Comment on Hike of the Week: Take a short hike to Long Lake for stunning views and fields of wildflowers

Every year, a tourism promotion website around Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina releases a fall foliage prediction map for the entire country. The map is fun to play with as it shows a week-by-week prediction for each state between Sept. 2 and Nov. 18. It also breaks it down on a county-by-county basis, displaying estimates for the degree of color change, from minimal or patchy to near-peak and peak. It’s “the ultimate visual planning guide to the annual progressive changing of the leaves,” the website says.

In 1908, Abner and Mary Alberta “Bert” Sprague built a summer cabin in Glacier Basin. By 1910, they were living in it full time, operating it as a lodge that sat in what is now the Sprague Lake parking lot. Because of their love for the area and their impact on Glacier Basin – to improve the fishing in the area for his guests, Abner dammed the creek to create the lake – the lake now bears their surname.

Lynn O’Rourke Hayes | (TNS) FamilyTravel.com Can’t believe summer is coming to an end! Will you be traveling solo with kids or grandkids in the year ahead? If so, here are five ideas to consider. Join an organized tour Feed your junior explorer’s natural curiosity on a memory-filled trip. Do they yearn to learn more about art, history or science?

Start marking your calendars now, fans of fall foliage, because it looks like spectacular leaf-peeping is in store for Colorado this year. That’s the outlook according to Dan West, one of the state’s leading forestry experts, who spends a lot of his time in airplanes every August, evaluating forest health across the state. “From the air, everything is looking very green,” said West, an entomologist for the Colorado State Forest Service and a member of the faculty at Colorado State University.

Holly D. Johnson | Bankrate.com (TNS) There are all kinds of strategies you can use to earn airline points/miles, and that’s true whether you’re a frequent flier or not. You can earn airline rewards by using an airline credit card or a flexible travel credit card for all of your spending, by shopping through airline rewards portals or by joining an airline’s dining club. You can also buy airline points or miles outright if you want to rack up a stash quickly or you just need to top off your account.

Lisa Wells | Associated Press Bringing your dog along on your travel adventures can be a blast, but how do you make sure the trip is fun and stress-free for you both? Taking advantage of these dog-friendly options and travel tips can help you plan a getaway for you and your four-legged friend. Traveling with pets has become increasingly popular in recent years.