My absolute favorite way to pass the time is to go exploring. I will never pass up an opportunity to go hiking, rock climbing, or kayaking, among many other things. I have found that it is the best way for me, personally, to get away from the mess of the world for a little bit and to focus on the beauty of it. It gives me time to maybe self-reflect or just enjoy the serenity of the outdoors. Another thing I love to do in nature is to simply listen to the silence of it all. It can be so incredibly relaxing to not hear cars driving past, or sirens wailing, or even people talking.

My family has never preferred to go on normal beach vacations. We have always chosen to go far away from our home and get deep into nature. Normally, we will fly to a location or even rent an RV to drive there depending on the distance. From there, we choose about 4-5 National Parks that we want to visit in the general vicinity. We will take about 2 weeks to visit all these places in as much detail as we are able to.

We love doing this because it is not only an amazing way to get out into nature, but it is also an incredible time to spend with family. All of my brothers are many years older than I am, so it is getting harder for my entire family to be together for an extended period. This leads us to take these vacations pretty seriously and do absolutely whatever we can to make it work.

Because of the meanings these vacations and places can have to me, I decided to reflect on some of them in my future blogs. I will write about all the places I’ve been, including the crazy stories from some of them, and will also include the places I aspire to go. I want to share my favorite moments of my life, and many of them have been on these vacations, with the people I love most. I will also share some of the best ways that you can travel with people here on the Gannon campus! There are many different programs such as going on an ABST (Alternative Break Service Trip) or T.R.A.V.E.L. trip.

I feel that National Parks have always been a little bit underrated, and I want to expose the most incredible parts of them so that people can fully appreciate them. I am so excited to be able to share these experiences with everyone! Hopefully it will inspire someone to take the plunge and to go explore somewhere they have always wanted to go.