Hughson  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Just a few words to describe this beach . . . HUGE WAVES!!  These were amazing waves to play in or as my children and nieces/nephew did, boogie board on.  This beach is located in Rhode Island, just a few miles from Burlingame campground in Charleston.  Misquamicut Beach is extremely crowded but nice and clean.  [...]

Hughson  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Sandy Hook State Park is located in Sandy Hook, New Jersey.  What a wonderful beach!  This was a relaxing experience and an exciting one.  This is an ocean beach with a state park feel.  I was delighted to talk to a Ranger about the birds that were nesting.  The Piping Plover had their own area [...]

Hughson  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Rocky Neck State Park in East Lyme, CT has a nice, but a bit long to walk, paved path to the Long Island Sound.  This campground offers nice campsites with paved roads that are great for biking to the water or just enjoying a nice ride.  Campsites are pretty close together.  There is a bath house with [...]

Hughson  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Camping at Burlingame in Charleston, Rhode Island was nice and quiet.  It’s a large campground with approximately 800 sites and water access.  Our children enjoyed activities such as skateboarding and biking on their paved roads, kayaking and swimming.  We relaxed at Misquamicut Beach which is an ocean beach just a short drive from the campground.  They had [...]

Neilson  Saturday, July 31, 2010

Who is nuts enough to head down to Oklahoma in the middle of July to try for some fresh pork?  I posed that question to many of my hunting buddies and one brave lad, Jimmy Keen took up the challenge as well as a buddy named Kory Brink from Illinois.  Jimmy and I picked up [...]

DJ  Friday, July 30, 2010

Andrea and I skied Breckenridge, Colorado on New Years Day 2009.  We decided to take it easy since we had not skied much in the past few years, so we skied the green runs of Peak 9 all day.  The weather was sunny and cool.  We used the Quicksilver Superquad 6 lift most of the [...]

DJ  Friday, July 30, 2010

In September of 2008 I decided to climb Clark Peak the highest peak in the Medicine Bow Range in Northern Colorado.  Clark Peak is 12,951 elevation.  I took the west route to the top via Ruby Jewel Lake trail.  You can access this climb through the Colorado State Forest (see directions below).
This was my first climb to an elevation this high.  [...]

dmjcamera  Thursday, July 29, 2010

It had been a number of years since I had the opportunity to do a scuba dive.  I signed up with Bonsai Dive Shop in Key West.  As in many tourist locations, Key West is definitely a place where you get what you pay for! Peter is worth every cent because his service is so [...]

weaves  Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Hurricane River Campground is my favorite camping spot.  It is primitive and you cannot make reservations.  Those things may sound negative but they are a big plus to me.  That means if you show up early in the afternoon you almost always will find a site.  Plus it means you won’t run in to too [...]

dmjcamera  Wednesday, July 28, 2010

A day hike up Snow King takes you up about 1,600 feet to a 7760 feet above sea level.  The trail is a gentle switch back for 1.8 miles with incredible views of Jackson Hole and  the National Elk Refuge to mention a couple. Depending on the time of day and the time of year, [...]

trophyhunter1  Wednesday, July 28, 2010

This is a hunt deer hunt in Mid November of 2010.  See the video for all the details of this Xciting Illinois bowhunt.

kmj  Sunday, July 25, 2010

Our 4th of July weekend trip to Mackinac Island was an unforgettable life experience.  Arriving in Mackinac City we had a great lunch at Mackinac Bay Trading Co. Nonna Lisa’s Italian Ristorante before boarding the ferry for the 18 minute trip to Mackinac Island.  The Mackinac Bay Trading Co. began to set the mood for our [...]

DJ  Saturday, July 24, 2010

My dad and I fished Ranger Lakes in north central Colorado in September of 2008.  We had fished for trout in the nearby Michigan Reservoir, but had never tried Ranger Lakes.  We took our fly rods and dry flies to give it a shot.  The setting of the lakes is beautiful.  The mountains are in [...]

DJ  Saturday, July 24, 2010

We decided to take the girls on a canoe trip.  We called Sugar Creek Campground in Crawfordsville, In. on a Saturday in July to place a reservation for the following Monday.  They never called us back to confirm the reservation.  So, we decided to show up on Monday at 9am when they opened in hopes [...]

weaves  Tuesday, July 20, 2010

I’ve been backpacking in the Red River Gorge for 15 years.  It’s a great place for a weekend trip.  There are natural bridges, waterfalls, and cliffs all over the place.  Red River Gorge is a popular place for climbers but we don’t see many other backpackers there.  To backpack there you need a parking permit [...]

jderuby  Tuesday, July 20, 2010

We’ve taken this hike up Bald Mountain a couple of times.  It’s also known as Rondaxe Mountain.  Go about 4 miles north of Old Forge on Route 28 and you’ll see Rondaxe Road and a sign for the trail on the left.  There is a parking lot at the trail head.
The trail is one mile [...]

jderuby  Tuesday, July 20, 2010

All summer long while I was growing up we would spend Saturdays at Delta Lake.  My grandparents had a ski boat and we would ski and tour the lake.  Touring the lake takes about an hour, depending on your speed, and you can see the beautiful houses, forests, marsh area, a Christian camp, yacht club, [...]

DJ  Tuesday, July 20, 2010

We were in the mood for a canoeing Xperience in Western Indiana.  We looked online and again we were taking a chance on who we chose since we had no recommendations.  There were several companies online all offering trips on Sugar Creek.  We called one company on a Saturday and left a message for a [...]

Neilson  Sunday, July 18, 2010

Dark thirty hit and hit hard.  I was down in Oklahoma on my annual Porkapalooza hog hunt and had made arrangements with our host Matt Napper to contact one of his buddies to guide us on trip to Lake Texoma.  Captain Rick Sproat, owner of Fossil Creek Guide Service had his hands full with 6 [...]

Hughson  Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Brownstone is definitely a great time for families!  If you like to wakeboard but your children would rather swim, Brownstone is the place for you!  If you like to rock climb but know your children would enjoy a nice cold water slide, Brownstone is the place for you. It’s where you can literally tell someone to go [...]

andreaj  Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Last weekend we decided to go to Eagle Creek for some kayaking and to check out the park. By the time we got there we were hungry so we chose a picnic table down by the swimming beach and had an early lunch. While driving through the park we found the roads to be very [...]

jderuby  Tuesday, July 13, 2010

We hiked this trail, starting at the Cow Creek Trail Head, on July 4th.  It is rated easy/moderate.  We brought our 5 year old along, and, while she did slow us down a little and my husband carried her for some very short and steep portions, she was able to complete it.
There are lots of [...]

jderuby  Tuesday, July 13, 2010

815 Riverside Dr, Estes Park, CO 80517
I don’t think this private park has a website.  It is right next to Spruce Lake Campground, which is a State owned property, separated by just a fence.
This rv park has 110 sites, many of which are big rig summer residents.  I didn’t see any tents.  The sites are very close [...]

mccarty  Tuesday, July 13, 2010

We went to McCormicks creek last summer.  We were on site 104 which was pretty close to the restrooms and overall a pretty good site.  Each site has a fire ring and 1 picnic table.  The sites themselves are smaller than we are used to, but most do have trees and bushes between them so they [...]

weaves  Tuesday, July 13, 2010

In June 2010 I led a church group to do the Roan Highlands section of the Appalachian trail.  We started at Hughes Gap and ended at Dennis Cove Road.  There is a hostel at Dennis Cove Road that is famous with Thru-hikers named Kincora.  Bob Peoples runs Kincora and he is a very nice guy.  [...]

brandi  Monday, July 12, 2010

Our son, who is 9, did a rock climbing camp at The Crag in Brownsburg, Indiana.  He had an absolute blast!  He was a little apprehensive at first, but by the second day, he was pumped!  The owner, Michael is awesome.  He and his staff are wonderful with the kids.  There were several age groups [...]

brandi  Monday, July 12, 2010

We took a hike along the top of the Tallulah Gorge in Georgia.  We took our 2 kids along with friends and their 4 kids ranging in age from 6-13.  The view is absolutely stunning.  You can stand on the edge of the gorge and look down a really really long way!!  The river is [...]

brandi  Monday, July 12, 2010

We take a group of high school students from our church down to Lake Cumberland every summer. Our friends have 4 houseboats in their family that they let us use.  They take the boats into a  cove, tie them together and dock for the week!  It is sooooo much fun!
The lake is absolutely huge!!  There [...]

brandi  Monday, July 12, 2010

We rented a HUGE houseboat on Dale Hollow Lake for a week several summers ago.  There were 10 of us on the boat, and we had TONS of room.  We rented the largest boat they had!!  There were 2 sets of queen bunk beds as well as a Twin bed in the back.  The 2 [...]

mccarty  Sunday, July 11, 2010

We went to the Dunes State Park a couple years ago for fall break.  Our main reason for being in the area was we had a trip planned to Chicago to watch a Fire soccer game.  It took around an hour to drive from the park to the area of Chicago we were going to. [...]

mccarty  Sunday, July 11, 2010

We just got back from a 4 night camping trip to Lieber State Park.  We have actually camped there quite a bit over the last three years.  We like camping there because its not too far from home (Brownsburg) less than an hour and they have a pool and beach.  With our kids getting older, [...]

jderuby  Saturday, July 10, 2010

These 3 lakes are on one trail that starts at Bear Lake Trailhead and ends 1.8 miles later at Emerald Lake, passing by Nymph and Dream Lakes.  Round trip is 3.6 miles, with a total elevation gain of 605 feet by the time you get to Emerald.  Beautiful scenery!  Marked an easy trail, our 5 [...]

jderuby  Saturday, July 10, 2010

We walked to the Garden from our campground, Pikes Peak RV Park, less than 2 miles away via sidewalks and roads.  We stopped in at the Trading Post, which is a very large souvenir shop with great selection.
Then we attempted the Siamese Twins/Balanced Rock trail.  The map we received from the Trading Post indicates an [...]

jderuby  Saturday, July 10, 2010

My husband was initially shocked when we drove into this “campground.”  It is an rv parking lot.  The sites are very close to each other and there is very little shade.    The whole park is crushed gravel, with concrete pads under the picnic tables.  The owner said all campgrounds in the mountains are like [...]

jderuby  Saturday, July 10, 2010

Over 300 sites, some primitive.  They say they have 3 loops on the website, but the #2 loop is closed.  We stayed on #3, with probably close to 150 sites and probably less than 50 of those filled.  Mostly wide open sites, but the ones around the outside of the loop are in the trees. [...]

Neilson  Friday, July 9, 2010

I was bored.  I was bored and wanted a new eXperience.  I was looking for something to hunt after I got out of my teaching school year and a bear hunt was just the ticket.  Now all I had to do is find the right outfitter for a late June hunt. 
Sitting 16 feet up in [...]

Neilson  Friday, July 9, 2010

As the airboat cruised along the cattails lining the St. Johns River in eastern Florida, the smell of the water mixing with the mud brought back memories of my childhood growing up in the Midwest.  I was pleasantly wrapped up in one of those memories about gigging frogs when I realized that back home didn’t [...]

andreaj  Thursday, July 8, 2010

We honeymooned in St. Lucia at the Sandals Halcyon and were offered sailing lessons on their little Hobie Cats (small catamaran type sail boats). My hubby took the lesson which didn’t last long and then took the boat out for a nice ride. The next day he took me along and showed me how. It [...]

Neilson  Thursday, July 8, 2010

My heart and head were in agreement that a trip up to British Columbia for mountain goat with archery tackle was a worthy goal.  My knees and lungs were not at all on page with that eXtreme adventure.  I decided since I wasn’t getting any younger and those mountains weren’t getting any smaller, I’d better [...]

andreaj  Wednesday, July 7, 2010

We visited Breckenridge, Colorado in December. One of the fun activities offered was a sleigh ride. There were a couple of companies but we chose www.BreckSleighRides.com for our evening Hot Chocolate Sleigh Ride. To start out we got lost finding the place due to the darkness and a direction mix-up but called the company and [...]

Todd  Wednesday, July 7, 2010

My wife and I recently took three of our four children to Panama City Beach in Florida and had a great time! We spent a long weekend there and the water was unbelievably clear and warm. I was a bit surprised to not see more folks enjoying the beautiful weather of Florida but the people [...]

DJ  Tuesday, July 6, 2010

We took a trip last to Turkey Run State Park for my birthday.  This trip was March of 2009.  We looked at the trail map and decided to hike on trail #3 which is rated on their system as rugged.
The weather was cool but sunny.  The trail conditions in March are usually a little slick as [...]

DJ  Tuesday, July 6, 2010

My brother and I took trip to ski at Snowbird in Utah in February of 2009.  We had a lot of fun.  We stayed on at the resort and ski in and out for a long weekend.  This was the first Utah ski trip for either one of us.  The snow was groomed well.  There [...]

DJ  Monday, July 5, 2010

This turkey hunting Xperience was the one that hooked me on turkey hunting.  My friend Jim and I went to what used to be Brush Creek in Jefferson County, Indiana.  We had scouted out a great area where we would have a large creek at our backs and a large hayfield in front of us.  We [...]

DJ  Monday, July 5, 2010

We rented a pontoon boat to cruise Lake Vallecito in southwest Colorado last July.  We rented from a small marina on the lake.  The weather was great.  Sunny, warm and a slight breeze.  The lake is large with lots of good fishing from the pictures posted at the marina.  This lake was a much cooler temperature [...]

DJ  Monday, July 5, 2010

We were visiting in Durango, Colorado last summer and we decided to try the summer activities that were advertised for Durango Mountain Resort (Purgatory).  Purgatory Village in the summer has a lot for the family to do.  We tried almost everything and everyone in the family had a great time.  We  enjoyed the Alpine Slide, [...]

DJ  Monday, July 5, 2010

On our honeymoon we had a choice of about 8 different adventures.  We were scheduled for the 4 hour jeep tour, but it was cancelled at the last minute.  So, we chose to go on the ATV adventure and get a look at the island up close and personal.  Here are the good and the [...]

Neilson  Saturday, July 3, 2010

I’m a weak man when it comes to hunting adventures and with so many magazines, shows, and videos out, it doesn’t take long for me to start dreaming.  On one particular day, I was looking at a Cabela’s hunting catalog of dream hunts.  I saw a section that dealt with Colorado and more specifically mountain [...]

Neilson  Saturday, July 3, 2010

I really wanted to go moose hunting in Alaska but the old Superintendent of my school system wouldn’t let me off for the 2 weeks I needed.  Fine, I’ll just make other arrangements.  Those other arrangements included contacting several outfitters and people who had been there, done that.  I finally got a call from Paul [...]