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Exploring the Newberry Crater in Central Oregon
Visiting the lava lands of Central Oregon is just about as close as one can get to setting foot on the moon. At least that is what researchers believed in the late 1960s, when they sent NASA astronauts to the Newberry Crater Volcanic Monument in order to test out spacesuits and equipment. Scientists believed the moon’s mysterious pockmarked terrain was a result of volcanic activity. So in order to prepare for what they might encounter in space, they performed extensive fieldwork at the Newberry Crater. Of all the lunar landscapes…
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Traveling the Oregon Outback Scenic Byway
Oregon often conjures images of lush rain-soaked forests and snowcapped mountains. But towering trees and dizzying shades of green only paint a small picture of the state’s beauty and intrigue. What if I were to tell you that Oregon is two thirds desert? Or that, in the Oregon Outback, cowboy country is alive and well? Growing up, I didn’t give much thought to the barren eastern half of the state. Like most people, I assumed that there wasn’t much to see amongst the nothingness. However, I’ve recently begun to realize…
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Alvord Desert and Steens Mountain: A Southeast Oregon Road Trip
Southeastern Oregon is a special place. And not just because it is where Dan proposed to me under a blanket of stars during our brief Oregon road trip in 2018. It is special because it is one of the last outposts of off-the-beaten-path wilderness in the continental United States. Driving through the lower-right corner of Oregon is like navigating the surface of the moon. It is desolate. It is stark. It is parched. It is often viewed as a wasteland; a barren stretch of flyover country that is defined by…
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Viewing the Northern Lights in Fairbanks, Alaska
In mid-December, as the Northern Hemisphere approached its shortest and darkest day of the year, Dan and I chose to travel to an unlikely Destination: Fairbanks, Alaska. The reason? To see the aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights. I’d always dreamed of witnessing the world’s greatest light display with my own eyes. And with the ability to fly standby on a moment’s notice due to my airline job, chasing the northern lights in Fairbanks Alaska was both feasible and fairly economical. The flexibility of flying standby allowed Dan…
