July, August, and Winter

According to the second episode of The National Parks: America's Best Idea, that's how the first U.S. soldiers charged with protecting Yellowstone described its seasons. Apparently patrolling two million acres of northwestern Wyoming during the coldest months of the year wasn't exactly a plum assignment. But chasing poachers through waist deep snow probably wouldn't delight many people, then or now.

Thanks to Ken Burns and the recession, the parks have seen their popularity grow dramatically in 2009. The AP recently reported that nationwide attendance is actually at a ten-year high and may well set a new record. While I did some camping and hiking in Zion and Bryce Canyon (pictured) last summer, I've only managed to visit a national recreation area and America's first national scenic trail so far this year. Fortunately, I still have three months to explore another corner of our country's remarkable natural landscape. I'm thinking it might be best to go somewhere before the weather gets too frosty however.

Outdoor Adventures

Summer has arrived—let the vacation planning begin. Given that I have considerably more time than money these days, I'm looking forward to taking at least a couple of camping and hiking trips between now and Labor Day. Lacing up a pair of boots and slinging an internal frame pack on your back isn't everyone's idea of a good time, but if an outdoor adventure happens to be the type of holiday you have in mind, then check out the current issue of TravelMuse Magazine online.

I contributed two features: Sleeping Under the Stars, a guide to planning a camping vacation, as well as Zion National Park Centennial, which covers some of the events and a few of the top attractions you can expect to find on a summer visit to this part of southern Utah.

Plan-it!Trip plans by TravelMuse

Love and Tornadoes

Music moves me. It might be a lyric that conveys a sense of place, the persistent beat of a snare drum propelling a melody to an unknown destination, or the ascending notes of a guitar chord played in succession that sets my mind wandering, but the restlessness certain albums stir up is nearly impossible to resist.

Lately I've found myself repeatedly listening to Neko Case's new album Middle Cyclone. On the opening track, "This Tornado Loves You," she sings: "My love, I'm an owl on the sill in the evening—but morning finds you still warm and breathing." Stretching out that last word, she lets it fade completely like an echo. An instant later she begins again, pleading the refrain as the music builds, swirling around that singular voice, and I'm carried away.

Earlier this week I watched her perform songs from this excellent recording at the Nokia Theatre Times Square. The energy in the room naturally rose and fell as the band alternated between slower waltzes and smoldering rock numbers, but to me the entire set felt like an invitation to hit the road. Especially after Neko's backup singer Kelly Hogan encouraged the assembled New Yorkers to howl like coyotes in their cubicles the next day.

As the night wore on, I couldn't help thinking about my camping trip to southern Utah last May. Even as I left the venue, the urge to roam lingered. Instead of riding the subway back under the East River, part of me wanted to climb into a car and drive West: across the Hudson, past the Appalachians, through the Great Plains, and beyond.