and still do to at the present time. Isla Contoy is considered an important nesting place of sea birds in all the Mexican Caribbean. While in Cancun, I bear in mind some tourists commenting of the small dimension of the beaches in front of their hotels. If you're rushing, your entire, thousand-mile journey may be performed in three days. The lodges will not be the perfect identified, but generally they're. Grasp about a few nights in some windmill lodge of the Solvang a Danish-themed town, and thereafter drive north to the Napa Valley and Sonoma countryside which centers tons of of wineries.