New Mexico - Petroglyphs and El Morro

Our 2025 family vacation looked a little bit different than we originally expected it to. Because we moved Elizabeth to New Mexico for a summer internship, we decided to spend a long weekend there with her, we tried out best to get to know some of this amazing state. We took in some of the national monuments in the area, spending time at Petroglyphs National Monument and El Morro National Monument. In hindsight, we could have spent an entire day just at El Morro - we enjoyed it so much and would have loved to have spent more time there.  

New York - Lake Placid

Lee and Maureen recently spent a couple of nights in Lake Placid, celebrating Maureen's 50th birthday. We stayed at a gorgeous hotel, built in the 1920s with wood paneling and stained glass windows that is part of the Craftsman style. We hiked Mount Jo on Monday and Saint Regis Mountain on Tuesday and spent our down time exploring some Olympic sites and relaxing in the living room of the hotel. We are not really lake people, but Lake Placid just might have changed our minds.

Mount Jo

Gorgeous view of Mirror Lake from our balcony. 

Herb Brooks Arena, where the magic happened!

Fifty is fabulous!

Alaska - Odds and Ends

All the photos that didn't make another post:  

Not gonna lie, I'm a bit afraid that I will never be able to plan a trip this good again.

Alaska Railroad

We returned to Anchorage via the Alaska Railroad, departing from inside Denali National Park. The train was surprisingly luxurious and despite the fact that the trip took almost 8 hours, it was a beautiful way to experience the scenery and landscape of interior Alaska. One of the most amazing things was seeing Denali from the train. For the entire day, the peaks of Denali were completely visible, which is highly unusual.  

Hurricane Gulch

iPhone photo from the train - insane

Lunch in the dining car.

A few hours into the train ride, and the peaks were still visible.

Denali selfie

When the scenery got a bit monotonous, Emily passed the time reading.

Old telegraph wires and poles.

Hours into the ride, and the view was still unobstructed and breathtaking.

Remnants of a forest fire.

Moose tracks on the beach.

Anchorage train station.