At Talley Your Adventure, we don’t just plan luxury and culturally rich travel experiences—we live and breathe them. Our blog, travelingtalleys.blog, is where we share the real stories behind our adventures: kayaking alongside glaciers in Alaska, exploring temples in Japan, chasing waterfalls in Iceland, and wandering through storybook towns in Germany. If it’s unforgettable, chances are we’ve done it—or we’re planning it next.
Nicolette brings deep experience in travel and heritage. With a Master’s in Public History, she’s worked as a Supervisory Park Ranger, Revenue Manager, and Program Analyst across multiple national parks for over a decade. Her career has taken her from managing interpretive boat tours in Alaska’s wild backcountry to overseeing large-scale visitor service projects with million-dollar budgets. And yes—she’s also a licensed 100-Ton Inland Master Boat Captain who’s led cultural and ecological tours from riverboats to remote beaches.
Clinton’s travel roots run just as deep. He’s worked in logistics and operations for the National Park Service and was a key member of the hospitality team aboard National Geographic Lindblad Expeditions. From managing guest services on remote international voyages to coordinating facility software systems stateside, he knows what it takes to deliver seamless, high-end travel experiences—even in the most unpredictable places.
Together, we created Talley Your Adventure to bring our experience, passion, and attention to detail to your travel planning. Whether it’s a fully curated group trip or a personalized vacation built just for you, we combine expert-level service with insider know-how—so you can focus on the magic of the journey.
Want us to help you on your next adventure? Head over to www.talleyyouradventure.com!
— Talley Your Adventure – Dream Vacations (@TTalleys) July 14, 2025
Talley Your Adventure has over 25 years of travel experience – we've been to over 30 countries, all 50 states, and four continents. We know our stuff! Contact us today before scheduling your next travel adventure. #adventuretravel#travel#dreamvacationspic.twitter.com/wMJOvO1sle
— Talley Your Adventure – Dream Vacations (@TTalleys) July 25, 2025
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park is a long, winding park that follows the Potomac River from Georgetown, DC to Cumberland Maryland. You can access much of the park via car by driving to various locations along the 184.5 miles that the canal call home! In particular, the Great Falls area enjoys a wonderfully vibrant surrounding community that is built on recreation (kayakers, hikers, bikers), those that love the park and people who are visiting DC and want to get away from the city.
The trails in the Great Falls section of the C&O Canal are absolutely fabulous and I highly recommend that if you are in the area you take a couple hours to come out and enjoy for yourself. There are a couple different ones depending on your comfort level. For instance, if you want to bring your dog and enjoy views of the Potomac River on a relatively easy path, the River Trail is definitely for you. If you want more of a rocky, scrambling experience that does not allow your dog friend, I recommend Billy Goat-A (BGT-A) as it has a traverse that is pretty difficult but the trail itself is relatively short (1.75 miles). There are also two other trails right outside the Visitor Center, Ford Mine and Gold Mine, that connect with other trails and can be considered easy or difficult depending on how far you want to go. For all visitors, it is a must walking out to the Great Falls Overlook to see the mighty Potomac in all her glory – and point and laugh at the Virginia side. 😉
Visiting the park can also include many different forms of historical programming depending on the visitor center you drive up to for the day. In Great Falls, there are mules that can be fed and pet depending on the day of the week, and up in Williamsport you can enjoy a boat ride on a small launch boat on the canal. The one thing bringing all of this together is the historical connection of the canal itself, which began construction in 1828. Though Ohio is in the name, that was truly because the dream was to have the canal end in the Ohio River Valley. This was not to be, as the canal – though a modern marvel at the time of finalization in the 1850s – was still quickly overcome by the mighty railroads. It never made it past Cumberland, Ohion.
There is plenty to do when visiting the C&O Canal!
Those of you who know me best know that it has been a lifelong dream of mine to visit Japan. I have not had the opportunity, through a variety of reasons, until the last year when Clinton and I were able to save up to plan the trip well in advance of attending.
The main reason for me to visit Japan was to be absorbed and immersed in the culture and climate of Japan. I was and am still not as concerned or interested in visiting a large town such as Tokyo or a specific shrine or area. Many of you will have these interests – and Tally Your Adventure can help you find those amazing places! For me, personally, I wanted the opportunity to be in a small town during a normally extremely busy time of the year for the country. There were not the larger crowds that would be in Kyoto or Hokkaido even though the cherry blossoms were in full bloom! If you are interested in a more intimate and slower experience when visiting Japan, let us know that as well – we got you covered!
When we started to plan for our trip, we knew we wanted to try to time our visit with the cherry blossoms. This can be rather difficult as you are usually planning many months (for us, we planning 6 months in advance!) before really knowing when the blossoms will bloom. You honestly end up guessing and hoping that you timed it right! Because of this uncertainty, I focused on finding another reason to visit Japan in case we ended up missing the blossoms. This is where I discovered the Inuyama Matsuri, a 300+ year old celebration where the locals offer the Karakuri to the Haritsuna Shrine. At the very least, I knew we would see something spectacular in the form of a cultural event. And boy, did it deliver! During the two day celebration, the local families pull out one of the thirteen giant floats – which are pushed and pulled BY HAND!
We were able to enjoy this celebration by staying at the amazing IHG InterContinental Hotel right in town, which hosted the town’s hot spring. I was a bit worried with my tattoos that I would not be able to attend, but there was no issues and beyond maybe a few looks from the older folks I was totally fine! Be warned – no clothes! It is a fantastic experience that Clinton and I were able to use every day. They have a beautiful spa experience with not just the hot spring, but a dry sauna, a cold dip pool, and a bunch of showers with sweet smelling products to use. The women and men are separated for a truly personal experience.
We were close enough to walk ‘up the hill’ from the hotel to see the neighborhood where the floats emerged, but where and what were they exactly doing, you ask? They were bringing the floats to the Shrine as an offering for the year. During the day, the floats rested in front of the Shrine while the Kakakuri (dolls) performed on one of the tiers of the float. At night, the floats were lit up with 365 beautiful lanterns for display before the floats were moved back to their garages for the night. The next day, it repeated! For us, the next day was rainy – so, unfortunately, we were not able to see all thirteen floats again. Only eight participated, but we were happy to have even eight! We spent the next morning visiting the local museums in town that showed the history of the Kakakuri dolls, how they were constructed, and how they worked. It is truly a fascinating piece of artistic engineering that must be seen when visiting this town!
So, back to my question…where were the floats going? To the Inuyama Castle! We made sure to visit the castle the day before the celebration, which was good we did as the lines the next couple days were pretty long. The castle was built back in 1537, making it one of the oldest buildings that we have visited in many years! We had to take off our shoes and carry them in a bag, which I thought was a really nice touch and way to try to preserve such a fragile building. The views were amazing. Built by the uncle of Oda Nobunaga, the castle changed hands many times before settling as a Japanese National Treasure. Much like how we preserve land and areas as National Monuments and Parks, this beautiful structure will be preserved for many generations to come! The landscape around it was meticulously kept as authentic as possible. You can see the care and love that is given to this ancient landmark!
We can’t visit another country without taking time to find a National Park! Or, in this case, battlefield! Sekigahara Battlefield is a sister site for Gettysburg National Battlefield in Pennsylvania. It was recommended by a friend of mine who use to work for Gettysburg. Small world – Inuyama was only an hour by train from Sekigahara! We decided to take a day trip and figure out the train. After a small snafu attempting to return without a station to talk to someone, we figured it out and had a great time all around. Taking the train was easiest and included a small walk to the battlefield, where you read signs that explain the battle. Tokugawa Ieyasu, the warlord during this battle, has an impressive history. The Visitor Center does an even more impressive job of explaining Tokugawa as well as the battle and the overall war. This battle, much like Gettysburg, ended up turning the tide of war and eventually led to a wave of prosperity and unity for Japan. We had a great time and highly recommend adding this to your trip if you end up in the area!
Food was easy to find even with a language barrier. Inuyama seems to thrive on ‘food on a stick’! Yum! We had rice balls with soy sauce, beef, and other items that filled us up with small portions and yummy flavors. Make sure to bring cash! Credit cards are not frequently available to use for purchases. Also, they definitely want you to pause and enjoy your food. Don’t walk and eat! Stop, talk to your friend, or people watch. Trash cans are not readily available so you’ll want to give the stick back to the people who you bought the food from – they usually have a small trash can on the counter for this purpose. Have fun and experiment!
Florida, as my birth state, is near and dear to my heart but I will selfishly admit that most of my life experiences have been through Central Florida. I was born in Orlando and went to college at the University of South Florida in Tampa. I got married in Cocoa Beach. Central Florida is just part of my normal life! Florida is full of complexities, oddities, and characters but nothing defines Florida more than Disney World! Growing up we always had year passes and now that we live in Florida again, we will be sure to get all the Florida resident discounts that we are able while also trying to pass these discounts off to our clients! There is so much more to Florida than Disney, however, and I’m happy to explain some of those places here in this blog!
Lake Eola is in downtown Orlando and is worth a stroll along the walkway that stretches around the entire lake. There are restaurants and shopping available, but the best is watching the swans swim effortlessly across the lake while sitting in the shade. The surrounding downtown Orlando area always seems to be changing and is constantly busy with events. One of my favorites is the Walt Disney Amphitheater (we locals call it the Bandshell), a huge venue that allows excellent amplification for concerts, demonstrations, and parties take place right next to the lake. Another recommendation is to go just outside Orlando, to the smaller city of Winter Park. The downtown area is quaint, with cobblestone streets and themed music coming from joyously decorated restaurants and shopping areas as you walk along the sidewalk. I love joining my girlfriends for dinner and drinks in the ritzy restaurants. And if strolling, walking, or leisurely living isn’t your think while visiting Orlando – try watching an Orlando Magic (basketball) game at the Kia Center or the Orlando City Soccer Club. Orlando is rich with Hispanic/Latina/Latino vibes so look out for festivals and restaurants leaning more this direction. It is one of the things I love about this amazing city – the flair, the festivity, the attitude.
We cannot talk about Florida without taking a moment to talk about the many natural springs that are within the state. With the highest point around 300ft, Florida has lots of access to water in and around the state! One of my favorite things to do is visit a natural spring – such as Blue Springs State Park! Not only can you see these adorable swimming cows in their natural environment during the winter months (Nov – March) , but you can rent a boat that will safely take you through the area. The Springs stay a constant 72 degrees year-round, so it is also a nice place to visit during the summer months when it is hot and humid all around the state. Take some time when you visit Florida and make sure to get out into the wilderness!
Speaking of Latin flare, lets switch over to the other coast and talk more about Tampa! Home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the University of South Florida, Tampa has a much faster pace than Orlando, I have to admit! Heading right next door to St. Petersburg, you can visit both the Salvador Dali Museum and the Florida Holocaust Museum. The cultural tour can continue in Ybor, where you can learn to roll your own cigars while enjoying an amazing Cuban meal at the El Reloj Cigar Factory.
The beaches on the west coast are going to be still and less active because it is part of the Gulf as opposed to the Atlantic Ocean. If you want to surf, go to Cocoa Beach! If you want to relax in the water without too much fear of being pummeled by waves, head to beaches like Clearwater. This is also the best place to look for Sand Dollars! Remember that they are living creatures, so put them back in the ocean after admiring them. Tampa and St. Pete beaches are known for their drifting sand bars during certain tides, so don’t be too afraid to venture out a bit and see if you can still touch the bottom!
Heading back over to the other side of the state, Cocoa Beach is completely different. It will not have the Sand Dollars as much as they have Sting Rays, so make sure to do the ‘Sting Ray Shuffle”! This is simple where you shuffle your feet in the sand instead of picking them up and putting them back in the water to step. Shuffling allows you to feel the side fin of a ray, who will scurry along the bottom out of the way. If you come in from the top, you might get stung! Make sure on any beach that you pay attention to the warnings, if there are any, and the lifeguards. They are there to help you, but they also don’t want you to get yourself in a situation of danger. If there is a riptide or a strong current and they ask you to leave the ocean – don’t argue that you are a world class swimmer. They will have to be the ones to rescue you when you are proven wrong, and no one wants the psychological damage of having to tell that I told you so to a dead body. That might be harsh but come on! Be respectful of the safety that is provided for you and we all will have fun on the beach!
Cocoa Beach is home to a world-wide surf annual surf competition and the atmosphere in the area definitely reflects it! The Cocoa Beach Surf Company and Ron Jon’s Surf Shop all call Cocoa Beach their original home and have since branched out too many other beaches along the Florida coast.
Beaches all around the Florida coast are heavily visited year-round but there are many different beaches to visit, so there are chances you will find a less populated beach than another close by. For instance, everyone knows about Daytona Beach. I don’t personally like it too much, mostly because they allow driving on the sand. I like Cocoa Beach, which is less visited but you cannot drive right up to your spot in the sand. I like that sacrifice because it is less busy but I need to lug my stuff further and walk over hot sand. If you want any advice about which beach to visit based on your preferences, make sure to give Talley Your Adventure a call and we will help you out!
There are other amazing places to visit in Florida besides Central Florida, and I will be sure to write another blog about North and South Florida this year as we continue to celebrate America’s 250th Anniversary! Florida was not part of the original 13 colonies, but they still hold the title of the site for the countries oldest fort in St. Augustine and some of the best beaches and tourist destinations in the world. Keep here to read more about the states in our awesome country as we continue through the year!
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