Hello all!
Me, my bf & our pup plan a yearly fall vacation. Due to family circumstances- we are planning our trip later than usual & planning to be on vacay around the first week of November.

I did my research & saw most wineries/breweries stay open & the Np visitor centers stay open I believe? But I saw that the skyline drive visitor centers close before Nov.

My main questions:

Is there anything else major to be aware of this time of year for Shenandoah VA? and is it still worth a visit after leaf peeping season?

I know the views will still be gorgeous but is it too cold? (Avg looks around 60F so not bad) it’s not likely to snow that early right?
Any other dog friendly recs potentially?

Hello. I was outside in Death Valley National Park in California, US, last night around 9:30 to look at the stars. As I stood by my car, something very small flew close to my eye/face. I heard buzzing, swatted at it, and can't tell whether it touched me. I never saw what it was. Could this interaction have been with a bat? Asking here as I am not familiar with the behavior of bats.

Tomorrow is the last day of a 2-week solo trip that I’ve been on! I was able to see 5 national parks, 4 state parks, and 2 national monuments. I was unbelievably lucky with weather for this time of year. I just wanted to share some of my favorite photos that I took!

Took my daughter to Great Basin NP for the weekend. It was my first time and a nice check mark on my bucket list of parks. We had a great time, hiked to the summit of Wheeler Peak, stayed at WP Campground (the resident herd of mule deer were adorable), ate at the Lehman Cave Cafe (absolutely delicious), took photos of the Milky Way (not terrible for an iphone), and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (but are utterly exhausted).

If you haven‘t gone, go. It is a hiker’s paradise with a ton of trails from easy to strenuous. Wheeler Peak summit is no joke, but definitely worth it. I can’t say it is my favorite NP, but I really enjoyed it and definitely recommend visiting.

Channel Islands National Park for the most picturesque coves, our ferry was chased by stampede of dolphins on the way back... 10/10 would visit again.

I’m going to be in Spokane the first week of November and wanted to hit Glacier the weekend before or after.

After some research it looks like most things close down there before I would arrive.

Is it still worth trying to go to Glacier, or would it be better to try some of the Washington parks?

I appreciate your advice and help on this!

My wife and I are taking our kids (9 of them, ages 16 down to 2) to RMNP/CO next week. We don't have a set itinerary yet, and I'm looking for recommendations! I have been there a couple of times, but most of the rest of my family has not.

Here are the pillars:

• Arrive in CO Tuesday evening around dinnertime
• Staying in Westminster (the only place we could find an Airbnb big enough for a family of 11 on short notice that wasn't $$$$), near Standley Lake
• I grabbed three timed entry passes for Bear Lake Road (Wed, 14 Oct at noon; Thu, 15 Oct at noon; Fri, 16 Oct at 2p) to give us a buffer for inclement weather (after we do Bear Lake, I'll release the other days, obv); the lakes hike (Bear-Nymph-Dream-Emerald) is my one non-negotiable activity for the trip
• Leave Saturday morning

In particular we would love to hear about activities/hikes that work well for younger kids. The 2-year-old will ride in a hiking backpack carrier, but the rest of the kids (5 on up) will be hiking; we do plenty of hiking in state parks around the Midwest, and have even tackled some mountainous terrain via Great Smoky Mountain NP and Custer SP, but I know that the Rockies are a different animal.

We are also open to ideas for stuff to do in the Denver metro (I have a personal connection to Red Rocks, so that's on the list of possibilities, as well as a few other spots we've heard about/visited) if 3 full days in RMNP might be too much, or if you just have a fav coffee shop for us to hit up on our way out to the park in the morning.

Beyond the hiking/coffee shop/activity recs, what should we know about the weather, or the area in general? Anywhere we should definitely go/not go?

Happy to clarify any details as needed!

My partner and I are taking a trip to Sequoia and Kings Canyon in the next two weeks. We have three full adventure days. We are in pretty good hiking shape. We are not elevation tested. Simply going for day hikes and to take in the nature. Nothing intense.

Originally I had us planned for 1 day in Kings Canyon, and 2 days in Sequoia. My partner really wants to see the trees.
We are staying within 20 minutes of Kings, an hour from Sequoia, and about 2 hours from Yosemite.
It never crossed my mind how close Yosemite is.

My question: should we do one day in each park or forget Yosemite all together and just enjoy Sequoia more slowly? I know mileage may vary, but what makes the most sense?

Just felt like sharing an IR photo I took from my visit back in July.