All Things Wanderful

28/03/2024

Giant spiders be damned, I wanna go!

I don’t know about you, but it seems like my travel bucket list grows by the day. With more destinations than I could possibly count on that list already, I better live another hundred years if I plan to get to them all. A boatload of money sure wouldn’t hurt either — especially in terms of my...

23/12/2023

Damn fine coffee awaits!

Have you ever wanted to sit down at the Double R Diner with a damn fine cup of coffee? Or maybe take in the view of the gushing falls next to the Great Northern Hotel? Perhaps get a glimpse of Sheriff Truman’s retro Ford Bronco? While the titular town of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s mind-bending...

08/12/2023

Are you guys [giving travel tips]? I love [travel tips]!

Traveling with your family is an exhilarating adventure, but it’s crucial to uphold healthy habits throughout your journey. From staying adequately hydrated to selecting accommodations that encourage an active lifestyle, these key points form the foundation for a well-rounded and enjoyable family ...

16/10/2023

The killing of George Floyd changed the world. Now, the place where it happened stands as a call to action.

The events of May 25, 2020, when a former Minneapolis police officer put his knee on a man’s neck and kept it there until he could no longer breathe, and the summer that followed, when millions marched in the streets of cities not just across the United States but all around the globe — amid a w...

25/09/2023

Sounds like a great reason to take a hike.

Hidden in the 17.5 million acres of forest spread across the state of Maine are a number of abandoned sites. These include vacant paper mills, deserted homes, old forts, and underground bunkers. But one of the most interesting things you’ll find in the woods of northern Maine are a pair of long-fo...

14/09/2023

It's number two on the list, but definitely number one in our hearts..

Look, folks, here’s the deal: Lake Michigan doesn’t need your approval. It doesn’t need your accolades, or your superlatives, or your constant-but-warranted praise. It doesn’t need you to remind it that it is the greatest of all the Great Lakes, better than Lake Superior or Huron or Ontario....

25/07/2023

Route 66 still kicks!

24/07/2023

The Mother Road crisscrosses not only from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, and back again, but also across our hearts.

Immortalized by John Steinbeck’s 1939 book “The Grapes of Wrath”, as well as the 1946 song “(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66”, the highway became one of the most recognized thoroughfares in North America, crisscrossing not just from Chicago to Santa Monica, California, and back again, but also...

27/06/2023

This… is ?

27/06/2023

You know you're dying to visit Bad Granny's Bazaar.

One of Oklahoma City’s unexpected gems is the Plaza District, a quaint little neighborhood just northwest of downtown filled to the brim with vintage shops, various boutiques, a handful of bars and restaurants, and a few other ditties worth checking out. It’s honestly a spot where you could easi...

22/06/2023

Cracking a beer or two while enjoying the beauty of nature is what it’s really all about.

Among the numerous outdoor activities you might partake in during a Michigan summer, one of the better options is getting out on the river in a kayak. Whether you’re looking to do a little fishing or simply float along at your leisure, it’s pretty difficult to beat a sunny day spent on the water...

06/06/2023

"You've just won an all-expenses-paid (by you) vacation to (insert surprise destination)!"

If you’re ready to get out there and travel again, why not spice things up on the first go-round? Unless you’ve been itching to visit someplace in particular, it could be the perfect time to surprise yourself with a mystery vacation. And the best part? You don’t have to do any of the planning.

30/05/2023

30/05/2023

You may never rent a car the "traditional" way again..

Turo, which I have long dubbed the “Airbnb of rental cars,” got started in 2011 and today has a presence in over 7,500 cities spread across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. Similar to Airbnb, which they took some of their cues from, the site’s interface invites you to choose a location, dates, a...

23/05/2023

It's no secret why people flock to these somewhat far-flung shores in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

Michigan, in 1966, became the first state in the nation to have one of its shorelines designated as a National Lakeshore, as declared by Congress. Extending 42 miles and covering more than 73,000 acres along Lake Superior's southern shore, Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore contains 15 miles of color

21/05/2023

The Dixie Chicks got nothing on this one.

For once in my life, I looked around, surrounded by unfamiliar territory, and though I had the greatest urge to spout that age-old movie reference — “we’re not in Kansas anymore” — the fact of the matter was that, yes, we very much were in Kansas. I mean, in the very heart of America, in t...

18/05/2023

The latest additions (!): Arkansas, Kansas, & Iowa

One of my long-term travel goals is to visit all 50 of these here United States of America (51 if Puerto Rico and the U.S. government can get together and make it happen), and I've been making steady progress in the current decade, twice visiting six new states in one year (2011 and 2015).

14/05/2023

It’s not just a boulder… it’s a rock! 🥲