Our Favorite National Parks

This past week has been National Parks Week here in the US, so I figured it was time I updated my post sharing all of the National Parks sites that we have visited over our thirteen years living in America. 

Have you visited any National Parks? I'd love to hear which one is your favorite.

As there are many different types of national parks locations around the country, I've sorted this post by categories. You'll find the following categories:

• National Parks
• National Historical Parks
• National Historic Sites
• National Monuments
• National Preserves
• National Memorials
• National Recreation Areas
• National Seashores

I've also included an extra special park favorite at the very end of this post so make sure to read all the way through!

Let's take a look...

Yellowstone National Park: Mammoth Hot Springs

Just when you thought you'd never have to see another Yellowstone post from me again I'm back with one more! Trust me, you'll want to hang around for this one. It's a good one!

One of my favorite places in all of Yellowstone was Mammoth Hot Springs. Located in the very northern part of the park, right by the Montana border, Mammoth Hot Springs is a fair drive from the South entrance of Yellowstone, but oh boy is it worth the trip. The landscape here is quite unique, and very different to anything you'll see elsewhere in the park. It's quite otherworldly and at times, as Mathilde pointed out, it felt like we were on the surface of the moon.

Mammoth Hot Springs is known for its spectacular travertine terraces, made where water and limestone interact, but there is so much more to see here. Let's take a look...

Yellowstone National Park: West Thumb Geyser Basin

Another day, another Yellowstone post! I hope you're not sick of geysers and hot springs yet! There are still a few more posts to come.

Today's post is all about a place in Yellowstone that I knew nothing of in advance but quickly became one of my favorite stops on our trip. Have you heard of West Thumb Geyser Basin? Weird name right? I'd never heard of it before our trip, but upon reading about it in the information brochure we received at the entry gate I was keen to check it out. Like other geyser basins in Yellowstone, West Thumb is home to plenty of geysers and hot springs, but it's also home to a few features we'd been yet to see including mud geysers and underwater geysers in Yellowstone Lake.

Black Pool

Black Pool

Thumb Paint Pots

Lake Yellowstone with under water geysers

Thumb Paint Pots

Mathilde Walks along the boardwalk

An elk grazes around a hot spring

West Thumb Geyser Basin

We visited West Thumb on our second day in the park. The second day was much colder than the first had been, and as we entered the park the rain that had been continuously falling changed to sleet. By the time we reached West Thumb it had changed again: to snow! Can you believe that? Snow - in Summer! Granted, it was only very light snowfall and it melted as soon as it hit the wet ground, but it was snow none the less.  

Yellowstone National Park: Grand Prismatic Spring & Midway Geyser Basin

I'm back today with more from our recent trip to Yellowstone National Park. As I mentioned in my last post, I took so many photos during our two days in the park that I decided to share just one part of the park per post - instead of spamming you with the world's longest blog post!

My last post focused on Upper Geyser Basin, home to Old Faithful geyser, and today's post is all about another popular location in Yellowstone: Grand Prismatic.

Grand Prismatic has long been a popular sight in Yellowstone thanks to it's large size and intense colors. With deep turquoise water flanked by vivid orange it's an awe inspiring sight to see and one of  Yellowstone's instantly recognizable locations. I had been looking forward to seeing Grand Prismatic the most out of everything in Yellowstone (or what I knew of in Yellowstone) in the lead up to this trip. I couldn't wait to see all those stunning colors for myself. 

Now you may remember that the weather wasn't so great during our trip to Yellowstone. All that moisture in the air meant that the geysers and hot springs had more steam coming off them than they would on a clear day. The bigger the hot spring, the more steam rising off it. Given the large size of Grand Prismatic, it had the most steam out of all the geysers and hot springs we saw. 

Yellowstone National Park: Old Faithful & Upper Geyser Basin

When you think of Yellowstone National Park, what's the first thing that pops into your mind?

Was it Old Faithful? It was, wasn't it?

For many of us, this iconic geyser and Yellowstone are synonymous. With its regular eruptions approximately every 90 minutes or so, Old Faithful has been one of the most popular sights in Yellowstone since the area was established as the country's first National Park back in 1872.

Old Faithful erupting in front of Old Faithful Inn

As spectacular as Old Faithful is, it's not the only magical sight in the Upper Geyser Basin area of Yellowstone where it can be found. In fact, Upper Geyser Basin alone is home to hundreds of geysers and hot springs. The area is set up with boardwalks from which visitors can safely explore, and no matter which way you look you're sure to spot a geothermal wonder of some sort. Steaming geysers, deep and still turquoise pools, bubbling crater-like pits, steam rising from the ground, mud and rocks in vivid colors... there's so much more to see here than just Old Faithful.

Boardwalks lead visitors past geysers and hot springs, and over the Firehole River

Blue Star Spring

Belgian Pool

Crested Pool

So, let's take a look at what you can expect to see in Upper Geyser Basin...

Our Trip to Yellowstone National Park

Last weekend we packed our bags, loaded up our car, and did something we haven't done in an awfully long time. We went on vacation!

Like most of you we've been at home since early March, pretty much only venturing out to the supermarket or for walks around the neighborhood (and more recently a few mask clad trips to Denver Zoo and a Denver Selfie Museum which reopened with strict social distancing rules). 

We've missed a few planned trips in those months including Spring Break in Chicago, Ava's school trip to Washington DC (I'm most bummed about that one), and smaller weekend getaways that we'd planned here in Colorado before the weather warmed up too much. I had pretty much written off Summer when it came to travel, but then I saw that local friends had visited Yellowstone National Park a few weeks back and it was pretty much empty. I knew that the opportunity to visit one of our bucket list destinations without the crowds was probably not going to come up again any time soon, so right away I got online and booked a hotel. I can't tell you how excited I was making that booking after so long!

Now that we're in Colorado, Wyoming is just over an hour away from our home but we had been yet to head north across the border. Yellowstone National Park is located at the very top of the state, but at around an eight hour drive, it's an easy destination for a road trip from Boulder (or Denver). It's also an easy drive from cities in neighboring states including Idaho, Utah, Washington, Montana and Nebraska. When looking at the map I realized that my friend Lindsey, who lives in Spokane, Washington, was a similar distance away making Yellowstone the perfect meeting point for a catch up. A little last minute planning, and both our families were booked in for a trip to Wyoming!

Last Saturday we hit the road and headed to the idyllic mountain town of Jackson, where we based ourselves for our visit to Yellowstone National Park. Jackson is located about an hour away from the south entry of Yellowstone. It's a handy spot to use as a base, especially now while the hotels inside the national park are closed due to COVID. 

National Parks Week

This past week has been National Parks Week here in the US.

While we haven't been able to get out and about to explore any of our favorite parks, they have been on my mind. So today I thought I'd share the National Parks that we have visited so far. Some of these have been sprawling parks filled with majestic landscapes while others have been historic parks showcasing important moments from America's past.

Here's a look at the National Parks we have visited by state...

Gift Guide for Adventure Loving Families

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Micro Kickboard. All photos and opinions are my own.

The holidays are just around the corner which means it's time to start thinking about gift ideas. 

I'm a big fan of giving gifts that encourage the kids to get outside and play, even more so if it's a gift that encourages the whole family to play together. So today, I'm sharing some of my favorite gift ideas for families that love exploring, spending time outdoors and doing adventurous things together. 

Stay tuned for a fun give away at the end!

Micro Kickboard Scooters

For our city living family, scooters are a handy way to get around town. They're faster than walking, more convenient than bike riding and they're a ton of fun! My big kids have been getting around by scooter for years, and thanks to Micro Kickboard, Mathilde and I have now joined them! 

Ava and Lola ride the Sprite scooter which is designed for older children through to adults. It's a classic style two wheeled scooter that comes in a large range of colors. It's light enough for the kids to easily ride, but strong enough that either Kim or I could jump on and take it for a spin. The girls love that it has a handy kickstand so they don't always have to find something to lean it against when they get off.  Because the Sprite is lightweight, it's easy for the kids to carry around when folded too.

Mathilde rides the three wheeled Mini Deluxe which is suitable for children aged 2 - 5. The Mini Deluxe steers by pushing on the handle rather than turning it. It took Mathilde no time at all to pick it up. Just like a big scooter it has a rear brake, which is something missing from other toddler scooters on the market. And trust me, she zooms pretty fast keeping up with her big sisters so that brake comes in handy! 

My scooter is the Micro Black which is the best selling scooter for adults. It's really comfortable to ride and adjusts to suit a large range of sizes which means that Kim is able to ride it too. One of my favorite things about my scooter is that my kids love that I'm joining in the fun with them instead of just watching from the side lines. 

One thing I love about our scooters is they make for the perfect day out of fun. They're so easy to throw in the trunk of the car and take on adventures with us. Because the larger scooters fold up they take up very little room which means we can even take them on longer road trips and camping trips too. They're so much more convenient than taking bikes on our adventures, and just as much fun.

Wouldn't scooters for the whole family would make such a fantastic gift? Head on over to microkickboard.com for some great Black Friday deals with up to 40% off scooters for the whole family starting November 22. Don't forget the helmets for the kids. 

Oh, and stay tuned for a fun giveaway at the end of this post!