I'm back on the road and to the Sonoran desert after leaving Colorado and driving for two days, with a few stops along the way to eat and explore the El Malpais National Monument.
After two brutally long days of driving, I was thrilled to pull into this piece of BLM land and discover some wonderful campsites with tons of cactuses, beautiful views, and privacy.
After an absolutely exhausting drive that included 5° temperatures, freezing fog, snow, and ice on the interstate, and high wind warnings, I totally crashed here for the night.
It felt great to roll back into my childhood state, especially since I was heading to a town that I had never visited - Fort Scott, Kansas, where I would experience another National Treasure.
I was happy to roll out from the Pike Camp Access and head to the Lake of the Ozarks. This campsite is tucked away, right on one of the beautiful fingers of the lake.
Believe it or not, there are castle ruins in Missouri! It was built in 1905 and destroyed by fire in 1942. After wandering the ruins, I also checked out a sizable natural land bridge.
When something is called the Bloodiest 40 Acres in America, you know that I'll have to check it out. MSP must have been a truly brutal and inhuman place for so many decades.
After a painfully long day of driving, I popped into this large parking lot by a boat ramp for several days in order to work and visit Jefferson City, MO.
I spend an extremely long day driving from Lynnville Park in Indiana to a spot near the Osage River in Missouri. Plus, I share a coffee drink I discovered I'll never drink again.
A fast blast across Kentucky landed me in Indiana, where I explored the memorial to Abraham Lincoln's childhood and formative years on the frontier and found a great city park.
A very long day on the road, with only one stop at the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, made me relieved when I pulled into this attractive city park.
After a long day of driving and visiting the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum, I pulled into this free municipal park, hoping for good Internet, electricity, and clean water.
I was so excited to head to the lunatic asylum, which was fascinating. However, the person who owns it has it set up as a tourist trap, and time is taking its toll on the entire site.
Hoping for a cool little municipal park to camp for a few days, I pulled into this parking lot. It definitely did not offer what I was hoping to experience.
Portaging a train over a mountain? Yes, we have! It was a short-lived, fascinating business model captured by the Park Service. And I also took an underground boat tour of a cave!
