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Yellowstone was the 5th national park I have been to in the States and it was amazing. We only got to do the western half of the park as we were only there for a weekend. Overall the park was absolutely amazing and was extremely unique. We stayed in an overpriced but fun lodge the first night we got there and then set up camp for the next 2 nights in our tent. The camping was so fun and it was a great site. DAY 1 On the first day we were there we hiked about 10-15 miles in and through some really impressive geyser basins. We started first thing on the West Thumb of the park. It was not something that was on the top of our list but we are 100% glad we stopped. The pools and springs were really cool and it was our first taste of the geothermal hotspots. Where we spent most of our first day was in the Upper Geyser Basin. We saw so many different geysers and were supper lucky to have seen a couple of them. Of course we saw Old Faithful and so many of the impressive pools in the area. We saw Beehive Geyser that only goes off every 36 hours or more, Castle Geyser that is every 14 hours, Sawmill Geyser that is quite irregular with a few hours between shows, Grand Geyser that erupts every 7 hours and Fountain Geyser we walked right into which has about a 7 hour delay. It would be impossible to name all the colored pools and springs that we saw but our favorites on day 1 were: Abyss Pool, Morning Glory Pool, Black Pool, Bluebell Pool, Doublet Pool, Chromatic Pool. We finished off day 1 with an evening drive through the grasslands to see a massive herd of buffalo, including a few that came right up to the car. DAY 2 Our second day was a full one as well. We woke up after a brisk but good night sleep in the tent, whipped up a quick breky of eggs and bacon and headed out. We started out the day with an easy 5 mile hike up to Mystic Falls. The trailhead started at another really cool section with a few more spectacular pools and small geysers, The falls themselves were very cool as well. Second thing we did which ended up being one of the best parts to the trip was hike up to the overlook to Grand Prismatic Spring which was worth all the hype. Amazing view. After lunch, we went up to the Norris Geyser Basin which was also fantastic, this one had fewer of the blue pools but had so many different steam vents and it looked completely different, the vents sounded like the earth breathing. Right before heading back to the tent we stopped by Gibbon Falls and looked at those for a bit, also really really impressive. Our favorite pools from day 2 were: Black Diamond Pool, Sapphire Pool, Silex Spring, Cistern Spring. DAY 3 Our last day here was a little short but still very worth it, we went up to Mammoth Hot Springs. Again, it had some similarities to the things we saw day 1 and 2 but was also extremely unique to that section of the park. As the name suggests, this spot had some massive springs and pools that have built up over a pile of years. We then ate a quick lunch, took a pic by the sign and drove home.

Was able to do one last hike in the Utah mountains before the snow came. Made it just by a day. The hike was about 8 miles and just under 3000 ft of elevation gain. It wasn't easy but I cranked it out in just 3 hours of moving time. Spent about a half flying the drone around which is always fun to do! There was snow on the peaks and in some patches and the fall colors were in full force and it was a really pretty trail.

Took one of the last chances of the year to do a hike without snow gear. After an hour of driving through the fall colors we stopped and did a short but great hike. What started in a forest of yellowed aspens shortly turned into evergreens, because of the shade, the recent snowfall hadn't melted, so the last mile was icy snowpack. The way up was tricky but it was fun sliding on the way down.

For our 5th anniversary we did a weekend trip through Las Vegas to Death Valley. Las Vegas was a blast, we were only there long enough for a nice dinner and a bit of time to chill. We went to a new place called Din Tai Fung and it was really good. The dumplings were steamed in bamboo bins and were fresh and delicious. We stayed at a new Marriott hotel by the strip and it was great too! Death Valley National Park was the next park on our list to check off. We were only there for a couple days but got to see a lot. After arriving in the park we went straight into a 7 mile hike down a canyon and up another. There were a lot of cool things to see and it was a bit challenging. Crazy that the weather was above 20C/68F degrees the entire time. We then went and checked into our sweet hotel. We got to stay in a really nice cottage that was right in the park and after an overpriced dinner and quick swim in the outdoor pool we headed back to the hotel and watched 3 hours worth of Diners Drive-Ins and Dives. In the morning we went and hiked through some sand dunes, not much to say about this except they were really cool! Lake Manly was the last stop on our trip before heading home. This was actually really cool to see because it rarely happens and the last time it was there was in 2005. Usually there is no water here making it a huge salt flat but there was over a foot of water in some places.

Though our trip to LA was brief, we got to experience the food scene pretty well. We went to a couple street food markets, ate at some fancier places and had a great time trying different styles of food. Holbox made our top 5 as a Michelin star (Bib Gourmand) place with unbelievable food taste and quality. We went to a seafood place in a market that appeared on triple D that was also amazing. For dinner the one night in Hollywood was a swank Italian place that was also phenomenal. The rest of the trip was fun but I am not the biggest fan of LA. The traffic was awful, homeless people abounded and it was overall a bit of a dump. Hotel was super nice and the area we were staying was nice. Fun place to visit with the some of the cool visitor things to do but would not be able to be there long.

This was the first of hopefully many winter campouts in the Bookcliffs with the boys. We did a quick 1 night trip out to the dessert late Friday night. After setting up camp (A fire and a tarp) we hung out around the fire, gathered enough wood for the night, filled up on some hot chocolate and went to bed. I kept very warm and comfy all night even though it got down to about -8C (18F) but could only sleep for a couple hours. I think we got about 8 hours of sleep total between the 4 of us. We spend probably 10 hours total of driving around and looking for animals and we saw about everything there was to see. Over 300 head of deer with about 30 bucks total, a bunch of shooters and a couple no brainers. Saw a herd of about 30 Bison, a couple Elk and then a herd of about 20 Big Horn Sheep. We also spent a lot of time sending hot lead down the range, cant have a Bookcliff trip without some time set aside for shooting.

What started out as a fishing trip turned quickly turned into a casting trip. The Green River was gorgeous but the fish were not biting on anything. Might have to use a boat next time because where we were was fished pretty hard. It was great using my new fly rod for the first time and was just great to get in the water, just wish I would have brought in a trout. Got to do a little bit of exploring at Flaming Gorge too, sitting on hundred foot cliffs and climbing through deep narrow canyons was a blast. The campsite was also great aside from the $8 firewood.

Of course there is a whole post written only about the food we ate on Maui. As I would consider myself a foodie, eating experiences while traveling is a large part of why we go on trips. Although expensive, the food on Maui was overall great. A few let downs and a few amazing spots that stood out but overall pretty darn good food. Lets start with our top 3 dinner spots around the island: 1- Cafe O'lei was easily our favorite restaurant on the whole trip. Started with some mock-tails and moved on to the appy, fried calamari steak, which I was hesitant about but it was seriously 10/10 tender and delicious. For my entree I had swordfish with a couple great sauces and it was incredible. Allie got a lamb shank that was also great. Finished it off with some of the best ice cream I've ever had and it was a near perfect Experience, especially when paired with the amazing views/location and personable service. 2- Kimos was a close runner up located on the West side of the island. The location was fire, sitting right on the shore of the ocean over a sun rise and on one of the coolest if not the coolest street on the island. The poke avocado dip starter was great, local colas were also a great addition. My meal was amazing with a filet mignon steak and lobster tail and Allie had a fresh caught crusted mahi mahi. 3- Humble Market at the Marriott resort. This was an experience, beautiful place. The pina coladas were great and the fancy pot stickers were a great start. Allies meal was phenomenal, filet mignon steak and some amazing sides. I was slightly disappointed because I strayed from what I usually do and got something unique, where it was good it wasn't quite worth the price. Overall a great dinner and good way to cap off the trip. Honorable Mentions: -Hula Grill -Paia Fish Market -Miso Phat What About Lunchée? Our top 5 lunch spots are: First stop, Maui Fish n Chips. Simple yet amazing fish n chips, great tartar sauce and fries were great too. Tasty, well priced and large portions. Good service as a bonus. Would 100% recommend to anyone in the area as a must so. Secondly, Down The Hatch. I think of all our favorite lunch places the location and vibes were the best here. Food was incredible, loaded fries and fish tacos did not disappoint! Again the scenery and location were prime and this made for a perfect lunch stop. Another great place was Hana Farms, the only thing here was basically pizza but it was really really good pizza. Another must visit lunch stop on the road to Hana. They also had a cool little store with some good banana bread. We had a lot of tacos as the days went on but I think Tight Tacos is simply better than all the others. They were good ol' fashioned street tacos loaded with toppings and very tasteful. The fish you could tell was very very fresh and the beef and chicken were great too. If you're in the area, make time for Tight Tacos. Da Fish Shack was also a great place for some road-side, food-truck fish. We got the fish tacos and shrimp tacos and they were both fantastic. Side of chips and salsa put it over the edge to make the final spot on our top 5 lunch spots. Of course there were several other places that were good that didn't make the cut. We had less than a handful of restaurants that we would not recommend to others or do again but overall had a great culinary experience across the island of Maui. Snack Stops: Snacks on a trip can be just as or more important than the rest of the food and we did some stops for that as well. Shave ice was something we did nearly every day and for good reason, its the perfect treat for a beach day. Our favorite spots were 1/2 Da Kine Shave Ice on the west coast and Ululanis that you can find all over. Honestly these are the only places I'd go back, we tried a few others that were good but just not the same. We did get some home made popsicles that were also delicious, cool one of them was made with sugarcane as the stick. Also had a great açaí bowl one morning from Hana Bowls. Another place that is a must for snacks is Honolulu Cookie Company, amazing little short bread cookies are worth the slightly high price tag.

Spent the day around Jackson Hole, tried some bison burgers and tasty sweets. Then we got the chance to go white water rafting. It was such a blast and we got soaked, swam a bit in the river and went through some pretty big and long rapids.

Hopefully the first of many easter campouts up the Uinta Canyon. Did some really cool river fishing and caught some pretty Brook Trout. Did some drone flying and a cold plunge in the river. Pepsi even had the chance to go on her first campout.

On our way up to Vanderhoof we decided to stay a few days in Calgary to split up the trip a bit, we had an awesome hotel right downtown, went to a swanky dinner spot were able to see the temple there and got some pastries. Was a great way to see one of the places we drive through and not just from the gas station as we sped through. Go Flames!

After making it through the border we stopped by the Cardston AB temple to walk the grounds.