Tag Archives: Scenic Byway

Oregon

Fremont National Forest

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Fremont National Forest

Oregon

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Region

1,713,891 acres (1,207,039 federal/ 506,852 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/fremont-winema

Overview

In central Oregon, the sagebrush-dominated high desert is also known as the Oregon Outback because of its rural resemblance to the arid Australian bush.  Fremont National Forest encompasses the wooded mountains that rise to the west above Lake Abert and Summer Lake in the Warner Valley, an important wetland area for wildlife.  In addition, a separate section located to the southeast covers the Warner Mountains and Abert Rim.  The cliffs of Hadley Butte are popular with hang gliders.  The Mitchell Monument honors the six American civilians who lost their lives during World War II when a Japanese balloon bomb exploded after traveling 6,000 miles. 

Highlights

Oregon Outback Scenic Byway, Goodlow Mountain Natural Area, Drake Peak Lookout, North Warner Viewpoint, Abert Rim, Heart Lake, North Fork of Sprague National Wild and Scenic River, Mitchell Monument, Cottonwood Lake, Crane Mountain National Recreation Trail, Fremont National Recreation Trail, Gearhart Mountain Trail

Must-Do Activity

While it is not an official trail, the 4.6-mile out-and-back hike to Coleman Rim does have a good payoff with views of the Chewaucan River Valley.  It is reached by driving nine miles up paved Forest Road 3360 from Highway 140, then turning right for two miles on gravel Forest Road 024 to Shepard Camp Creek.  From there, you start hiking north to the head of Shepard Camp Meadow, while watching for black-tailed deer, sandhill cranes, and the numerous cattle that frequent this area.  At that point, the route starts to gain elevation as it turns east through a forest of ponderosa pine, Sierra white fir, and western white pine trees.  You will likely have to climb over a few downed trees as you navigate toward the rocky Coleman Rim that sits above 7,000 feet in elevation.

Best Trail

After the Bootleg Fire swept through the area between our 2020 and 2022 visits, it was amazing to see the differences around Gearhart Mountain.  We drove as far up the mountain as we could to Lookout Rock Trailhead, parking at the edge of the Gearhart Mountain Wilderness, walking up the gated road to a fire lookout tower that remained unburnt on its rocky ridgetop.  It was difficult to the follow the official Gearhart Mountain trail because of downed trees and the blanket of dead needles on the forest floor, but it was worth a look around to see the fire’s aftermath (please exercise caution due to the hazards of standing dead trees).  The trail accesses the volcanic Palisade Rocks within one mile from the trailhead.

Watchable Wildlife

Mule deer, elk, and pronghorns are large ungulates found in Fremont National Forest, sharing habitat with carnivores like black bears, coyotes, mountain lions, and bobcats.  The National Forest borders Summer Lake and several large wetlands that are important stops for migrating birds on the Pacific Flyway.  Commonly seen waterfowl are Canada geese, mallards, and whistling swans, and the elusive northern spotted owl nests in old-growth forests.  There are largemouth bass in the lakes, while streams support several species of trout, including the threatened bull trout. 

Instagram-worthy Photo

Nearly 10,000 Fugo balloons were launched by the Japanese during World War II, but only one caused casualties, killing six American civilians when it exploded on May 5, 1945.  At the Mitchell Monument, you can read their story and see a ponderosa pine tree that still contains shrapnel from the balloon bomb.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Paved Highway 140 runs east-west through the heart of the National Forest, while Highway 395 splits a separate southeastern section on the California border.  We found unpaved Forest Road 34 to be full of potholes, but it got better the further east we went towards the Mitchell Monument and Gearhart Mountain.  Even after the 2021 fire, we found Forest Road 3660 to the Coleman Rim to be a good gravel road, while Forest Road 024 was a bit overgrown.

Camping

This is a good National Forest for dispersed camping, but we also passed Corral Creek Campground on our way up to Gearhart Mountain and Cottonwood Recreation Area offers a campground on a lake.  Rentals are available in the summer for the Drake Peak Lookout, Currier Guard Station, and Bald Butte Lookout.

Wilderness Areas

Gearhart Mountain Wilderness

Related Sites

Deschutes National Forest (Oregon)

Winema National Forest (Oregon)

Newberry National Volcanic Monument (Oregon)

Nearest National Park

Crater Lake

View from Coleman Rim
Hiking to Coleman Rim
Mule deer
Lichen
Hiking to Coleman Rim
View from Highway 140
Pronghorns
Mitchell Monument
Lookout Rock Trailhead
Damage from the 2021 Bootleg Fire
Fire tower survived the 2021 Bootleg Fire
Burnt spruce cones
Ponderosa pines

Conifer Tree Species

ponderosa pine, western white pine, lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, Engelmann spruce, white fir, western juniper

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, curlleaf mountain-mahogany, willow, sagebrush

Explore More – The National Forest is named after John C. Fremont who explored this area for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and went on to take control of the California Republic (for which he was convicted of mutiny and later pardoned), serve as a U.S. Senator, run twice for President, and then resign while Governor of what U.S. territory?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

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Utah

Fishlake National Forest     

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Fishlake National Forest           

Utah

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Intermountain Region

1,539,737 acres (1,461,226 federal/ 78,511 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/fishlake

Overview

Much of Fishlake National Forest is at high elevation in central Utah, which is also true of its namesake Fish Lake that sits at 8,800 feet.  Fish Lake is the largest natural mountain lake in Utah and lent its name to the Fish Lake Cutoff on the Old Spanish Trail, which ran from Santa Fe to Los Angeles.  There are hundreds of miles of trails open to ATVs in the National Forest, including the 238-mile Paiute ATV Trail and the Gooseberry ATV Trails accessible from Interstate 70.  There are also plenty of trails for hikers, backpackers, mountain bikers, and equestrians, including the trail that crosses the South Fork of North Creek Trail 60 times as it covers ten miles leaving from beautiful Blue Lake at the base of Mt. Baldy.

Highlights

Beaver Canyon Scenic Byway, Wildcat Guard Station, Tushar Mountains, Delano Peak, Bullion Falls, Pistol Rock, Koosharem Canyon, Fishlake Scenic Byway, Fool Creek Canyon petroglyphs, Blue Lake, Bullion Canyon Trail System, Skyline National Recreation Trail, Lakeshore Trail, Old Spanish National Historic Trail

Must-Do Activity

Fish Lake’s most famous resident is the aspen clone dubbed Pando (meaning “I spread” in Latin).  Connected by a single root system, stems of Pando cover 106 acres and it is estimated to have started growing 80,000 years ago, arguably making it the oldest and heaviest living organism on the planet.  Campers enjoy the popular Lakeshore Trail that is in four discontinuous sections adding up to about 15 miles.  We found the road to Pelican Promontory on the north side of the lake too rough for our passenger vehicle and the five-mile Pelican Canyon Trail too overgrown to follow after a mile, although we did see (and hear) a northern goshawk on nest. 

Best Trail

In the Tushar Mountains, Beaver Canyon Scenic Byway (Highway 153) switchbacks its way up to several trailheads for the 8.3-mile-long Skyline National Recreation Trail.  We attempted to access Lake Stream Trailhead in the middle, but found the road at Puffer Lake required high-clearance.  Instead, we drove the rough quarter-mile spur road to Big Flat Trailhead (at 10,220 feet in elevation) and hiked two miles to a rocky outcrop with good views.  We did not attempt to drive to the trail’s western terminus at Big John Flat Trailhead that sits beneath 12,173-foot Delano Peak.

Watchable Wildlife

We first heard and then saw a northern goshawk on a nest (see photos) as we struggled to follow the overgrown Pelican Canyon Trail at Fish Lake.  Additional birds of note are bald eagles, kestrels, several species of owls, turkey vultures, Canada geese, white pelicans, and wild turkeys.  Ungulates found here are elk, mule deer, pronghorns, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and even some moose.  Other large mammals include black bears, bobcats, mountain lions, red foxes, coyotes, pine martens, minks, badgers, porcupines, beavers, snowshoe hares, and pika.  As you might expect from a National Forest named Fishlake, fishing is a popular activity in the lakes and streams for rainbow trout, lake trout, splake, and other species, even in the winter.

Instagram-worthy Photo

Stop at the informational pullout on the Fishlake Scenic Byway to read about the Fish Lake Cutoff of the Old Spanish Trail, then get your photo with the metal cutouts of a pack train in the sagebrush flats near Zedd’s Meadow.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

$5 day use fee at Ponderosa Picnic Area or America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

There are some rough roads in this area that require high-clearance vehicles, including the ones to Pelican Promontory and Puffer Lake.  Fishlake Scenic Byway and Beaver Canyon Scenic Byway are paved, but connecting between the two required driving some good gravel roads that were already snow free during our mid-June visit.

Camping

The Aquarius Ranger Station is available for rental from May through October, as are the historic cabins at the Gooseberry Administrative Site.  There are several campgrounds at Fish Lake and others located throughout the National Forest, in addition to one scenic spot on a ridge adjacent to the Second Crossing of Salina Creek in the White Mountains.

Wilderness Areas

None

Related Sites

Dixie National Forest (Utah)

Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)

Cedar Breaks National Monument (Utah)

Nearest National Park

Capitol Reef

Mule deer
Fish Lake from Pelican Promontory
White pelicans on Fish Lake
Canada geese on Fish Lake
Mule deer fawn
Northern goshawk
Skyline National Recreation Trail
Dispersed campsite with quaking aspen
Ground squirrels
Ponderosa Picnic Area
Sunset

Conifer Tree Species

subalpine fir, white fir, Engelmann spruce, Douglas-fir, ponderosa pine, singleleaf pinyon pine, Utah juniper

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, Gambel oak, bigtooth maple, Fremont cottonwood, sagebrush

Explore More – Which famous American explorer named the Old Spanish Trail in the 1840s (hint: he has a National Forest named after him, but maybe not the one you first think)?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

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California

Eldorado National Forest

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Eldorado National Forest

California, Nevada

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region

887,721 acres (686,667 federal/ 201,054 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/eldorado

Overview

Located in California’s Sierra Nevada, Eldorado National Forest has ghost towns dating back to the 1849 gold rush.  El Dorado is Spanish for “the golden one,” which often referred to the fabled Lost City of Gold sought by the Conquistadors.  The single-word spelling Eldorado may have been a clerical error dating back to the creation of the National Forest in 1910.  Elevations range from 1,000 feet in the foothills to more than 10,000 feet in the Sierra Nevada.  In addition to 297 lakes and reservoirs, it contains 611 miles of fishable streams in the drainages of the North Fork of the Mokelumne River, Cosumnes River, and the Middle and South Forks of the American River.  There are 349 miles of trails in Eldorado National Forest, including a portion of the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail that follows mountain ridges on the west side of Lake Tahoe.

Highlights

Carson Pass Scenic Highway, Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, Tallac Historic Site, Caldor Auto Tour, Silver Lake, Crystal Basin Recreation Area, Loon Lake, Ice House Reservoir, Traverse Creek, Horsetail Falls, Fourth of July Lake, Cascade Falls Loop Trail, Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

The Forest Service’s Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is composed of 150,000 acres of Eldorado, Tahoe, and Toiyabe National Forests surrounding Lake Tahoe.  It was established in 1973 to preserve and restore the ecosystem of one of the nation’s most popular playgrounds.  Averaging 1,000 feet in depth, Lake Tahoe is famous for its water clarity and, although it has no outlet to the ocean, it is dammed on the Truckee River to control water levels.  After the 1858 discovery of the Comstock Lode in nearby Virginia City, Nevada, extensive deforestation occurred around the lake.  This eventually led to conservation efforts to place 78% of its watershed into National Forests starting in 1899.  Hiking trails uphill from the lake’s shoreline (mostly privately owned) are almost entirely within National Forests, including the circumnavigating Tahoe Rim Trail.

Best Trail

Near the National Forest’s border with Lake Tahoe, the 63,960-acre Desolation Wilderness is the country’s most visited Wilderness area on a per acre basis.  With the exception of thru-hikers on the Tahoe Rim and Pacific Crest Trails, a daily quota limits the number of backpackers in the Desolation Wilderness.  Even day hikers are required to carry a permit and a bear box is recommended for all overnight users.  We took a smoke-obscured hike five miles one-way from Lower Echo Lake up to Lake Aloha in the Desolation Wilderness, a popular stop for backpackers.

Watchable Wildlife

A Mediterranean climate exists in the lower elevation ranges of the National Forest, while alpine regions can receive more than 15 feet of snowfall, so there is a wide diversity of wildlife.  In the conifer forests of the Sierra Nevada look for mule deer, black bears, weasels, martens, mountain lions, and bobcats.  California quail, mountain quail, sooty grouse, and wild turkeys are common game birds.  Watch the skies for raptors like bald eagles, ospreys, red-tailed hawks, and turkey vultures. 

Instagram-worthy Photo

By the time we visited in mid-August, Cascade Falls was barely a trickle compared to its raging snowmelt flow in the springtime.  The strenuous one-mile hike from Bayview Trailhead was still worth the effort for the sweeping views of Cascade Lake and Lake Tahoe’s Emerald Bay (at least when it is not so smoky). 

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Eldorado National Forest has 2,367 miles (3,809 km) of roads, including 400 miles of private roads.  Many of these are rough and unpaved and may require high-clearance or four-wheel drive, especially the infamous Rubicon Trail on the western shore of Lake Tahoe.

Camping

Bayview Campground is located across Highway 89 from Lake Tahoe at the Bayview Trailhead near scenic Eagle Falls and Emerald Bay State Park.  Woods Lake has a campground and a 3.5-mile trail to Fourth of July Lake, plus there are campgrounds at Fallen Leaf Lake, Ice House Reservoir, Loon Lake, Upper Valley Reservoir, and Silver Lake.

Wilderness Areas

Desolation Wilderness

Mokelumne Wilderness (also in Stanislaus and Toiyabe National Forests)

Related Sites

Devils Postpile National Monument (California)

Whiskeytown-Shasta-Trinity National Recreation Area (California)

Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park (California)

Nearest National Park

Yosemite

Scott’s mother at Cascade Falls
Cascade Falls
Cascade Lake
Scott and his mother at Emerald Bay Overlook on Highway 89
Lower Echo Lake
Lower Echo Lake
Upper Echo Lake in the smoke
Lower Echo Lake
Lower Echo Lake
Aloha Lake in the smoke
A Steller jay forest

Conifer Tree Species

red fir, white fir, Douglas-fir, incense-cedar, ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, Jeffrey pine, gray pine, sugar pine, foxtail pine, western juniper

Flowering Tree Species

Pacific dogwood, California buckeye, manzanita

Explore More – Traverse Creek near Placerville is known for its exposed serpentine rock, which contains what elements toxic to many trees and plants?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

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Puerto Rico

El Yunque National Forest

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El Yunque National Forest

Puerto Rico (U.S. territory)

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

56,097 acres (28,434 federal/ 27,663 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/elyunque

Overview

Also called Bosque Nacional El Yunque, this forest was known as the Caribbean National Forest from 1935 until 2007 when it was renamed for a 3,496-foot peak.  It is the only tropical rainforest and the oldest protected forest in the U.S. Forest Service system, originally set aside in 1876 by King Alfonso XII of Spain.  Puerto Rico is still recovering from Hurricane Maria that struck September 20, 2017, and the Forest Service’s El Portal Rainforest Visitor Center remains closed while under reconstruction.

Highlights

El Portal Rainforest Visitor Center, La Coca Falls, Juan Diego Creek, Yokahú Observation Tower, Baño de Oro, Mt. Britton, El Yunque Trail, El Toro National Recreation Trail

Must-Do Activity

Unlike other national forests, El Yunque is a major tourist destination in Puerto Rico with buses bringing cruise ship passengers up the Sierra de Luquillo Mountains less than an hour’s drive from the capital of San Juan.  They all stop at La Coca Falls and Yokahu Observation Tower, but fewer visitors hike to the top of 3,496-foot El Yunque or Mt. Britton.  Enough people visit that the Forest Service instituted an online reservation system (fee required) similar to the one at Rocky Mountain National Park.

Best Trail

Every step squished and our feet often disappeared in ankle-deep, orange-brown mud on the five-mile out-and-back El Toro National Recreation Trail.  Glad to have walking sticks, we stepped carefully as we slowly approached the summit of the 3,526-foot mountain.  Average annual precipitation in these “cloud forests” is 150 to 240 inches and poor water runoff from the volcanic soils results in boggy, acidic conditions.  In 2005, the 10,000-acre El Toro Wilderness became the first Wilderness designation in a U.S. territory.

Watchable Wildlife

Bird watching is the main attraction, and we spotted a Puerto Rican tody, elfin woods warbler, broad-winged hawk, red-tailed hawk, and many zenaida doves.  We never saw one, but when the sun set or it rained we enjoyed listening to the coquis, small tree frogs whose name is onomatopoeia for their call.  There are 17 species of coqui in Puerto Rico (11 of them endemic) but only the forest and common coquis emit their namesake sound.  Rather than going through a tadpole phase, all coqui emerge as miniature froglets after incubation.  Even though this is a tropical rainforest, there are no poisonous snakes on the island, but the endangered Puerto Rican boa can grow up to eight feet in length.  Another endangered species, the Puerto Rican parrot may only survive in captivity after Hurricane Maria.

Instagram-worthy Photo

There are at least 15 species of tree ferns that grow in El Yunque National Forest, but we were most impressed by the giant leaves of yagrumo hembra (umbrellatree).

Peak Season

Year round

Fees

Online reservations ($2 fee) required for the Highway 191 corridor

Road Conditions

Highway 191 is well maintained, although winding and narrow in places.  Access to El Toro Trailhead can be either very rough (from the east we needed a Jeep) or very smooth (from the west) depending on which part of Highway 186 you drive.

Camping

There are no campgrounds and it seemed impossible to find a place to set up a backpacking tent in the dense tropical rainforest.  We stayed at an Airbnb in the town of Luquillo, not far from the entrance to El Yunque National Forest.

Wilderness Areas

El Toro Wilderness

Related Sites

San Juan National Historic Site (Puerto Rico)

Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve (U.S. Virgin Islands)

Nearest National Park

Virgin Islands

We had never found a beach towel for a National Forest before
Tiff with bamboo
Yokahu Tower
Soctt at Mt. Britton Tower
Tiff under El Yunque Tower
Baño de Oro

Conifer Tree Species

None

Flowering Tree Species

yagrumo hembra (umbrellatree), tabonuco, ausubo, gumbo-limbo, flamboyant (African flame tree), palo colorado (titi), teak, caoba (mahogany), nemoca, roble de sierra, limoncillo, camasey, sierra palm, guayabota

Explore More – What is another name for the cloud forests where strong trade winds above 2,500 feet keep trees pruned to less than 12 feet tall?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Utah

Dixie National Forest

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Dixie National Forest

Utah

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Intermountain Region

1,967,165 acres (1,889,127 federal/ 78,038 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/dixie

Overview

Dixie National Forest is spread across southwest Utah surrounding Cedar Breaks National Monument and near three National Parks: Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, and Zion.  The National Forest has a wide elevation range from 2,800 feet near St. George to 11,322 feet on Boulder Mountain.  The change in average temperature and precipitation leads to wide variety of ecosystems from a desert-like environment all the way up to subalpine conifer forests and tundra.  The warmth of southern Utah reminded some early emigrants of “Dixie,” the part of the U.S. south of the Mason-Dixon Line, but with growing public distaste for that name it may be changed in the future.

Highlights

Markagunt National Scenic Byway, Brian Head, Navajo Lake, Cascade Falls, Strawberry Point, Red Canyon Recreation Area, Honeycomb Rocks, Powell Point, Hell’s Backbone Bridge, Virgin River Rim Trail, Hancock Peak Trail, Whipple Trail, Casto Canyon Trail

Must-Do Activity

Highway 12 Scenic Byway winds through much of the National Forest, including Red Canyon Recreation Area where the popular Casto Canyon Trail is open to hikers, bicycles, horses, and ATVs.  The mountain ranges west of Interstate 15 are a less-visited section of the forest, with numerous trails traversing the Pine Valley Mountains Wilderness, including the 35-mile Summit Trail.

Best Trail

Leaving from a trailhead across Highway 143 from the road to the top of 11,312-foot-tall Brian Head, Rattlesnake Creek Trail skirts the edge of spectacular Cedar Breaks National Monument and enters the Ashdown Gorge Wilderness (established in 1984).  About one mile in, one of several side trails leads off to the left for an overlook of the Cedar Breaks, a red rock badlands full of hoodoos situated at the edge of the Markagunt Plateau.  Gnarled Great Basin bristlecone pine trees cling to the eroding edge of the natural amphitheater, making a great foreground for photographs with a beautiful backdrop.  The trail continues to drop more than 2,400 feet to the canyon bottom over four miles connecting with Ashdown Creek which eventually crosses Highway 14, but there is not an official trailhead there.

Watchable Wildlife

A variety of mammals call Dixie National Forest home: black bears, mountain lions, bobcats, coyotes, three species of foxes, minks, pine martens, porcupines, beavers, raccoons, skunks, badgers, snowshoe hares, pika, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer, and pronghorns.  Large birds include bald eagles, golden eagles, California condors, turkey vultures, wild turkeys, and various species of woodpeckers.  There are many gamefish found in the streams and small lakes spread across the high-elevation Markagunt, Paunsaugunt, and Aquarius Plateaus.

Instagram-worthy Photo

South of Torrey, Highway 12 climbs into an aspen forest with incredible views of Capitol Reef National Park and Waterpocket Fold.

Peak Season

Late summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Highway 12 and Highway 143 are paved roads that access the high elevations of Dixie National Forest, but they may be closed seasonally due to snow.  There are numerous dirt roads that traverse the area, including the popular route to the top of 11,312-foot-tall Brian Head.

Camping

There are numerous campgrounds located throughout the National Forest, as well as dispersed camping opportunities on dirt roads west of Bryce Canyon National Park.

Wilderness Areas

Ashdown Gorge Wilderness

Box-Death Hollow Wilderness

Cottonwood Forest Wilderness

Pine Valley Mountains Wilderness

Related Sites

Cedar Breaks National Monument (Utah)

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (Utah)

Capitol Reef National Park (Utah)

Nearest National Park

Bryce Canyon

Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Brian Head
Pinyon jay
Great Basin bristlecone pine
Tiff on the Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Scott on the Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Tiff on the Rattlesnake Creek Trail
Highway 12 Scenic Byway
Mule deer on Highway 12
Highway 12 Scenic Byway
Highway 12 Scenic Byway
Highway 12 Scenic Byway
Raven about the forest

Conifer Tree Species

Utah juniper, singleleaf pinyon pine, ponderosa pine, Douglas-fir, Engelmann spruce, subalpine fir, Great Basin bristlecone pine

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, Bebb willow

Explore More – On the Markagunt Plateau, Navajo Lake drains out of two lava tubes that formed how many millions of years ago?

Learn more about this and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.