Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

Sand Dunes National Park is a mix of all the best-- beautiful views of the towering, pristine dunes, blue mountains in the background, and miles of colorful grass and farmlands in front. It's HOT, though. Go in the early morning or late evening for more enjoyable hiking.

Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Colorado

Views of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range from highway 17, just southeast of the Continental Divide. This range runs behind the Great Sand Dunes and has peaks up to 14,000 feet.

Blue Mesa Reservoir, Colorado

Views of the Blue Mesa Reservoir off highway 50 between Cimarron and Gunnison, Colorado.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado

Views of the canyon from the entrance at near 8000 feet. The gorge is the deepest in Colorado. At points the top rim rises 2000 feet above the Gunnison River. Not a beautiful park by any means, but breathtaking in its own right.

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Views of Island in the Sky, the northern section of the Park-- Shafer's Canyon and Buck's Canyon. Better views when not raining! This is an amazing park with views that stretch out into the horizon.

Arches National Park, Utah

Views of Arches (off 191 in Moab) in southern Utah. The arches themselves are beautiful but the real reason to go is the amazing landscape. Arches encompasses a large area with many different types of scenery-- red soil, jagged rock, green mossed mountains, etc.

Stanley, Idaho and route 21 north

Views off of route 21 north in Idaho crossing through the Sawtooth Mountains, the Salmon River, and the Salmon-Challis National Forest. This is a beautiful stretch of land. You can see desert areas, grassland, savannah, high peak alpine mountains, and dusty foothills. The rocks in the mountains are green colored in areas. Some of the desert buttes are a deep pink and red color like those in Arizona or southern California.

Route 21 (and 93) are very under-traveled and I highly recommend taking a day to go through this area. There is white water rafting, fly fishing, and lots of beautiful camping areas.

Challis, Idaho

Views of ranchland just north of Challis, Idaho. A very dry land with mountain ranges on all side and beautiful valley views. The Salmon River provides a variety of landscapes.

Lincoln City, Oregon

Views of the Pacific Ocean off coastal route 101 which runs from Washington down to California.

La Grande, Oregon

Views of the mountain range off I84 east, heading out of the Columbia River Gorge and into Idaho.

Pacific City, Oregon

Views of the sand dune and big rock off Cape Kiwanda in Pacific City. Climb the dune for amazing views of the Pacific Ocean.

Mount Hood, Oregon

Views off route 35 along the Columbia River in Oregon.

Larch Mountain, Oregon

At the top of Larch Mountain off historic route 30 with views of Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helen's, Mount Hood, Mount Adam's, and Mount Jefferson

Columbia River Gorge, Oregon

Views of the Columbia River Gorge off historic route 30-- Vista House.

Mount Saint Helen's, Washington

Views off route 25 on the south eastern end of Mount Saint Helen's.

Mount Rainier, Washington

Views of the mountain (15,000 ft) off Sunrise drive in the Mount Rainier National Park

Kalaloch Beach, Washington

Views of the Pacific Ocean from Kalaloch Beach on the Olympic peninsula in Washington. Warning-- water was cold! Temperatures here are much cooler.

Hurricane Ridge, Washington

Views of Mount Olympus and surrounding mountains off Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park.

Puget Sound, Washington

Views of the Puget Sound just south of Seattle, Washington.