North-central Pennsylvania has a cluster of fantastic state parks. This relative close proximity makes for easy day trips from a basecamp at the Hyner Run State Park Campground. During a recent camping at Hyner Run State Park I balanced recharging at the peaceful campground with day trips to nearby attractions. Here are some places I […]
Author: carvedbycuriosity
Hyner Run State Park Camping Guide
Hyner Run State Park Nestled in Pennsylvania’s largest state forest, the 305,450 acre Sproul State Forest, Hyner Run State Park is the perfect launch pad for adventures in the Pennsylvania Wilds. You’ll get a balanced blend of remote wilderness to disconnect, while the comforts of civilization are only 30 minutes away in Lock Haven. During […]
What is a cinder garden?
If you Google “cinder garden” you’ll likely get lots results for DIY gardens made of cinder blocks. There is also a much more beautiful and natural interpretation of “cinder garden”. Natural cinder gardens, also called “Devil’s gardens” exemplify resilience and the circle of life. These gardens form as an early step in the reclamation process […]
Misadventures of Dr. K – Idaho’s Ultimate Cabinet of Curiosities
How did I end up at Idaho’s Mammoth Cave and Shoshone Bird Museum? In my travels across the US, I’ve passed numerous “roadside museums”. These are always so run down it’s questionable if they are even operational. The entrance often features a large, faded, crumbling outdoor animal statue meant to attract the interest of children […]
What are petrified watermelons?
Are these watermelons? Petrified watermelons, melon rocks, melon gravel – these are all names for basalt boulders scattered across the Snake River corridor. While the process of petrification can turn organic material like watermelons into stone, watermelons did not even exist when these rock monoliths were formed. The colloquial name “petrified watermelons” comes from a […]
Budget Breakdown: Cost of a 9-Day Idaho Hiking Road Trip
Why Idaho? Everyone has asked me, “Why Idaho?”. Idaho has some street cred as a winter skiing paradise, but is not renowned as a summer vacation destination. TLC be dammed, I am a waterfall chaser, and Idaho is home to Shoshone Falls. Taller than Niagara Falls, the 212 foot drop in the Snake River at […]
Why do trees eat things?
Remember that time you watched Jurassic Park at age 7 and spent the next five years convinced you had to hide under the covers and not breathe or else the T-Rex would get you? If we’ve learned anything from Jurassic Park, it’s that life will find a way, and not just dinosaurs. Plants are plotting […]
What is Cheatgrass?
🎵 O beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain 🎵 Not so fast! This might be Idaho, one the nation’s top producers of hay, wheat, and barley, but those are not shining seas of beautiful grains. This is cheatgrass. What is cheatgrass? Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), also known as downy brome, is a fast […]
Ready, Set, Sail: 7 Essentials You Can’t Cruise Without, Plus 3 to Reconsider
Before going on my first solo cruise, I perused several different travel blogs and watched countless YouTube videos. Each of them touted some variation of “10 Unusual Things to Pack for your Cruise” or “5 Must Have Cruise Items Everyone Forgets”. Being the sucker I am, I was swayed by several of their arguments and […]
Misadventures of Dr. K – Cruise Ship Tipping Trauma
Although I frequently travel solo, I still get plenty of anxiety thinking about new situations. This is especially true for scenarios where I have limited control, like on a cruise ship. In 2024, I made it a goal to test the cruise waters. I landed on a 4 day cruise to the Bahamas out of […]