I spent the last week in Yosemite National Park checkout out what the waterfalls and flooding is looking like now. Check out the current conditions of Yosemite Falls, Bridalveil Fall, the Merced River, and the Spring wildflowers blooming in the park and where to find them. Read this Spring travel guide to plan your upcoming Yosemite road trip to see its raging waterfalls & abundant wildlife.
Read MoreLooking for the top places to see Spring wildflowers in California? Check out this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to see current conditions of Red Rock Canyon State Park along Highway 14 north of Mojave. This desert superbloom makes a great SoCal road trip from Los Angeles. This underrated park also provides camping at the Ricardo Campground, which is perfect for stargazing & astrophophotography.
Read MoreToday I'm partnering with Visit Yosemite Madera County to share the Top 10 Photo Spots in Yosemite National Park. This photography travel guide shares the best viewpoints and most Instagrammable viewpoints in the park, including Taft Point, Yosemite Valley Swinging Bridge, Olmsted Point, Tunnel View, Sentinel Dome & Glacier Point. Explore stunning scenes with Half Dome, El Capitan & waterfalls.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to hiking the Lewis Creek Trail in Sierra National Forest. Located in Oakhurst, California south of Yosemite National Park, this hike takes you to two great waterfalls, Red Rock Falls and Corlieu Falls. This is one of the top things to do when staying at Tenaya Lodge in Fish Camp, CA. This is the perfect add on to any Yosemite road trip along Highway 41.
Read MoreBeach access is hard to find in Big Sur, but today we're taking the Creamery Meadow Trail in Andrew Molera State Park to a secluded beach for a king tide. Molera Beach is one of the best beaches in Big Sur, especially during sunset and low tide in the off season when the it's not busy. This California state park is found south of Monterey near the Big Sur Lodge, Nepenthe, and Pfeiffer Beach.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide for hiking the Valley View Overlook Trail in Saguaro National Park. Located along Bajada Loop Drive near the Red Hills Visitor Center and the Signal Hill Petroglyphs, this hike is one of the top things to do in Saguaro West (Tucson Mountain District). Walk among giant saguaros, see abundant wildlife, and enjoy panoramic vista views of the Sonoran Desert.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to visiting Trona Pinnacles located near Ridgecrest, CA in the Searles Valley. This is a perfect stop when taking a road trip from Los Angeles to Death Valley National Park. This BLM land is filled with unique rock formations that have been used as a filming location for many TV shows, commercials & movies, and currently there are wildflowers blooming.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to hiking the Valley View Trail in Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. Located along the central CA coast on Highway 1, this easy to moderate hike takes you thru a redwood forest to panoramic views of Big Sur River Valley, Andrew Molera State Park and Point Sur Lighthouse. A short spur trail leads to Pfeiffer Falls, a waterfall in Los Padres National Forest.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to hiking the Discovery Trail, THE most family friendly trail in Joshua Tree National Park. Located across the road from Skull Rock, one of the top things to do in Joshua Tree, this easy hike takes visitors through slot canyons and towering rock formations, with opportunities to learn and see all kinds of wildlife and plants, including cholla cactus.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide about the best hikes in Yosemite National Park. Today I'm providing the hiking details about 12 great Yosemite trails, one for every month of 2024. Yosemite is awesome all year, so join me in exploring what to do in Yosemite, like Firefall, Mirror Lake, Hetch Hetchy, MIst Trail to Vernal & Nevada Falls, Yosemite Falls, Glacier Point, and Inspiration Point.
Read MoreToday we're exploring the hoodoos & grottoes along Echo Canyon Trail in Chiricahua National Monument. Chiricahua makes for a great stop along a Southern Arizona road trip, and is one of my top things to do when traveling to Bisbee, AZ. The grotto formations along this hike are spectacular and remind me of slot canyons found in other national parks. Read this travel guide for more info!
Read MoreToday we're driving the one-way Cactus Forest Drive loop and stopping at 10 of my favorite overlooks and hiking trails in Saguaro National Park East (Rincon Mountain District). Read this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to learn about trail distance, hours of operation, and one of the best sunset spots in Tucson. This drive is one of my top things to do in Southern Arizona along your AZ road trip.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to exploring the Hall of Horrors slot canyons in Joshua Tree National Park. This is a Joshua Tree top spot along your Southern California road trip through this desert park. Hiking this trail takes you around large rock formations, through a Joshua tree forest, and scrambling into narrow slot canyons, making for a perfect vacation adventure.
Read MoreJoin me along the easy hike beside Bonita Creek to Faraway Ranch in Chiricahua National Monument. If you're planning a trip to Southern Arizona, check out this travel guide, which includes info on Bonita Creek Trail, the pioneers & indigenous history, and the abundant wildlife seen here. This is one my top things to do in this park, and it's a great road trip idea from Bisbee and Tucson, AZ.
Read MoreYou can hike to an arch rock in Death Valley! Check out this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide for hiking the Natural Bridge Trail in Death Valley National Park, which leads you through slot canyons to the largest natural arch in the park and to a dry waterfall. Enjoy views of Badwater Basin and its temporary lake along this easy to moderate hike, which is one of my top things to do in Death Valley.
Read MoreIs Death Valley open? YES! Death Valley National Park has reopened after a 2 month closure, but many roads and features in the park remain closed to the public. Read this Flying Dawn Marie complete travel guide to taking this desert road trip now. Learn about current conditions, traffic delays, and the historic road damage & flooding, including pics of the Badwater Basin lake from Dantes View.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to the 2023 Eastern Sierra Fall colors. This complete visitor guide will take you to my top 25 spots along highway 395 on where to see the California Fall colors. We'll take a road trip up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains and discover places to go like North Lake, Bishop Creek, Sonora Pass, Mammoth Lakes, Tioga Pass, Conway Summit, and June Lake Loop.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide about the hike up Pothole Dome in Yosemite National Park. Located along Tioga Road in the Tuolumne Meadows near the Tioga Pass Entrance, this is a great family friendly hiking trail and one of my top things to do in Yosemite's high country. Atop this granite feature we'll have spectacular views of Unicorn Peak, Cockscomb Peak, and the Cathedral Range.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to exploring Columns of the Giants along Sonora Pass Highway 108 in the Sierra Nevadas of CA. Hiking this family friendly trail is one of my top things to do on a road trip through Stanislaus National Forest. The short paved path takes you over the Middle Fork Stanislaus River to basalt rock formations formed by volcanic and glacial activity long ago.
Read MoreRead this Flying Dawn Marie travel guide to hiking the Pohono Trail to Inspiration Point in Yosemite National Park. Inspiration Point and Artist Point are great alternatives to Tunnel View if you want to avoid crowds. This is a moderate hike and overlook spot to see El Capitan, Half Dome, Bridalveil Fall, and the Yosemite Valley. Photographers enjoy this viewpoint for sunrise and sunset.
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