Archive for Road Trips Easy

Route 66 from Victorville to Helendale

May 12, 2012 Cliff California, Mojave Desert, Road Trips Easy
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Trip Date: March 2012

Route 66 on side of building

Route 66 on side of building

The Mother Road.  America’s Main Street.  It would be a fair guess that everyone in the World has heard of Route 66. People make the trip down Route 66 to see the nostalgic sites and perhaps experience a once forgotten slower-paced lifestyle.

Many segments of the original Route 66 were literally erased when the more modern Interstate freeways were built on top of the old roadbed.  When engineers building the Interstate system found shorter routes to use, some old segments of Route 66 were saved and remain in use today.  Thankfully, some of the old nostalgia can still be seen along these segments, along with newer Route 66 pop-culture consisting of things that people have constructed after the highway was decommissioned in 1985.

The segment of Route 66 that stretches between Victorville and Barstow, which passes through the towns of Oro Grande and Helendale, is a great 38 mile (60 km) mini road trip that can be experienced when driving I-15 in Southern California.  Exit the busy freeway in either Victorville or Barstow and follow the signs for Historic Route 66 and get back on I-15 when you encounter it 38 miles later.  It’s a great little break from any hectic road trip and there’s plenty of nostalgia and pop-culture to see along the way.

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Day Trip to Kenai Fjords National Park

April 30, 2012 Cliff Alaska, Road Trips Easy
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Trip Date: August 2006

Three Hole Point

Three Hole Point

A visit to Kenai Fjords is an microcosm of what Alaska is all about – big, wild, rugged and beautiful. The landscape of Kenai was formed by the same mammoth force that created many other beautiful landscapes of Alaska – ice – and lots of it – in the form of glaciers.

Just like Alaska’s famous Glacier National Park, there are no roads leading into Kenai Fjords National Park.  The only way to visit the park is by going out onto the open sea.  Trips of all types into the park can be chartered out of the nearby town of Seward.

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Zion in the Snow

February 1, 2012 Cliff Regional Overview, Road Trips Easy, Utah
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Trip Date: December 2010

Zion Canyon in the Snow

Zion Canyon in the Snow

With its massive red and white sandstone cliffs and monoliths, Zion Canyon is already a special place.  But add a good dusting of snow and you’ll get a place that is extra special. The floor of Zion Canyon does not see snow very often. Usually during winter however, you will see accumulated snow at the higher peaks above 5,000 feet.  But when the canyon floor is hit by a good snowstorm, you can be assured of some pretty spectacular scenery.

During this particular four day visit to Zion, we really lucked out.  Our first two days included clear skies with cold temperatures.  We even took a quick jaunt over to Bryce Canyon, which is much higher than Zion, to enjoy its unique wintry look.  Our third day in Zion was cloaked entirely by a really big snowstorm.  The next (fourth) day, the clear skies returned revealing the magnificent beauty you will see in our virtual tour.

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Burr Trail Utah

September 15, 2011 Cliff Road Trips Easy, Utah
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Trip Date: November 2006

Burr Trail Utah

Burr Trail

The Burr Trail is yet another wonderful back road through the scenic red rock country of Southern Utah. Burr Trail stretches 68 miles from the small town of Boulder, Utah, located along Hwy 12, to Bullfrog located on the shores of Lake Powell.  Along the way, Burr Trail passes through Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and Capital Reef National Park.

Originally developed by a rancher named John Atlantic Burr to move his cattle between summer and winter grazing grounds, the Burr Trail is now one of those classic Utah “backways” that the State frequently advertises.  The road passes through a wide range of Utah scenery, beginning on the west side with red sandstone cliffs, passes through the Waterpocket Fold of Capital Reef National Park and ends on its eastern end with the serene beauty of Lake Powell.  One of the engineering feats that Burr undertook is the amazing switchbacks that the road uses when it crosses the Waterpocket Fold.
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Denali Highway Alaska

August 26, 2011 Cliff Alaska, Road Trips Easy
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Trip Date: August 2005

Denali Highway Alaska

Denali Highway

Take a driving tour along the western half of the Denali Highway, Alaska, near the entrance to Denali National Park and see the amazing and brilliant fall colors which normally peaks in late August. Denali Highway (Hwy 8) was the original dirt road built in 1957 to access Denali National Park and Mt. McKinley.  After the paved George Parks Highway (Hwy 3) was completed in 1971, not much traffic uses Denali Hwy anymore.

One of the attractions to Denali Hwy is the access it has to a large remote area in central Alaska.  Unlike Hwy 3, which is lined with tall trees often limiting your views of the spectacular Alaska scenery, Denali Hwy passes through large forests of stunted-growth trees allowing you to see the wide and long vistas Alaska is known for.
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