“Pic of the Week”, November 22, 2013. Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

2013-46-November 22a Bryce Canyon 6-93 012 Natural Bridge

Utah is a land of surprises and one of my favorite US states.  It has some of the most unusual and colorful rock formations in the world.  Whether it’s dramatic arches, natural bridges, amazingly sheer canyons or rock monoliths, Utah has it all!  And in white, black, red, orange, brown and most every other imaginable shade.

One of my favorite destinations in Utah is Bryce Canyon National Park.  Situated in southwestern Utah the park is of surprisingly high altitude, so keep this in mind when planning your trips there (evenings are always cool, snow comes early and stays a long time, even into summer).  The rim at Bryce varies from 8,000 – 9,000 feet …

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“Pic of the Week”, August 23, 2013. Jeffrey Pine, Sentinel Dome, Yosemite National Park

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Yosemite National Park is one of my favorite places in the United States.  Grand landscapes, granite mountains with sheer valleys carved by glaciers, thunderous waterfalls engorged by the spring thaw plunging thousands of feet, and several groves of majestic Sequoia trees (the largest living things on the planet).  Everything about it seems bigger than life!  It’s easy to see why it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

One of the best places to gain views of the park is from its granite domes.  These domes, smoothed and rounded by the action of glaciers, offer 360 degree views that are remarkable!  Sentinel Dome is among these, near both Yosemite Valley and Half Dome it’s accessible and a fairly easy …

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.All Trips / California / North America / Southwestern USA

Memories of Ray Bradbury

001 – Ray-Bradbury-cat

I guess it had to happen someday. While checking my email news feed, my heart grows heavy to see that the great Ray Bradbury has died. It’s a deeply felt loss! Ray had been in failing health for over a decade, the result of a stroke and advancing age (which only seemed to slightly slow him down and did not crush his indomitable spirit!). I’m glad he doesn’t’ have to deal with his failing body anymore but, dear God, what a great loss.

I guess in some ways, Ray couldn’t have timed it better as it happened when we had a rare transit of Venus (he always had a flare for the dramatic). It’s like a magician disappearing in a puff …

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Travels with Elvis. (Part 1) Viva Las Vegas! Viva Elvis!!

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Every year my younger brother and I go on a trip together; this time is precious as it allows us to reconnect while sharing our love of travel. This year we decided to center our travels on places that were monumental in the life of Elvis Presley. Elvis and his wonderful musical legacy are very important to us and we’ve both been fans for over 40 years. Our journey will lead us to Memphis, Nashville and Tupelo, but the first step was a visit to Las Vegas.

Las Vegas was at the center of Elvis’ entertainment life during his final years. After spending most of the 1960s making movies, it was in Las Vegas that Elvis began performing …

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West Los Angeles — J.P. Getty’s enduring legacy

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With so much attention recently to the “Occupy Wall Street” gang, those who belong to the “One Percent” (i.e. the wealthiest people in the country) have received a lot of negative press. We’ve heard that they’re greedy villains, ruthless and unfair, and how they’re not “paying their fair share” (even though most pay millions in taxes a year).  We’re to believe they only take and never contribute to society.  As you’ve probably gathered from my comments, I don’t subscribe to these views, although I would agree that like all groups the One Percent probably has some unsavory characters.  I think it’s great that America is — at least used to be — a place people could work hard and get …

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Simi Valley — The Reagan Presidential Library

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Situated in Simi Valley’s rolling hills, beautifully green in winter but brown in summer, amidst horse ranches, lemon and avocado groves and ever expanding tracts of homes lies a large compound atop a mesa. This large complex houses the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum and it’s a worthwhile stop for any tourist visiting Southern California.

The American Presidential library system, much like our system of politics, is unique. There are currently 13 sites in this network ranging from one for John Quincy Adams (6th President, library in Quincy, Mass) to George W. Bush (44th President, library currently under construction in Dallas, Texas). The Library system is administered by the National Archives as …

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A visit to Great Basin National Park

A visit to Great Basin National Park

In a country with dozens of great national parks it makes sense that there would be some “orphan” parks that are only rarely visited. Such is the case with Great Basin National Park in Nevada. It gets 90,000 visitors annually compared with 3,500,000 for Yellowstone National Park. Part of the reason for this is the park’s remoteness; you REALLY have to want to visit it as there’s nothing else around for several hundred miles.

We traveled to Baker, Nevada from Twin Falls, Idaho, the drive taking us through one of the most unpopulated portions of the lower 48 states. This region is known as the Great

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Southern California is at its best in the winter

Southern California is at its best in the winter

Our family lived in Southern California for several decades before moving to Eastern Washington in 2004.  We enjoyed our life in the Sunny Southland but felt it was time to leave — and we have no regrets about this decision.  We still love to travel to SoCal, especially in the winter, as it is the best time of year to visit.  The temperatures are pleasant (usually mid-60s — while the rest of the country is chilly), the sky blue and dotted with fluffy clouds (not gray and opacified by smog), and the hills are lush and green (not brown tinder like they’ll be late summer).

We own a timeshare in Newport Beach, which we bought almost a decade ago.  The Marriott Newport Coastal Villas is a …

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