Our cross-continental trip continues, this time with two baseball stadiums and five National Parks. Don’t forget to go back to the Week One installment to make your picks in the travel guessing game which is listed at the bottom of the story. This will be the last week to enter your guesses in the comments.

We are assessing each MLB park, focusing on game atmosphere, ballpark cuisine and club hospitality. The initial ratings will be either positive, neutral or negative. After all the ballparks are visited, these ratings will be converted to a score on a scale of 100 with a positive rating being in the 80-100 range, a neutral rating in the 60-79 range, and a negative rating below 60.

Game #5: Tigers versus Angels at Angels Stadium, May 2

Angels Stadium made the same mistake the Oakland Coliseum made – letting a football team come in and rip out its heart – both aesthetically and figuratively. Both stadiums had a wide open centerfield area – Oakland with a view of the golden Oakland hills and Anaheim with its “Big A” sign and the San Gabriel mountains in the distance. In both cases, the centerfield view was sacrificed for more seats to satisfy the football tenant. Both football teams – the Raiders and Rams – departed Oakland and Anaheim, respectively, for what they considered better deals. The Coliseum never recovered but Angels Stadium made the right choice – the people’s choice - by tearing out the extra seating area and returning centerfield to its rightful place of honor as a sightline for baseball. The 210-ton “Big A” sign was moved out of the stadium and into the parking lot upon the Rams’ arrival. The team decided to just keep it there after the Rams’ departure, and instead turn the area into a Center Field Patio suitable for group parties and picnics. There is also a rock structure there with a waterfall.

Game atmosphere: Positive

If friendly and passionately loyal fans and ushers were the only formula for success, the Angels would be the kingpin of SoCal Major League baseball. Unfortunately, it’s more complicated than that, as evidenced by the Angels nine consecutive losing seasons, during which time the other SoCal team has won eight division titles and two World Series championships. Still, talking to Angels fans and game personnel is a breath of fresh air. Derek Clair has had his season tickets since 1979. “I grew up here watching the Angels in the ‘70s, another time when they weren’t very good. It may be lean now but we’re loyal. And every night is Major League baseball. Win or lose, the games are still fun to watch,” said Clair. “My parents had these seats. It’s part of their legacy to keep them. It’s a fantastic stadium. Easy in; easy out. It’s one of the older stadiums and it has held up very well.” Angel Stadium opened in 1966 with the Angels moving in after playing their first four seasons in Dodger Stadium.

Another long-time season ticket holder, Peggy Russo, effused about her love of the game. “I just love baseball and I love the Angels,” she said. “Baseball is my passion and my hobby. I grew up in New Jersey and played baseball as a young girl.” She also has been an Angels season ticket holder since 1979.

Loyalty also oozes from the game personnel. Usher Teresa “No H” Arentz has worked 22 of her 23 years as an Angels usher in the same spot. “What keeps me coming back are the people I get to see every game,” she said. “This is the season ticket section, and these are my peoples. I have the best spot in the house.”

Pregame entertainment featured the Mariachi Titans, a student-led ensemble from Cal State Fullerton. More than 250 women clothed in colorful dresses danced along the outfield warning track to the Mariachi band which featured guitars, violins, trumpets and an accordion. The band also performed the national anthem. … Level Up is an arcade area in the rightfield pavilion (section 240) for kids. It includes interactive and classic video games.

Flames and fireworks erupt from the Barney Rubble rocks in centerfield when the Angels hit a home run. The fans were treated to the bombs bursting in air when Zach Neto hit a home run on the first pitch from Tiger ace Tarik Skubal. Later the fans showed their passion during the Skubal squabble – Skubal struck out Neto during his second plate appearance on a 99.4 mph four-seam fastball. Skubal and Neto exchanged uncomplimentary words as Neto walked toward the dugout. The benches cleared and the fans simultaneously cheered and booed. Nothing happened really but everyone – players and fans – were more intense afterward.

Ballpark cuisine: Positive

It’s mostly standard ballpark fare throughout the stadium but with one significant exception. Crafty Mac is located in both the La Rotisserie (section 114) and as Crafty Mac & Mash (section 237). At Crafty Mac you build your own entre – as healthy or as decadent as you want. There are multiple options for the base, the protein and the sauce. The base can be mixed greens salad, mac & cheese, a brioche hoagie or a baked potato. The protein choice is rotisserie chicken, tri tip or roasted vegetables. The sauce selection is salsa quemada, chimichurri, berry vinaigrette, garlic aioli or teriyaki. “I’ve had everything on the menu,” said Rick Gross. “The food is really fresh. The tri tip is delicious and the spices and herbs on the rotisserie chicken are perfect. It’s fresh, hot, and ready to go.” Recommended: mac & cheese base, chicken AND tri tip (extra charge), and garlic aioli sauce.

Another fun food choice is Cathy’s Cookies, offering fresh baked “hot and tasty” chocolate chip cookies, available by the bucket or sleeve. One of those friendly Angels fans shared some with us when she had a bucket of cookies delivered to her seat. Yes, they were indeed hot and tasty.

Club hospitality: Positive

The Angels win the hospitality prize for California teams. Tickets were in the season ticket section between home plate and the dugout, 16 rows up. A media parking pass was provided which got us so close to the stadium I had to wonder whether foul balls might be a problem.

Game details: Tigers win 9-1. Attendance 29,870. Time of game: 2:26.

Helpful tips: Plenty of affordable parking at $20 (cheapest of all California teams). And the parking lot design really is, as season ticket holder Clair said, easy in; easy out. Bags must be clear but regular-sized purses are okay. Bottled water or sports drinks and outside food are also okay, although the food must be in a clear, plastic bag.

You don’t see that every day: The Tigers Riley Greene became the first player in MLB history to hit two homers in the ninth inning. … The Tigers hit four homers in the ninth inning – the first time that it happened since the Dodgers did it in 2006.

National Park #1: Joshua Tree, California

 Scrambling up rocks at Joshua Tree.

Seemingly sculpted boulder mountains are scattered throughout the park. Joshua Tree offers 24 different hiking options, ranging from half a mile to eight miles. Intersection Rock is one of the go-to climbing options featuring the North Overhang (5.9 difficulty rating), Upper Right Ski Track (5.3) and Left Ski Track (5.11). “When you were a kid, did you ever climb anything?” asked Greg Mitchell, a climber from Santa Barbara. “Rocks, trees, other things? Some stop because something makes them afraid of heights or something makes them afraid of getting hurt. But others just keep climbing. Climbing these rocks is the same impulse to climb as when you were a kid who liked to climb things. The ropes make it safe.” On this trip Greg was teaching his son to climb. … Be sure to take the drive to Keys View on the west side of the park where you will see breathtaking views of the San Andreas Fault, Mt. San Gorgonio, Mt. San Jacinto and the Salton Sea.

JOSHUA TREE STATS: It is 1,235 square miles (roughly 40-miles wide and 26-miles deep). In 2024 there was an average of 8,197 visitors a day.

Game 6: Mets versus Diamondbacks at Chase Field, May 5

Chase Field (formerly Bank One Ballpark) was built in 1998 and features the first-ever retractable roof south of the Canadian border. The Diamondbacks came into existence the same time as the stadium and they have been happy partners ever since. The roof can open to give the field grass some much needed sunshine but is closed for most home games so that players and fans can escape the Phoenix summer days and nights of 110+ degrees.

Game atmosphere: Neutral

“It’s kind of dead,” was the honest assessment of the game atmosphere by Diamondbacks season ticket holder Greg Robbins. “But I love to cheer on the boys. There are usually a lot of fans here of the opposing teams. When we play the Dodgers, there are sometimes more Dodger fans than D-Back fans. Same with the Cubs. I think that’s because most people who live in Arizona aren’t from Arizona.”

Fans would respond to the “Get Loud” prompts on the scoreboard, but when the prompts stopped, so did the cheering. The loudest cheer came during the singing of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch. At the “root, root, root for the D-Backs” part of the song, “D-Backs” hit the high-decibel mark for the game. A 3-run rally in the bottom of the eighth finally brought the crowd to life but it wasn’t quite enough to push the rating to positive. To the crowd’s credit, when an Angelino in left field tried to get the wave started – it died after about 300 feet in each of his three attempts.

Still, there were good things to watch on and off the field. Robbins said it’s all about Corbin Carroll for him. “He’s the reason I bought a season ticket.” Carroll was an All-Star and NL Rookie of the Year in 2023 when the Diamondbacks made it to the World Series. “You can’t replace a guy like that.” Carroll homered in the bottom of the first, then later threw a runner out at the plate on a fly ball to right field.

The Diamondbacks feature a family-focused area called The Sandlot in the Upper Concourse area in left field. Kids can take wiffle ball batting practice and run the bases on a miniature version of Chase Field. It’s open to kids 60” and shorter. There is also a children’s playground (48” and shorter) and a toddler playground (36” and shorter). … The top of the sixth inning featured a Big Head mascot race featuring caricatures of Matt Williams, Randy Johnson, Luis Gonzales and Mark Grace.

The Presidential Pools Suite section will set you back at least $4,750 but you get all-inclusive in-suite food and classic menu options to select from, 35 suite tickets, five parking passes and a D-Backs pool towel you get to take home! And, yes, the suite includes a pool – located in left centerfield. … There is also an all-you-can-eat section called the Bar-S in the Diamond Level, sections 221-223. You get unlimited hot dogs, chips, popcorn, peanuts, Pepsi and Aquafina. All for $56.

Ballpark cuisine: Positive

Filthy Mac Fries. Whoever invented this deserves some kind of award. It is Cajun-spiced fries, covered with white cheddar mac, more cheddar cheese, topped with pork belly bacon, cola BBQ sauce, crispy onion rings, slaw and scallions. It was a flavor explosion. Each bite offered something different from the previous one. The crispy onion rings were reminiscent of what was served at O.H.’s Town House in Eureka back in the day. It is quite possibly the perfect ballpark food. Another popular item was the Sonoran Dog: A footlong dog with ranch beans, pork belly bacon, pico de gallo, mustard and mayo. Charge it to your Chase credit card and get 25 percent off. It is Chase Field, after all. … Other options include Chick-Fil-A, Cold Stone Creamery ice cream, deli sandwiches, Sonoran beef nachos, and s’mores nachos.

Club hospitality: Positive

The Diamondbacks provided two lower level baseline reserve tickets along the left field foul line and a media parking pass. Parking was in a garage so we had to borrow a car from our host since the Sprinter was three feet too high for the garage entry.

Game details: Mets win 5-4. Attendance 22,674. Time of game: 3:03.

Helpful tips: Leave the purse at home, although clutch purses limited to 4.5” x 6.5” are allowed. Otherwise, clear bags only. Bottled water is allowed and food is permitted as long as it’s in a clear plastic bag. Most parking lots are $20.

You don’t see that every day: Corbin Carroll hit the first pitch in the bottom of the first for a home run. Wait a minute! That’s the third time in six games we’ve seen that. Dodger Shohei Ohtani hit the first pitch in the bottom of the first for a homer against the Marlins, and Zach Neto did the same for the Angels against the Tigers. Three out of six games - a statistical anomaly! I couldn’t find hard data on home team first-pitch home runs but there were 17 visiting team first-pitch home runs in 2024. A less reliable source said it happened 23 times for the home team. That’s 40 first-pitch-of-the-game home runs in 2,430 games, or one roughly every 60 games.

National Park #2: Grand Canyon, Arizona

If you have never been to the Grand Canyon, be sure to put it on your bucket list. Pictures or videos simply cannot capture its majesty and magnificence. My wife, Lisa, saw it for the first time and wept for 20 minutes. “Initially it took my breath away,” she said. “I kept thinking how majestic God is beyond measure. It literally is breath-taking.” Mike Tessier from northern Minnesota also had his breath taken away. “Breathtaking. It just doesn’t seem like it’s really there. It seems fake. It’s so massive. It’s out of this world. To me it just blows my mind.” Thousands of people roam the rim, and it’s an international affair.

GRAND CANYON STATS: It is 277 miles long, 10 to 18 miles wide and a mile deep. In 2024 there was an average of 13,477 visitors a day.

National Park #3: Zion – one mile north of Springdale, Utah

The east entrance to Zion leads you past layered ridges of brown and gray that slowly give way to orange and red as you go deeper into the park. The Zion-Mt. Carmel tunnel takes you to spectacular terrain that rises high above the road. The access tunnel is narrow, making it challenging for RVs, buses and trailers. The Zion Canyon Scenic Drive is a must but is accessible most of the year only by shuttle bus. Russell Petushanskyl, a native Ukrainian, is one of Zion’s biggest fans “It is one of best parks in United States for me,” he said. “A lot of different color – brown, yellow, green – all connect at river; and all beautiful. No. 1. Better than Bryce Canyon. Better than Grand Canyon.” Petushanskyl had a bone to pick about the shuttle service to the Scenic Drive. “Tell them please return old bus,” he said. “You could see better with old bus.” Consider the National Park Service told!

ZION STATS: Zion was Utah’s first National Park. It is 229 square miles. In 2024 there was an average of 13,552 visitors a day – more than the Grand Canyon!

National Park #4: Bryce Canyon – Bryce Canyon City, Utah

Bryce Canyon is almost a cross between the Grand Canyon and Zion national parks. The rock formations are amazing – and the coloring and texture of them are similar to Zion. Bulbous spires called hoodoos look like they are growing out of the ground. Be sure to visit Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, Sunset Point and Sunrise Point. “It’s a good place to see earth working,” said Tom Spilker, a planetary scientist from Monrovia, Calif. “A good place to see earth going through its processes,” such as weathering and erosion. Linda Spilker, Tom’s wife, works for the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena. She said Bryce Canyon is spectacular. “Its views are inspiring,” she said. “This place is unique compared to other places on our planet and compared to other planets.”

BRYCE CANYON STATS: It covers 55,992 square miles. In 2024 there was an average of 6,944 visitors a day.

National Park #5: Arches - five miles north of Moab, Utah

Why?

Aliens. That’s one explanation for Arches National Park. Aliens who like to work with red rock and are obsessed with arches. The sculptured red rocks conjure up images of a ball balancing on a stick, a pigeon sitting on a ledge, a courthouse, a baseball glove and on and on. Be sure to gas up before you head to Arches because you have to drive deep into the park to see most of its famous arches. The spires, balanced rocks and sandstone fins are equally impressive as the arches. Robin Loss from Frankfurt, Germany, was unimpressed. “I like the arches but I only saw four of them on a six-kilometer hike. It is not the best national park. Bryce Canyon was the best. And the bus shuttle in Zion was also very good.” Arches has a timed-entry system so you will need to get that in advance for $2.

ARCHES STATS: It is 119 square miles. In 2024 there was an average of 4,018 visitors a day.