Elena Vasquez 
The guard held out his hand before I even reached the ticket window. Not for my entrance fee — for my sunscreen. I’d driven ninety minutes from Playa del Carmen through the jungle heat, windows down, cumbia crackling on the radio, mentally preparing myself for the famous beam of light at Cenote Suytun. And this … Read more
It was 1:17 in the morning, and I was hiking up a rocky ridgeline in the Lofoten Islands with sunglasses on. Not metaphorically. Actual sunglasses, because the actual sun was sitting smugly on the horizon like it had somewhere to be but couldn’t quite commit to leaving. The light was this impossible shade of amber … Read more
I was standing at 4,215 meters above sea level, gasping at the top of Dead Woman’s Pass, arms raised in triumph like every hiker before me — and I had absolutely no idea my face was being destroyed. That was Day 2 of the Inca Trail, the famous climb to Warmiwañusqa, and the Andean sun … Read more
I lost my hat to Patagonia forty-five minutes into a seven-hour trek. Not misplaced it. Not forgot it at the refugio. Lost it — as in, a gust of wind that felt like a freight train made a direct personal decision to remove it from my head, and I watched it sail, in a graceful, … Read more
The descent into Bete Giyorgis doesn’t prepare you for anything. You walk to the edge of a carved trench cut straight into the Ethiopian highland rock, and then you just — go down. Steep stone steps, rough-hewn walls close on either side, the smell of incense rising from somewhere below. When I finally reached the … Read more
I’ve dragged my kids through monsoon-soaked jungles, icy alpine meadows, and scorching desert canyons — but nothing has made their jaws drop quite like Olympic National Park. This place is genuinely three parks in one: ancient rainforest draped in neon-green moss, rugged Pacific coastline littered with sea stacks and tide pools, and wildflower-covered alpine ridges … Read more
I have dragged a stroller up granite slabs, bribed a three-year-old across a meadow with fruit snacks, and ugly-cried at a waterfall view while my six-year-old asked if we could go back to the car — and I would do every single minute of it again in Yosemite. This park is, without exaggeration, one of … Read more
I’ve hiked with a cranky toddler on my back through Patagonia and navigated a double stroller across cobblestones in Portugal, but Great Smoky Mountains National Park still holds a special place in my heart — because it’s the one park where my kids have consistently been more excited than I am. Misty ridgelines, cascading waterfalls, … Read more
I’ve hiked with a squirmy toddler strapped to my back and a six-year-old who needed snack bribes every half mile, and I’m here to tell you: Zion National Park is one of the most spectacular places on earth to do exactly that. The towering red canyon walls, the sparkling Virgin River winding through the valley … Read more
The first time I strapped my then-two-year-old into a carrier and walked the edge of the Atlantic at Acadia National Park, I cried a little — partly from the wind, mostly from the sheer magic of it. Acadia is one of those rare parks that genuinely delivers for every member of the family, from the … Read more
