As the end of the year approaches, I want to review the top blog post from 2021. While I put equal love into creating each post, the SEO gods are a bit pickier about which ones deserve to stand in the limelight. By the end of 2021, I will have created 54 posts and written over 55 thousand words. Countless hours have been spent at my kitchen table typing, researching topics, and then set out for an adventure. Thank you to those who have stuck around this year to enjoy my journey.
5. Hiking In Grand Canyon National Park – South Kaibab Trail
Aside from the gorgeous views, hiking the Grand Canyon South Kaibab Trail was exceptionally fun! Mostly because I didn’t rub any blisters into my feet. While walking over rocks, sand, and gravel, my focus was on enjoying the hike, not hampered by hobbling down the face of the canyon wall.
Each destination point along the South Kaibab Trail has its unique beauty. The winding path is one switchback after another, descending you deeper into the belly of the canyon. As we sat at Skelton Point, I decided to add a hike to the canyon’s floor to my bucket list; maybe event camp under the stars and watch the sunrise over the edge of the canyon.
4. Tallulah Gorge State Park: Expectations vs. Reality
The moment I pushed publish on this blog post, it gained traction. There is no rhyme or reason for its success other than striving to keep the green SEO and readability dots happy. Regardless of how it happens, it does make the long hours of writing worth it to see people reading and enjoying the content I’ve created.
This post is sentimental for many reasons, mainly because it was my first solo trip. Driving into the mountains, I didn’t have a plan. I kind of floated around asking the bartenders for suggestions on areas around Helen worth visiting. When my original hiking plan fell through, I pivoted and landed at the Tallulah Gorge. Spoiler Alert: this place exceeded my expectations for my day of hiking.
3. Revamping 4 Thrift Store Dresses
This is the only non-travel-related post to make the top five. When I publish out of the norm post like this one, I feel like I’m jumping the shark a bit. Sometimes my brain needs a bit of a pallet cleanser from writing descriptive adjectives about the beauty of the outdoors.
Update on this post: I still have not found a place or a reason to wear the fourth dress. I still love the pattern of the fabric and the juxtaposition of the high neck and short hem. However, the other featured dresses in this post have been heavily rotated while on vacation.
2. Day Trip Travel Guide – Egmont Key Florida
Spending the day at Egmont Key was one of the best beach trips this Summer. The ferry ride turned into an impromptu manatee hunt before reaching the shore. (I must clarify, we did not actually hunt manatees, but we very slowly hovered by a pod and snapped a few photos. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if people thought I was a manatee hunter).
Let us not forget this is where I learned the word, Shelling—the art of waking the shore line discovering the exquisite shells to take home. The ferry will sell you a shelling bag to collect your seashells. (Now say that 5x fast).
1. Sequoia National Park – One Day Hiking Itinerary
This post is a testament to the power of sharing and reposting content. This article was shared on Facebook twelve times and received thousands of views. The entire month of July was one day after another of increasing viewership.
The day of hiking the Sequoia National Park was better than the post receiving notoriety. Out of all the National Parks I’ve visited so far, this is one of my top three National Parks. The magnitude of the sequoia trees is something you have to see to wrap your head around. I never got bored of seeing them; each was like a special snowflake.
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