Flagstaff, Arizona

The first thing I noticed about Flagstaff was that after a long time out in the wide open desert, we were back in the trees! Ponderosa Pines thrive in this high-elevation landscape, and we were so happy to see them again. Being from the Pacific Northwest, we tend to take the presence of trees for granted, but after a month without them, we realized just how calm and grounded they make us feel.

We were so comfy here. With multiple universities, cool historic buildings, beautiful mountains, good restaurants, and tall green forests, it's a town we could see ourselves living in (not that we ever plan to move). We thought it was so lovely that we decided to research what people don't like about living there, just out of curiosity. Apparently, its wildly expensive and has subpar Chinese food. So, not too much to complain about, so long as you can afford it. And if you're looking to open an excellent Chinese restaurant, this may be just the place!

So many of the things we loved about Flagstaff (mountains, high elevation, dark skies) also make it the perfect location for the Lowell Observatory. If you find outer space even a little bit interesting, this is one of the coolest places you can visit.

It's among the oldest observatories in the United States, a historic landmark, and Time Magazine named it one of the most important places in the world. Astronomers have made many amazing discoveries over Lowell's 100-year history. Most notably: they found Pluto here! And we got to check out the very telescope that proved its existence.

We even had the lucky opportunity to use Clark, the center's oldest and most famous telescope. We got to look through the very lens that has ignited the imaginations of Neil deGrasse Tyson, Zane Grey, Neil Armstrong, Hillary Clinton, and other notable figures.

Lowell's amazing telescopes gave us awe-inspiring views of Venus, Pluto, the moon, the sun, Jupiter, Mars, and the Orion Nebula. It was incredible to see that much of the solar system so clearly in a single evening. We also took a beautiful drive out to hike the west fork of Oak Creek Canyon. The soaring, carved canyon walls and glowing light reminded us of Zion. The trail followed the creek for miles, crossing it many times as it twisted and turned. The dogs loved cooling off in the creek between miles on the trail.

We loved our time in Flagstaff, despite our decision to take the internet's advice and avoid ordering Chinese food. It has earned its place on our long list of places we'd love to return to someday.