41 articles tagged with national parks
As someone who's mastered the art of extending business trips into nature escapes, I've found that where you rest your head can make or break your adventure. St. George, Utah has become my favorite basecamp for exploring Zion National Park's...
Standing on the outskirts of Ulaanbaatar, with the vast Mongolian steppe stretching before me like an endless sea of grass, I couldn't help but think how this landscape rivaled even the most dramatic vistas of my native New Zealand. After...
As both a doctor and an older brother to three curious siblings, I've found that the most impactful family vacations blend education with adventure. Our recent expedition to Beckley, West Virginia embodied this philosophy perfectly. Here, the rich tapestry of...
Standing at the natural entrance of Carlsbad Caverns, I felt the cool breath of the earth against my face—a gentle reminder that some of our planet's most profound classrooms exist beneath our feet. As someone who's spent decades helping students...
There's something utterly bewitching about the Four Corners region that keeps pulling me back. Perhaps it's the way the light plays across the rust-colored mesas at sunset, or how ancient history and living cultures intertwine so seamlessly across this desert...
Twenty-five years defending Montana's pristine landscapes in courtrooms gave me intimate knowledge of its terrain, but experiencing Kalispell's wilderness firsthand with my nephews last summer delivered a perspective no legal brief could capture. Nestled in the Flathead Valley with the...
There's something about Montana's waterways that speaks to this old marine biologist's soul. Kalispell might seem an unlikely destination for someone who's spent decades studying the Great Lakes and now floats through European canals, but business recently called me to...
The moment my boots first crunched on Ozark trail leaves, I knew I'd found something special. As someone who's photographed ancient petroglyphs in Jordan and wildlife across Tanzania, I never expected to find such photographic magic in this pocket of...
The first time I witnessed dawn breaking over the Badlands, I was rendered speechless—a rare occurrence for someone who typically narrates wildlife behaviors to anyone within earshot. The stratified buttes transformed from shadowy silhouettes to vibrant ribbons of ochre, sienna...
There's something gloriously nostalgic about piling into a car and hitting the open road—especially when that road cuts through the rolling prairies and dramatic badlands of South Dakota. As someone who's ziplined through rainforests and bungee jumped off bridges, I...
The first time I encountered the towering marble cliffs of Taroko Gorge, I was ostensibly there to document traditional Taiwanese wellness practices for my doctoral research. Instead, I found myself utterly transfixed by what indigenous Truku people call *Puguwan*—a natural...
There's something almost mythical about standing in a hotel made entirely of ice, knowing that in just a few hours, you'll be deep within one of Sweden's most pristine national parks. The journey between the world-famous Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi...
Twenty years chasing Olympic athletes through stadiums worldwide never prepared me for the challenge of navigating Zion's Narrows with a friend's enthusiastic seven-year-old in tow. Yet here I was, trading press credentials for hiking poles, discovering that Utah's crimson canyons...
The juxtaposition never ceases to fascinate me: a metropolis of gleaming skyscrapers and bustling commerce where giraffes and lions roam freely just minutes from downtown. Nairobi defies conventional urban planning theories I've studied, offering a rare synthesis where wilderness and...
The dramatic transition from Arizona's sun-scorched deserts to the misty Pacific Northwest coastline represents one of North America's most spectacular geographical gradients. As someone who's spent years documenting the delicate relationship between coastal communities and their marine environments, this ambitious...