Bit of Betsy

Meet Me in The Mojave

“When you get what you want, what do you want? So you go to the desert…” -Mojave 2015 The Mojave desert is my backyard. At over 47,000 sq miles the Mojave is the smallest desert in North America, it is also the driest. Despite these factors the Mojave is rich in biodiversity and there…

How to Practice Being Present Everyday

Being present does not just refer to your down dog in yoga class. You can follow the practice of being present every day to increase your quality of life. We live in a culture of anticipation. We are continually searching for something to look forward to. We spend so much time waiting for something good…

Ten Sleep Wyoming – By Valarie Tes Anderson

For the first installment of Hidden Corners we will be visiting the small town of Ten Sleep Wyoming. My dear friend Valarie Anderson sure did her research on this one. THE WILD BLUE YONDER Valarie Tes Anderson I’m a California native. While there is an endless supply of outdoor arenas to visit in my home state, they…

Hidden Corners

There is a trend in the way social media and the internet are influencing where people play outside. It seems that more and more the most beautiful well known spots are being flooded with visitors. for example National Parks throughout the nation are seeing record high visitations for the 3rd year in a row. Parking…

A Vacation on the Salton Sea

I wanted to take a mini vacation. Hawaii would have been ideal but time and money would not allow it. I needed a place within driving distance that I had never explored before. I had two days. After living in Southern California for almost a decade this was a tall order and with my…

Hiking Patagonia: The W

Hiking The W in Torres Del Paine National Park, Patagonia

Patagonia: Kayaking the Rio Serrano

I’m finally getting back in the swing of things since getting back from our trip to Patagonia. I plan on writing about all the amazing things we did and saw on our trip and I decided the best way to start would be with what I think was the highlight of our trip: kayaking the…

In Patagonia

Our trip is winding down to an end. I’m sitting on the bottom bunk of our hostel listening to the wind rattle the windows. It’s a bit cloudy out today and we plan on one last hike before the bus takes us back to Calafate and our plane back home. I’ll be filling you all…

First days in Patagonia

Visiting Patagonia has alway been a dream of mine. I think there is something about the less traveled parts of the world that draw me to them. Patagonia for lack of a better word is big. It is expansive in every way. The sky opens up over golden scrub land. The wind howls here, cold…

Finding Inspiration When the Well is Dry

When I first started this blog I had grand plans to write a post every week. While I try to update my blog as much as possible there are times that inspiration fails to strike me. Which got me to thinking, where does inspiration come from? Does that spark of creative genius only come from…

Hiking: Chaparrosa Peak

Miles-8 Elevation-5500 ft. Getting there- From I-10 take route 62 north towards Yucca Valley. In 19 miles turn left on Pioneer town road. In 7.5 miles turn left onto Pipes Canyon Road. In .9 miles the road ends at the Pioneertown Mountain Preserve. High above the city of Yucca Valley, up a twisting road past…