You might think the arid climate of Saguaro National Park precludes trail woes, but you’d be wrong. Last year Friends of Saguaro National Park helped the park land a grant of more than $71,000 to help pay for the rerouting of a nearly mile-long section of the Carrillo Trail in the Cactus Forest. Over the years the trail had become badly eroded, no doubt because of its popularity as part of the “Three Tanks Loop” that gives hikers a panoramic view of the Cactus Forest and even the city of Tucson.

It matters little whether you start in the south and drive north, or start in the north and drive south; the fall finery that cloaks the Appalachian Range has few peers when the climatic conditions converge in mid-October.

There are endless ways to experience our magnificent national parks. We are surrounded by stunning scenery, awash in light and color. Our ears capture the rush of waterfalls in spring and elk bugling in autumn. Scents of crisp air, pines, and wildflowers greet us. Stick your feet into a mountain stream and feel the bonechilling temperatures, or touch the softness of a Pussytoes flower. These types of activities allow us yet another type of experience.

I recently received an invitation to sleep in a log cabin. Not something new and swanky, mind you. Instead, my imagination was sparked because this cabin was built in 1817, around the time Davy Crockett was earning his reputation as a frontiersman, storyteller, and politician.