Meet Ranger Amy

Have you ever met a national park ranger? I hope you have! We are the people who greet you at the visitor centers and answer your questions. We also present evening programs at the campgrounds, take visitors on hikes, and give short talks. Maybe one of us gave you your first Junior Ranger badge, and then many more after that. Maybe one day you will be one of us as a college graduate or a retiree. Or perhaps you will volunteer for a few hours, or a summer, or more.

Exploring with a Junior Ranger at
Shenandoah National Park.

For the past ten years, I've been a seasonal park ranger for the National Park Service, but my love for national parks goes back before that. I was introduced to these protected places as a child, like many of you. My grandparents took me on a three-week summer road trip when I was 10 years old. Every morning we got up at 4 a.m. so Grandpa could drive to our next location and we'd have more time for our visit.

My brother and I sitting beside Ben Black Elk
at Mount Rushmore National Memorial.

My grandparents took me again the following summer--this time with my brother, who was only eight years old. Some of the places we visited over the two summers included Mammoth Cave National Park, Badlands National Park, Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Glacier National Park. We also visited Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Have you been to some of these places too?

Those two trips changed my life forever. It made me realize I lived in a far bigger world than I’d ever imagined, and it was full of wonders. It gave me the “bug” for travel and adventure that has lasted a lifetime. Perhaps you have the same “bug”!

When I graduated from high school, I got my parents’ permission to go on a trip with my brother--just the two of us! After working to make the money, I purchased two round-trip bus tickets, and my brother and I were able to travel and camp in some of the same parks our grandparents had taken us to, and some new parks as well. We went as far west as the Grand Canyon; then we visited Grandma and Grandpa, who had retired to Arizona.

View of the Grandview Trail, Grand Canyon National Park,
South Rim. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Many years later I joined my family, most of whom had retired or moved to Arizona. The Grand Canyon became my “home away from home.” I first reached the bottom at Bright Angel Creek with other members of a local hiking club. Later, I went on my own, standing in line at the back country office at 5:30 a.m. in order to get a required permit. Several years later, my husband and I completed two multi-day, cross-canyon backpacks from Rim to Rim.

On the Tonto Trail, Cross-Canyon Trek,
Grand Canyon National Park. Photo by Ken Kingsley.

Ken replenishes the water supply at our 
Monument Creek campsite. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

How would my grandparents have felt if they knew I became a ranger, first at Zion National Park in Utah, then Shenandoah National Park in Virigina, and finally Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado? I'm sure they would have visited me!

Looking past rabbitbrush in full bloom to the Temples and Towers
 of the Virgin at Zion National Park. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Along the trail to Canyon Overlook at Zion National Park.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Mountain Laurel blooming along the Limberlost Trail
at Shenandoah National Park. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

View from Skyline Drive in the Spring
at Shenandoah National Park. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

For me—and perhaps for you as well—the National Park experience spans generations. That means children, parents, grandparents and even great-grandparents like to visit and enjoy national parks. They are meant to be appreciated in our lifetimes and protected for the future. I hope you will share these special places with your families and friends. I hope you will want to protect and care for them. Perhaps you will one day write your stories. These are mine.

View of Black Canyon from the North Rim. 
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Visitors congregating for the light show at Sunset Overlook
in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Destination Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

For our December cruise along the Mexican coast with Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL), we decided to explore the first port--Cabo San Lucas--on our own.

Cabo San Lucas is the southernmost town on Baja California. It sits on the very tip of Baja, where the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean. The iconic view of Cabo is “El Arco,” a natural arch carved out of the cliffs at Lands End.

The Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

I’d already read reviews on NCL’s website about several 
locations that might be visited: Lands End and Playa del Amor (Lover’s Beach) could be reached by water taxi, and reviewers provided brief but helpful descriptions of the beaches and how best to get there.

But my husband and I wanted to see El Cabo itself.
My husband chose a visit to Cabo’s Natural History Museum

--Museo de Historia Natural. I wanted to see the Cultural Center (La Casa de la Cultura) that I’d read about in a travel book. The book described a “mirador surrounded by landscaped gardens” that offered “a beautiful view of all of Cabo.”

La Casa de la Cultura

Nothing prepared us for what we actually saw when we arrived at what we expected to be one of the town’s most important landmarks. We climbed multiple steps to reach the top of the hill that held La Casa and the mirador (Spanish for tower). From the front side, the building looked friendly and colorful enough.

From the front of the building, La Casa de la Cultura is inviting. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

But when we got to the top of the hill, we saw a different view. We looked down on what once must have been a lovely garden, but which had not been tended for some time. As we walked the paths that led through the gardens, we saw trash and litter everywhere.

La Casa from the back was also startling. It looked "bombed out," with missing doors and windows. The outer walls were covered with graffiti.

Back at home, I looked at sites on the Internet that described the Cultural Center. All of them recommended La Casa for the same reason provided in the first book I'd read. What had happened?

 Photo from Google Images shows a friendly, active La Casa.

Things to Do in Cabo San Lucas

It is very possible that Hurricane Odile, the devastating storm that struck Cabo San Lucas in September, had something to do with the fate of La Casa. The Category 3 hurricane caused major damage to neighborhoods, the international airport, and resorts. We saw very little evidence left of its devastation in most of the places we visited.

On our next trip, we will probably take a water taxi to Lands End—there were numerous vendors at the Marina eager to give the tourists a ride. Or perhaps we will return to La Casa, hoping that it, too, will have recovered. 

Whale Watching By Zodiac

We might also repeat the Whale Watching Excursion we took in February 2011—we thoroughly enjoyed seeing humpbacked whales close-up from on board our boat.

Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Our Kind of Cruise

My husband and I took our third cruise with Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) in December 2014, and in many ways, it was my favorite cruise. 

We had learned how to sort through the many choices of land excursions and pick those that would be most satisfying to us (including the option of not taking an excursion, but exploring the area by ourselves).

This cart is waiting to give someone a ride through 
the streets of Cabo San Lucas. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

One land excursion included snorkeling off a beach 
along the coast near Puerto Villarta. Photo by Ken Kingsley.

We understood the limitations of a cruise (you only stay one day in a port, so your view of the place will necessarily be superficial).

We also better understood and thoroughly enjoyed what makes a cruise so satisfying: having three full days at sea on a 7-day cruise.

The ocean and the clouds are constantly changing during
full days at sea. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

We walked the promenade for exercise. We settled back in lounge chairs and read good books. Or, most delightfully, we listened to the sound of the waves against the ship and watched the shifting seas and sky.

The sound  of the waves is similar to the sound of the surf on a beach.  Soothing. Relaxing. Restful. But you can also party until late at night.

Free Style Cruising

Norwegian Cruise Lines has a style called “Free Style” cruising which we find very satisfying. That means, there’s no schedule you have to adhere to. You can wake up, go to sleep, and eat meals on your own schedule. You don’t have to dress up unless you want to.

Activities of all kinds are provided day and night, including terrific shows in the ship’s theater. You can choose to be as active or as inactive as you like, to be sociable or unsociable.

My husband went to all the shows. On a couple of nights, I chose to do other things, such as listening to live music in the Atrium and watching elegantly dressed couples who clearly loved to dance with each other.

Even the ship’s décor is part of the pleasure. If you’re looking for elegance, observe the Atrium with its sweeping staircases, grand piano, and glass elevators whisking passengers from floor to floor.

A view of the Atrium decorated for the holidays.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

If you’re looking for cheerful and upbeat, observe the painted decks. When we compared the sedate exteriors of other cruise lines with NCL's, Norwegian Cruise Line clearly rang our bells.

Colorful paintings on deck lends a festive atmosphere to a cruise.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

Crew members do a touch-up during a cruise. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

And so did the sunsets!

Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

  

Snow in the Desert

My husband and I woke New Year's day to snow in our Tucson neighborhood and in the surrounding desert. I went outside while the street lights were still on and the sun still dim to capture the snow with my camera. I knew it wouldn’t last long where we live. Snow in our neighborhood and in the surrounding desert is an unusual occurrence.

The last time snow fell in the city was in February 2013.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

After breakfast, we went for a hike in the mountains at Saguaro National Park East. The landscape sparkled with fresh snow. By the time we got back to the trailhead three hours later, much of the snow had melted from the saguaros growing at the base of the foothills.

A young saguaro develops beneath its nurse plant and is protected from the snow.
Photo by Amy Gaiennie.

When we got home, I was surprised to see that some snow still lingered on the banks of the wash that runs through our neighborhood. But most of it was gone.

Tucson Winter Temps and Snow

• The most recent snowfall to blanket the city was on February 20, 2014.
• Tucson averages 26.4 days with lows at or below the freezing mark.
• The average high temperature in the month of January is 66 degrees F.
• The average low temperature in the month of January is 42 degrees F.

Snows in the Top 10 Weather Events List for Tucson

Note: These records for the 20th century were compiled by the Tucson staff of the National Weather Service. Click here. 

• On November 16, 1958, 6.4 inches of snow in the Tucson area caused widespread damage, including auto accidents, downed power lines, and telephone service outages.  Highways were closed as well as the Tucson airport. Tragically, three boy scouts stranded in the snow in the mountains south of Tucson died during this snowstorm.

• On December 8, 1971. 6.8 inches of snow fell in Tucson—the most ever recorded.  The storm downed power lines, halted traffic, closed the airport, and damaged or destroyed  3,000 trees. (The Tucson staff of the National Weather  Service reports that the airport did not own a snow plow at this time!)

• On December 25, 1987, up to three inches of snow  brought the first white Christmas to Tucson since 1916, when four inches of snow fell.

On January 7, 1913, the coldest temperature officially recorded in Tucson was 6 degrees. Some areas reported even lower temperatures.

Snow powders the Rincon Mountains in Saguaro National Park East. Photo by Amy Gaiennie.