Canyon de Chelly National Monument was established on April 1, 1931 as a unit of the National Park Service. Located in northeastern Arizona, it is within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation and lies in the Four Corners region. Reflecting one of the longest continuously inhabited landscapes of North America, it preserves ruins of the indigenous tribes that lived in the area, from the Ancestral Puebloans (formerly known as Anasazi) to the Navajo

Canyon del Muerto Canyon de Chelly

White House Ruin Canyon de Chelly

Sunset Canyon de Chelly

My wife and I just returned from a 4385 mile trip..here are the highlights!

Crater Lake National Park is located in southern Oregon and was established in 1902, It is the fifth-oldest national park in the U,S The park encompasses the caldera of Crater Lake, a remnant of a destroyed volcano, Mount Mazama, and the surrounding hills and forests.
The lake is 1,949 feet (594 m) deep at its deepest, which makes it the deepest lake in the United States, the second-deepest in North America and the ninth-deepest in the world.

West Rim Drive Crater lake National Park

Sunset West Rim Drive Crater lake

“Sometimes I get to places where God is ready to have someone click the shutter! “Ansel Adams”

Sunset Crater Lake National Park

Late afternoon... Wizard Island Crater Lake National Park

The West Rim Drive was closed for the first two days we were there...the sun came out and melted the snow. The roads were reopened and we had two of the most spectacular days we have ever had in our National Parks!

Black and White Panorama of late afternoon!

180 degree photo of Crater Lake West Rim Drive

A close up of Wizard Island

Fall foliage in Oregon

Sunset at Snake River Gorge, Idaho

"Goodales Cutoff" Idaho

Lava flow, Craters of the Moon National Monument

Craters of the Moon National Momument was incedible! It is an average elevation of 5,900 feet. The protected area's features are volcanic and represent one of the best-preserved flood basalt areas in the continental United States.
The Monument was established on May 2, 1924.In November 2000, a presidential proclamation by President Clinton greatly expanded the Monument area and encompass three major lava fields and about 400 square miles of sagebrush steppe grasslands to cover a total area of 1,117 square miles (2,893 km2). All three lava fields lie along the Great Rift of Idaho, with some of the best examples of open rift cracks in the world, including the deepest known on Earth at 800 feet

Moonlight Craters of the Moon NM

Walking through the lava fields

Craters of the Moon NM

Monument Rock Overlook

The last two days we visited Colorado National Monument..The second drive we took in the afternoon was worth it!Colorado National Monument (locally referred to as The Monument) is next to Grand Junction, Colorado. Sheer-walled canyons cut deep into sandstone and granite–gneiss–schist rock formations. This is an area of desert land high on the Colorado Plateau, with pinion and juniper forests on the plateau. The park hosts a wide range of wildlife, including red-tailed hawks, golden eagles, ravens, jays, desert bighorn sheep, and coyotes.

Rock climbing Monuemt Rock

Cororado National Momument

We even spotted this family of Big Horn sheep on the side of the road!!!