I grew up in the town of Warren, Michigan, just north of Detroit, but this is not about Warren and when I was born my parents bought a piece of land in Greenbush, Michigan, on Lake Huron. Shortly after that they built a small cabin which my mother still owns today. I have fond memories of weekends and summers spent up north at the cabin. We have lived in several places around the country like Palmer, Massachusetts, Phoenix, Arizona, and our home for the last 16 years Colorado Springs, but I always look forward to a visit to the cabin up north in Greenbush. The pho­tos in this gallery were taken in North­ern Michi­gan which includes the areas around the towns of Oscoda, Green­bush, Har­risville, Presque Isle, Tra­vers City, North­port and The Sleep­ing Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. I hope you enjoy the photos of my home in Michigan. My next trip to Michigan. I plan to travel to the upper Peninsula and the North Shore of Lake Superior in Canada.

Click photo below to view photo sideshow of up north Michigan

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We’re a long way from New Orleans here in Colorado but that doesn’t mean we don’t know how to have a good time and keep it fun for the whole family!  Every year the town of Manitou Springs, Colorado holds a Mardi Gras Parade suitable for the whole family to participate in or, enjoy on the sidelines.  This was out first time at the parade and we weren’t disappointed!  We strategically placed ourselves not on the parade route but rather closer to the action – where everyone gathers before the parade starts!  This made for some great closeup pictures and just about the best people watching anyone could hope for.

Manitou  (“spirit” in Native American) is situated on the outskirts of Colorado Springs.  It’s a small, old place with tons of character.  It started out as sacred grounds to the Ute nd Cheyenne Indians.   The famous Pikes Peak Mountain snow runoff feeds the 11 mineral springs located throughout the town.  Today, Manitou Springs is great for tourist shopping, artesian galleries,taking the Pikes Peak God Railway  to the top of Pikes Peak, or grabbing a bite to eat at any of the local restaurants.

I walked away without any beads or candy, but not disappointed.  Mardi Gras in Manitou will become an annual event to watch people having fun and dressing crazy and sharing the silliness with all the local fans.

Utah National Parks are something you don’t want to miss.  Truly.  I’m not sure why it took 31 years of adventures for Doug and I to make the trek to this part of Utah.  Maybe it was that he and our son, Matthew, just returned from a canyoneering trip, and it was April…the right weather to see this part of our beloved America.  As soon as Doug returned from that trip with Matthew we said it was time to see the National Parks of Utah.  We’d always thought about it.  It was on our list.  We loved Bryce and Zion when Matthew was just a small kiddo.  It was time.

A Utah National Parks adventure should be on your Bucket List, if for only the geological phenomenon that makes it so unique.  They are somewhat like the Grand Canyon.  They look like a much grander version of the Garden of the Gods (Colorado Springs).  And yet, they are unique.  There are © 2009-2011 DougNiedermillerPhotography.com, the vastness of Canyonlands and the oddness of the rock formations of Capital Reef.  And, while Natural Bridges is a National Monument and not a National Park, I encourage you to stop and see them as they are so rare and interesting that they should not be missed.  They are all close enough in proximity to each other that the drive is not bad at all.

Arches – Our favorite, because the way the arches are formed it is something you cannot see anywhere else.

Canyonlands – So huge it’s hard to imagine that people lived and mined for uranium here.

Capital Reef – Not so big as the others, but the unique rock hole formations makes it well worth the drive though.

Natural Bridges – Bigger than I thought, worn by water, and Indian habitat ruins!

All of the Utah National Parks have campgrounds.  During peak seasons it is advisable to book your reservations well in advance (up t 180 days) of your stay.  BLM land is available if you don’t need “facilities”.  Each of the Parks has very nice and clean ranger stations.  The rangers and volunteers, as we’ve seen throughout the Park system, are friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.

We are big fans of the National Parks and now Utah is added to the list of great adventures we’ve had, right here in America!!!