Category: Bucket List

Before I turned 18, I sat down and wrote out a list of everything I wanted to do in life, my “bucket list.” I wanted to make sure that I’m always moving forward, that I don’t become complacent and static. To ensure this, I challenged myself to knock off at least 2 items from the list every year. So far I’ve kept to that challenge, but even as I cross items off, the list has grown exponentially. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to finish this list, but I sure as hell am going to try.

Travel within the USA

• Visit and Camp in all Fifty of the United States, Puerto Rico & the US Virgin Islands
• Visit all 63 National Parks
  • Acadia National Park
  • Arches National Park
  • Big Bend National Park
  • Biscayne National Park
  • Bryce Canyon National Park
  • Canyonlands National Park
  • Capital Reef National Park
  • Carlsbad Caverns National Park
  • Congaree National Park
  • Crater Lake National Park
  • Everglades National Park
  • Gateway Arch National Park
  • Glacier National Park
  • Grand Canyon National Park
  • Grand Teton National Park
  • Great Sand Dunes National Park
  • Great Smoky Mountains National Park
  • Guadalupe Mountains National Park
  • Hot Springs National Park
  • Katmai National Park
  • Kenai Fjords National Park
  • Mammoth Cave National Park
  • Mesa Verde National Park
  • Mount Rainier National Park
  • Olympic National Park
  • Redwoods National Park
  • Rocky Mountain National Park
  • Saguaro National Park
  • White Sands National Park
  • Wrangell-St. Elias National Park
  • Yellowstone National Park
  • Zion National Park
• Alaska
  • See Beluga Whales in Cook Inlet
  • Snowmobile on a frozen lake
  • Work with a sled dog team
  • Drive the Al-Can Highway
  • Explore Prince William Sound
  • Kayak on the Yukon River
  • Catch a salmon
  • Watch the brown bears fish at Brooks Falls
  • Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes
  • Witness the Northern Lights
• Arizona
  • See the Grand Canyon
  • Hike through Antelope Canyon
  • Anasazi Cliff Dwellings in Arizona
  • Walk amongst the Saguaros
  • Make fun of the energy vortexes in Sedona
  • Visit the town of Bisbee
• Florida
  • Bike the Pinellas Trail round-trip from Downtown St. Petersburg, FL to Tarpon Springs, FL (90 miles)
  • Bike the Withlacoochee Trail (46 miles)
  • Visit the Coral Castle
  • St. Augustine
  • Hike the Citrus Trail
  • Visit Lake Okeechobee
  • Florida Caverns
  • Pilot an Air Boat in the Everglades
  • Bok Tower
  • Stuart, Fl
  • Visit Anclote Key State Park
  • See the mermaids at Weeki Wachi Springs
  • Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Key Largo
  • Watch the air show at Sun n’ Fun
  • See the air show at Macdill AFB
  • Swim in the Venetian Pool, Coral Gables
  • Amelia Island
  • Visit the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks
  • Seacrest Wolf Preserve
  • Wekiva Island
  • Attend a sugar cane boil
  • Sunken Gardens, St. Pete
  • Tour TECO’s Big Bend Power Station
  • See the murals in Lake Placid
  • Visit Soloman’s Castle, Ona
  • Stargaze in Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park
  • Blowing Rocks Preserve
  • Fantasy of Flight Museum
  • Canoe/Camp in the 10,000 Islands
  • Disney World
  • Visit the Ringling Museum
  • Visit the Dali Museum
  • Key West
  • Fort Jefferson – Dry Tortugas
  • Visit the Spanish Monastery, Miami Beach
  • Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens
  • Visit Kennedy Space Center
• Georgia
  • Explore Savannah, Georgia
  • Get to Know Atlanta
  • Hiawassee, Georgia
  • Camp: Red Top Mountain / Lake Lanier / Stone Mountain
  • Hike to tallest point in Georgia: Brasstown Bald
  • Providence Canyon State Park
• California
  • Glass Beach, California
  • Drive the Pacific Coast Highway
  • Walk among the California Redwoods
  • Racetrack Playa in Death Valley, California
  • Drive across the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco
• Colorado
  • Wander around Boulder
  • Explore Denver on foot
  • Sleep in a tent in the middle of Denver
  • Garden of the Gods
  • Pike’s Peak
  • Black Canyon of the Gunnison
• Idaho
  • Hike in the Salmon-Challis National Forest
  • Coeur d’Alene
  • Hike to Goldbug Hot Springs
• Kentucky
  • Hike the Red River Gorge
  • Experience the Kentucky Derby
  • Drive the Bourbon Trail
    • Maker’s Mark Distillery
• Montana
  • Hike: Beaten Path – Beartooth / Absaroka Wilderness
  • Rodeos and Street Dances
  • Red Ants Pants Music Festival
  • Darby Logger Days
  • Lewis & Clark Caverns
  • Upper Missouri River Breaks
  • Sail on Canyon Ferry Reservoir
  • Gates of the Wilderness
• Nevada
  • Stay in a hotel on the Las Vegas strip
  • Gamble in Vegas
  • See the Hoover Dam
• New Mexico
  • Hike in the Gila Wilderness
  • Traverse the lava fields of El Malpais
• New York
  • Visit Ellis Island and climb to the crown of the Statue of Liberty
  • See Central Park covered in snow
  • Ice Skate at the Rockefeller Center
  • See a play on Broadway
  • Walk the High Line
  • Hike in the Adirondacks
• North Carolina
  • Wander around Asheville
  • Nag’s Head
• Oregon
  • See Astoria
  • Explore Portland
  • Drive the Columbia River
• South Dakota
  • See Mount Rushmore
  • Crazy Horse Memorial
• Tennessee
  • Tourist Hell in Gatlinburg
  • See how it’s made at the Jack Daniels Distillery
  • Explore Nashville
•  Texas
  • Palo Duro Canyon State Park
  • Explore San Antonio
  • Swim in the Rio Grande
•  Utah
  • Zion National Park, Utah
  • See the sunset at Dead Horse Point State Park
  • Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah
• Washington
  • Explore Seattle
  • Pick an apple from an orchard in Wenatchee
• Washington D.C.
  • Tour the White House
  • Visit the Smithsonian Museums
  • See the Cherry Blossoms
  • Tour the Capitol Building
• Wyoming
  • Visit Devil’s Tower
  • Explore Jackson Hole
  • Hike in the Wind River Range
  • Visit Quebec-01 Missile Alert Facility
• Canoe/Kayak the Boundary Waters
• Travel by Train in the United States
• Bio-luminescent Bay, Puerto Rico
• Drive on Route 66
• Visit Waikiki Beach, Oahu, Hawaii

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