It’s been quiet in terms of travel for me over the last month – but a lot will be coming soon! Scroll down to the bottom to check out the photos of my Christmas morning hike up near Sugarloaf.

Over Thanksgiving, my family Skyped with my sister who lives out in Washington state and it was decided that I would take a road trip out there and she would join me on the return trip back to Maine! Ideally I would have done a trip like this in the summer, but timing was right so I said ‘Let’s go!’ It’s going to be a whirlwind trip, but I should be able to hit highlights from some of the national parks along the way.

Leaving on January 12th, I’ll head out to Washington and visit:

• Badlands National Park (South Dakota)
• Mount Rushmore (South Dakota)
• Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming)
• Glacier National Park (Montana)

I’ll meet up with my sister a little west of Seattle on January 18th, and then together we will hit the following on the way back to Maine:

• Multnomah Falls (Oregon)
• Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)
• Pacific Coast Highway (California)
• Grand Canyon (Arizona)
• Zion National Park (Utah)
• Arches National Park (Utah)
• Blue Ridge Parkway (Virginia)

I plan to tentatively be back home in Maine somewhere around January 28th! Stay tuned for posts about this trip!

Because my family is all over the states right now (my brother is working in the Gulf of Mexico), we decided to postpone Christmas until at least my brother was home as well.  So Christmas morning, I decided to hike up to the Stratton Brook Hut near Sugarloaf. It was a beautiful morning and I was the only one on the trail. I took the Oak Knoll path up, which in the summer is a mountain biking trail and in the winter it’s great for snowshoeing. It’s a little longer than the main trail, but well worth it for the views! The full hike/snowshoe was a little over 6 miles – and it was incredible.

I highly recommend taking a hike through Maine Huts and Trails – great trails, great hikes and great views! Happy New Year!