mountain – Emmalee Mauldin

Steep inclines + city views on Chautauqua Trail in Chautauqua Park, in Boulder, Colorado

If you’ve followed my blog for a while, you would know that I’ve never really spent any extended amount of time in Colorado – although it’s been on my bucket list! So, on a recent work trip in Colorado, I spent a day hiking in a nearby park: Chautauqua Park. Chautauqua Park is located just…

The Forgotten Moonscape Crater Fields of the Apollo Program, in Flagstaff, Arizona

Did you know that just north of Flagstaff, Arizona, you can find a forgotten field filled with manmade craters that astronauts used to train for spacewalks during the Apollo program? It’s true! The Cinder Lakes crater field is a recreated moonscape that was made by the Astrogeology Research Program in collaboration with scientists from the…

Stunning views + lupine meadows hiking at Mt. Spokane, Washington

Hiking at Mount Spokane in Washington State is so beautiful and gives you absolutely STUNNING views of the valley below. Mount Spokane State Park is located about an hour and 15 minutes, or 35-40 miles, from Spokane proper. In the wintertime, it’s a popular spot to ski but in the off-season, it’s a beautiful spot…

Don’t Mine-d If I Do… Hiking “Carrie Nation Trail #78” in Coronado National Forest, Arizona

Coronado National Forest in southern Arizona is home to many unique hiking trails. It is also home to many old copper and uranium mines. When I visited my mom in May, she took me on a hike to an old uranium mine, and it’s now one of my favorite hikes in the area. This hike…

“Where Nature and Astronomy Meet” Mt. Wilson Observatory, California

My work at the University of Arizona’s Steward Observatory took me on an unexpected trip to Mount Wilson, California. Mt. Wilson is a 100+ year old observatory about 35 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the Angeles National Forest. It’s a beautiful 1.5 hour drive and there are also hikes that lead visitors through…

Backpacking at Dinkey Lakes, California

One thing that I’m sure many people don’t know or expect from me is that I adore backpacking. I’ve only ever been a few times, but one of my favorite places to backpack is Dinkey Lakes in California. Dinkey Lakes is about 200 miles straight east of San Jose, California, in the Sierra National Forest. It’s…

Nature Trails in Coronado National Forest, Arizona

Southern Arizona is one of the most beautiful and best places to be during wintertime. This January I went hiking in Coronado National Forest, located about 25 miles from Green Valley, south of Tucson, Arizona. The weather that day had a high of around 65-70*F (although it was chillier in the shade) and a slight…