We spent a few days driving around Dinosaur National Monument and checking out the exhibits there in October 2023. 

Travel Day photos from Green River, Wyoming to Vernal, Utah along the Flaming Gorge Scenic Byway.

Leaving Yellowstone this time through, we headed south into Grand Teton National Park where we spent a week camped in Gros Ventre Campground. With the exception of several rainy days on the front end of our stay, we had excellent weather. Rain for us meant fresh snow about 8,000 feet, too.

,Camped outside of Gardiner, Montana, Melanie and I did another driving tour of parts of Yellowstone National Park over a couple of days, the last day of September, first day of October. Here's some of what we saw.

Melanie and I spent four days hiking around some of the southwestern portion of Mount Rainier National Park just after leaving San Juan Island. We camped at Cougar Rock Campground.

Melanie and I camped at MacKerricher State Park for a few days near Fort Bragg, California. The park has a walking/bike trail that runs into town and to within a mile or so of Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens.

As is often the case, Melanie was the one who suggested the gardens so stopping off at Glass Beach and then lunch nearby, we cycled our way to the gardens for a nice walk about. As you'll see, the Rhododendron were showing off.

​Recommended.

Just a quick mention for Tuttle Creek Campground just outside of Lone Pine California.

My intention was to camp in the famous Alabama Hills at a free BLM campsite located somewhere there.

When we discovered that due to recent weather causing major damage to roads the area was largely closed for camping, we punted and chose Tuttle Creek for a night. 

While the campground itself is nothing special, dry camping, relatively primitive sites, pit toilets, the view of the Sierra-Nevada range is worth the price of admission ($5.00 with senior pass).

The Trona Pinnacles are a unique geological features in the California Desert Conservation Area. The unusual landscape consists of more than 500 tufa spires, some as high as 140 feet, rising from the bed of the Searles Dry Lake basin. The pinnacles vary in size and shape from short and squat to tall and thin, and are composed primarily of calcium carbonate (tufa). The Trona Pinnacles have been featured in many commercials, films, and still-photo shoots.
The Trona Pinnacles were designated a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1968 to preserve one of North America’s most outstanding examples of tufa tower formation.

Camping

• Dispersed camping is allowed on for a period not to exceed 14 days within a 28 consecutive day period. The 28 day period begins when a camper initially occupies a specific location on public lands. The 14 day limit may be reached either through a number of separate visits or through 14 days of continuous overnight occupation during the 28 day period. After the 14th day of occupation, the camper must move outside of a 25 mile radius of the previous location until the 29th day since the initial occupation.
• There is no potable water or developed facilities other than a single vault toilet on site.
• Pack out all trash. There are no trash services. In the desert environment, even natural items like orange peels take years to decompose.
• Travel on existing roads and trails. Vegetation in this climate can take decades to recover when crushed by off road driving or parking.
• Camp in campgrounds if available. Using campgrounds reduces the number of vehicles, so that the great views are not blocked.
• Have a great time. The Trona Pinnacles are a great place to explore natural wonders and experience your public lands.  Bureau of Land Management

There have been a number of films that have used the Pinnacles for location shots.

We explored in Chicano Park in Varrio Logan yesterday taking in the murals underneath the Coronado Bridge in San Diego. 

Melanie and I took a relatively short walk on the Cactus Loop Trail in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park this morning on our way to Escondido, California. We'd heard there might be desert in bloom.