My desire to see Bali had been a long-held dream, after studying Indonesian at school and most of my Australian friends making the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. So when the stars aligned and I found an opportunity to take a solo trip, I couldn't have jumped faster.

Lehman Cave in Great Basin National Park marks my final destination on my journey driving the loneliest road in America. National Parks take us to a different world, and this would be my first time exploring the Earth from deep inside a cave. It did not disappoint. Here are some tips to make sure you get the most out of your adventure exploring Lehman Cave in Great Basin National Park.

Along one of the turns, we saw a crashed van pulling a boat on the side of the road where yellow caution tape was up. We all had our theories about what possibly could have happened. Did the van get too close to the edge? Did foul play happen because it looked like gunshots in the windows? We’ll never know. We pulled over by the lake for a picnic lunch and enjoyed the serene views. When we got to the dam, we stopped and marveled at the history of all that this land holds and tried to imagine riding this trail via stagecoach. It was an adventure even by car.

It was another spontaneous trip to Joshua Tree, We decided in less than 12 hours that we would drive out on a hot August afternoon and watch the sunset. The magnificent mountains were the backdrop for the mysterious and magical Joshua Trees

As an award-winning, nationally recognized interior designer, JD was drawn to visiting this famous...