Here are a few places I’ve been and highly recommend to all
Arizona
Grand Canyon National Park (North Rim) - the north rim is the lesser-visited side of the canyon and completely blew me away with its size. watching the sun set over the canyon while enjoying a cold ‘north rim ale’ is a great memory
California
Yosemite National Park - hiked up to cathedral lake and took in the breathtaking alpine lake. very nice park that i hope to explore more thoroughly some time in the future
North Lake Tahoe - my first time skiing out west. we hit squaw valley on day one and then two days at alpine meadows. by the end of the trip we were skiing in deep powder unlike anything i had ever seen. the conditions at alpine meadows could not be topped, a spectacular three days
Iron Mountain - me and some buddies did a day hike here while visiting san diego. fun climb up the roughly 3 mile/1.5 hour traversing trail, and an even more fun 20 minute sprint back down. it was a hazy day but we were still barely able to see san diego’s skyline and the pacific from atop
Colorado
Mt. Bierstadt - 14er in the front range of the rocky mountains. the summit peaks at 14,060′ and was the first 14er i have climbed. great views from atop of countless peaks to the west and a very fun, challenging hike
Arkansas River - white water rafted through some of brown canyon. the river was higher than usual due to the previous week’s rainfall which made for a great trip. some exciting class 3 rapids that almost dumped us out of the raft. i did manage to take a dip in a smoother stretch
Keystone Resort - great mountain biking in the summer at this ski resort. took the gondola to the top of the mountain twice and rode around 14 miles. one of the most fun days i have ever had
Ptarmigan Mountain – did an early am trail run up a section of the ptarmigan trail. this was tough as we had not given ourselves adequate time to acclimate to the elevation. we were sucking wind the whole time, but a really enjoyable run (especially on the way back down)
Delaware
White Clay Creek State Park – my favorite place in my home state of delaware. great trails for running/hiking, nice disc golf course, creek dipping opportunities abound
Brandywine Creek State Park – the trails here are hilly and the terrain can be rough – great for training for the ragnar relay! also looking forward to tubing down the brandywine river
Cape Henlopen State Park – pinelands nature trail is a highlight, i still have much more of this park to explore. also beach access
Holt’s Landing State Park – set on the indian river bay downstate, this place is tiny but has the nice little sea hawk trail which takes you through pine forest and onto the shore of the bay
Maine
Mt Agamenticus – mountain biked here. rocky, technical terrain, but a great place that definitely improved my riding skills
Maryland
Chesapeake Bay – practically grew up here, boating, water skiing, tubing, and fishing. this place also supplies my life with the best crabs
Nevada
Red Rock Canyon – situated just west of las vegas, this nat’l rec. area blew me away. spent two days hiking, scrambling, bouldering, and running the sandstone “dunes”. who knew the most fun i would have in vegas would be 15 miles away from the strip?
New Hampshire
White Mountain Nat’l Forest – did the franconia ridge hike, summitting little haystack mountain, mt lincoln, and mt lafayette in a 9 mile loop. these new england peaks amazed me. i almost felt like i was hiking in the rockies at certain points.
Pennsylvania
White Clay Preserve - an extension of white clay across state lines into pennsylvania, very secluded and peaceful. ideal for long, easy runs along the creek
Hickory Run State Park – nice forested park up in the poconos. did a short trail run on some nice single track
Delaware State Forest - close to the del water gap. great for camping in solitude, very few people around
Black Forest Trail - toughest hike in PA i believe. 42 mile loop. i did an out and back on the first 10, plan to do the whole loop in the near future
South Dakota
Badlands National Park - name says it all, this place is ridiculous. craziest rock formations i have ever seen, in the middle of the flat south dakota plains
Tennessee
Great Smoky Mountains National Park - great backcountry camping, if you can survive the hike to get there! tough backpacking but worth the experience/scenery
Texas
Palo Duro Canyon State Park - i think this is the second largest canyon in the usa after the grand canyon. amazing views from atop
Utah
Zion National Park - hands down my favorite place on earth. visited zion june 2008 and can’t wait to go back. beautiful views, tough backpacking, and interesting history. you haven’t seen anything until you have seen this
Buckskin Gulch - slot canyon in the lower part of the state. mind-bogglingly narrow at points and situated in the middle of nowhere in the paria canyon/vermillion cliffs wilderness. absolutely beautiful
Vermont
Kingdom Trails, East Burke – best mountain biking i have seen yet. spent a full day here on their seemingly endless trail system. well maintained, technical, designed to wear your body down and worth every second.
Mount Snow – a well known ski mountain that has mountain biking trails as well. we did the crosstown trails and had a nice ride to cap off a 3-day bike trip
Wyoming
Grand Teton National Park - what can i say about the tetons except that if offers great camping and backpacking opportunites. had our stay cut short due to heavy snow conditions in the higher altitudes. guess we’ll have to go back
Yellowstone National Park - only spent a few hours here, but long enough to see some buffalo and steaming lakes. definitely on my list of places to return to
