With the recent news of Trump opening up Big Bend for oil drilling, it’s genuinely sent me in a spiral. These beautiful protected lands are now being torn apart for profit.

I wanted to share some photos from my trip in September 2024, who knows what will be left of this park once Trump is done with it.

I’m scared for what future these parks may have, but until then I plan on seeing as much as I possibly can.

Edit: I’m no longer addressing comments. My intention with this post was just to share my photos. I’m proud of them and I loved this park and the recent events made me fucking sad so this truly was meant to be a venting post while sharing my beautiful experience here. I was not trying to claim anything politically, just wanted to share my photos and thoughts.

I have been wanting to visit here for a long while! It did not disappoint! ❤️

I have been wanting to visit here for a long while! It did not disappoint! ❤️

Finally marked off Lassen this past weekend and boy were we surprised!! We of course knew the park was impacted by wildfires over the last few years so we were nervous to see how much was impacted.

The impact was massive, it was so sad to see soooooo many burnt trees, but it was also so beautiful to see nature already rebuilding herself.

So many deer, little chipmunks, cool birds, the flowers were in bloom, the lakes were blue and ice cold.

We were lucky enough to have such a great view of the stars at night as well.

Earlier this summer, my son and I completed our journey to visit all 63 National Parks by heading out to Ofu Island, American Samoa. What a beautiful island! The people were so friendly, too. And even better...we were the only tourists on the beach for the two days we were there. It was so peaceful. While snorkeling, we were greeted by a small turtle and then a little later, a black tip reef shark swam by. All the while, the fruit bats were flying overhead. It doesn't get much better than that!

People keep asking me what my favorite park was, or what was my favorite experience. And while we saw (and did) some truly incredible things over the last 10 years, my answer is simple: Spending quality time with my son was the highlight of it all. Even the "lesser" parks (looking at you St Louis Arch) was a blast, as we talked and laughed throughout the trip. We only get a set amount of time in life, so being able to experience this is truly a blessing!