Vacations, Weekend Getaways, and Overnights

First as a couple, and then as a family, we've done some pretty cool stuff for our annual vacations, three day weekends, and other getaways over the years...

1986 St.Orres Inn in Gaulala, California.  There are other inns in the area but this is one we visited again.  Perfect spot for a romantic getaway.

1986 Big Basin Redwoods State Park, California.  Nice camping and hiking.  Beware the Banana Slugs...

1987 Grand Portage, Minnesota in winter.  Scenery awesome, rental skiis mediocre.

1988 Virgin Islands by way of Windjammer Barefoot Cruises.

1992 Cabo San Lucas on the Baja peninsula.  Almost got sucked into a timeshare.

1994 and 1996 Yosemite National Park in California.

1995 and 2002 Hawaii, Maui and The Big Island, respectively.

1997 Nordic skiing in Bear Valley, California.  After we struggled back to the lodge through a whiteout seven year old Erik threw off his gear in disgust and swore he would never ski again.  We're glad he changed his mind in time for a fine career as a high school nordic athlete.

1998 Death Valley National Park in California.  In the spring, so it was cool enough to do some backpacking, even though the kids were 7 and 9 at the time.

1999 Black Hills of South Dakota for Independence Day and to bicycle two hundred miles in two days with my brother who was doing the Big Ride that summer.

2000 Yukon River in Alaska for Summer Solstice.  Scarcely dark and mostly warm.  Brought a bear gun, didn't need it.

2000 Barrow, Alaska for Winter Solstice.  Cold and dark.  Saw polar bears, didn't have a gun.

2001 and 2003 Playa del Carmen.  Much less commercial than Cancun; at least it was then.  The adventure tourism was fun, so was lying on the beach.

2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010 Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW).  Be sure to pay extra for a kevlar boat!

2003, 2005, 2007 Superior Hiking Trail on the north shore of Lake Superior.

2005 Yellowstone National Park.  We backpacked into the wilderness.

2007 Italy.  Mostly staying with family friends in Napoli and doing the Roman archaeology thing.  Then a few days in Roma, where our hotel was at the top of The Spanish Steps.

2009 Camping on Madeline Island in Wisconsin.