Sandra Friend

Sandra Friend

For three decades, I've shared my love of travel, hiking, and the outdoors with people like yourself through my articles, books, and photography.
14
Jun
Lone boat in a vast estuary

Atlantic City's True Nature

Atlantic City, New Jersey, isn’t where you’d expect a nature trail. But the 1.1 mile AC Waterfront Sculpture Walk, a great birding destination, offers a panorama of Atlantic City’s wild spaces.
4 min read
03
Jun
Standing stones at Stonehenge

In Awe of Stonehenge

An iconic Neolithic site known around the world, there is only one Stonehenge. As we discovered, it's worth the journey to stand on this windy hillside in England in order to understand its allure and power.
6 min read
02
Jun
Portland 4T signage

Taking on Portland's 4T

Portland's 4T provides a way to loop Oregon's most bustling metro on foot, including four miles of hiking through mossy forests of towering spruce trees.
6 min read
06
May
Moments on a grassy hill with interpretive sign below

The First Public Walk in Britain: Calton Hill

One of the seven volcanic hills within Edinburgh, Calton Hill is an ancient cinder cone atop which the first public footpath in Great Britain was established, in 1775.
2 min read
02
May
Two lane road through a small rural English village with stone houses

Crossing Yorkshire

Crossing Yorkshire in a coach on a British Isles tour with John's parents, we barely scratched the surface of this moody, fascinating countryside.
2 min read
23
Apr
A spindly live oak with a massive trunk dwarfs people beneath its canopy

The Angel Oak

A stately ancient live oak thought to be more than 1,500 years old, the Angel Oak is on John's Island in the South Carolina Lowcountry near Charleston.
1 min read
12
Apr
Mississippi Sandhill Crane NWR

The Mississippi Sandhill Crane

Bringing an endangered species back from the brink of extinction, the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge provides a success story for conservation.
6 min read
02
Jan
Stallion at Dos De Enero

Last Moments of Wild

At Dos De Enero Ranch along the boundary of Torres Del Paine National Park in Chile, I witnessed the last moments of the fiery spirit of this wild stallion.
1 min read
23
Sep
Crescent Hotel

Haunted by Eureka Springs

Discover the weird in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, a Victorian village in the Ozarks with both gruesome ghosts and Wild West history.
7 min read
25
Jul
Caves in rock face in woods

Exploring Maquoketa Caves State Park

Your view of Iowa is turned upside down at Maquoketa Caves State Park, a family-friendly caving destination south of Dubuque that lets you climb right in and explore wild caves.
7 min read