On Sunday, I decided to head out for some adventure in Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. A little over a drive from my campsite to get to the National Monument later, I found myself spending all day exploring and thinking of future adventures to have within.
Author: Derek Honeycutt
Public Comment on National Monuments Review
A recent executive order signed by President Trump orders Secretary Zinke to review a significant series of National Monuments declared by prior presidents over the last 20 years.Public comments are now being accepted at https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=DOI-2017-0002-0001
I have decided to make my comments public here, and I encourage all US Citizens to consider submitting their own comments (please try to make your own arguments, in your own, personal words) in support of our National Monuments–land currently being protected as the birthright of not only ourselves as US Citizens but for all future generations to come after us.
Bandelier and Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monuments, Valles Caldera National Preserve, and Manhattan Project NHP
This last weekend, I finally headed out to visit some of the national parks around the Los Alamos area. On Saturday, I went to Bandelier National Monument and then drove up to Valles Caldera National Preserve, doing some light hiking at both. Not finished quite yet, I drove back into Los Alamos and visited the open areas of Manhattan Project National Historical Park. On Sunday, I then made the drive down to Kasha-Katuwe National Monument for the available hiking there.
El Malpais and El Morro National Monuments
Time to catch up on the blog! After hanging out just outside of El Malpais National Monument for a week, I spent last weekend exploring El Malpais itself and also El Morro National Monument before heading up to Los Alamos. The next week brought snow and cold in the mountains, so I didn’t get out this weekend, but I did actually enjoy hanging out in the snow and tasting some New Mexico Chili with locals.
Navajo and Canyon de Chelly National Monuments
It seems that I forgot to update my blog after last weekend, so here we go! I decided to go ahead and move on from Flagstaff on Friday, although I wasn’t entirely sure of what I wanted to do. After finding the North Rim of the Grand Canyon was still closed for the season, I opted to head into the Navajo Nation and visit Navajo National Monument. I then continued on to also check out Canyon de Chelly National Monument before heading to New Mexico.
Flagstaff National Monuments: Walnut Canyon, Sunset Crater Volcano, Wupatki
This last weekend, I left my campsite at McHood Park and headed into Flagstaff. I spent a day exploring the three national monuments just outside of the city before spending a night in a hotel in town. Finally, just outside of Walnut Canyon National Monument, within Cococino National Forest, I found a wonderful campsite which I have been spending the week at.
Boycott Utah
I have been struggling with the idea of whether or not to go to Utah, more-or-less all of 2017 so far. Utah is a state that I love. The opportunities in that state are nearly unrivaled; they even have what I consider to be probably the most underrated hike in the entire national park system that I have seen to date (Druid Arch in Canyonlands). The people are wonderful people. It’s always a joy spending time in Utah for me. But with the state government and federal representation going on an all-out dishonest attack on our public lands–our birthright as US citizens–I have had to question if I want to contribute tax money to support them. The answer is a resounding NO.
Petrified Forest NP : Onyx Bridge
This morning, I headed into Petrified Forest National Park once more. I ended up hiking the “off the beaten path” adventure to Onyx Bridge from the Painted Desert Inn, before driving south to see Agate Bridge as well; the latter being immediately off of the road.
Petrified Forest NP : Devils Playground
Today, I had the pleasure of securing a permit to go hike around Devils Playground in Petrified Forest National Park.
Goldstrike Canyon, Meteor Crater, Petrified Forest NP
After a week at Lake Mead and finally getting all of my car registration stuff done in Vegas, I was more than ready to leave and head to better adventures somewhere else. As I was preparing to head out, a friend hit me up and invited me on a backpacking trip in Goldstrike Canyon, just south of the Hoover Dam. That turned into one awesome adventure before I set off into Arizona, where I visited the Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest.