Rogers Pass, Glacier National Park, British Columbia, Canada

Three days after rainy Yoho National Park, Glacier National Park (Canada) was just as rainy. I basically just drove through on the Trans-Canadian Highway through Rogers Pass. Again, pretty but not photogenic.

One cool thing was that the highway is roofed in places to protect drivers from avalanches!

BTW, I technically went through Mount Revelstoke National Park after this, but as I could see even less – nothing but the road in front of me, really – I didn't take photos and don't even count it as a visit.

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Narao Peak, Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada

I didn't get to see much of Narao Peak at the Continental Divide or the rest of Yoho National Park, thanks to early autumn rains. It was pretty but not photogenic.

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Snowy Tomichi Point, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado

It surprises me that Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado isn't more famous. It's the most awe-inspiring canyon in the USA.

According to Duane Vandenbusche, author of "Images of America: The Black Canyon of the Gunnison," the canyon's is named "Black Canyon" because some parts only get 33 minutes of sunlight daily. I think it's also partially because of the dark gneiss rock that comprises most of the canyon.

Vandenbusche writes, "Several canyons of the American West are longer and some are deeper, but none combines the depth, sheerness, narrowness, darkness, and dread of the Black Canyon."

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Snowy Morning, Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

Driving all day from Moab, Utah, to Mesa Verde National Park, then to Alamosa, Colo., didn't help me avoid the blizzard. It blew all night with 60 mph winds! But I was consoled with this view of Great Sand Dunes National Park the next morning. Breathtaking!

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Snowstorm, Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Kanab, Utah

Is it Christmas? I felt like it when a brief snowstorm frosted Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park near Kanab, Utah. And the snow came with benefits!

Coral Pink Sand Dunes is a popular park for folks to drive their noisy dune buggies and other OHVs. On this particular weekend, even though it was early in the season, the campground was full of riders doing their thang.

If you know me, you know I hate full campgrounds and anywhere there’s lots of people. Especially when they have loud, obnoxious hobbies. Then the storm came.

At first, it was just rain on Saturday night, March 5, continuing off and on through Sunday. That drove off the dune buggy people. I was ecstatic. The girls and I cuddled in Kennel, staying dry and warm. I finished reading the hilarious "Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal " by Christopher Moore.

But then, about 6 p.m. Sunday, March 6, I looked outside. The rainstorm hand become a snowstorm! Snow! SNOW!

I hopped out the van like Jiminy Cricket and ran around in my shorts and Tevas snapping photos as the little puffs came drifting down. Christmas, indeed!

You see, I’m from South Texas. The last time it snowed there was 2004, on Christmas Eve, and that was the first time in a century. Literally. So snowy weather is still a treat for me, not a pain to shovel and drive through. It was darned pretty too. So sue me.

Alas, the ground was warm enough that most of the snow had melted by 9 a.m. Monday morning. But I was there at ground zero! I’m a happy, happy boy!

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Dust Storm, I-40, Winslow, Arizona

Dark clouds chilled Winslow, Ariz., as 40 mph *average* southerly winds blew dust and I-40 traffic around. Suffice to say, no one “was standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona.”

But in Winslow, they don’t call this a storm. It’s a breeze. Anything less than 70 mph is just a breeze, according to the ranger at Homolovi State Park, where I camped a few days. He added that their local record wind speed is over 150 mph!

These speeds were high enough for me and the dogs. On the drive from Prescott, we’d been nearly knocked over several times by gusts and swerving 18-wheelers. Once we got to the campground, we huddled inside Kennel and tried to nap as the van shook. We didn’t come out for a walk until the winds subsided at sunset.

Homolovi State Park is a good overnight stop if you’re traveling I-40 in northeastern Arizona, by the way. A non-electric site is only $15 a night, $18 if you want an electrical hookup. There is no additional park entry fee. And the campground has HOT SHOWERS! Being close to the highway, cell reception is great.

From Homolovi, it’s less than an hour to Petrified Forest National Park, which has no campground. The state park is also an archaeological site with several ancient villages. The sites are co-managed with the Hopi Nation.

I didn’t check out the ruins myself, though. I was too tired from days of fun around Prescott to care. But below is a video I found online about the archaeology of the Homolovi State Park.

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Storm, Arkansas City, Kansas

"And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so." — Genesis 1:7