Western Wanderings – UTAH

Traveling is one of my all time favorite things to do. As a little girl I use to daydream about some of the places that I can now, delightfully, say that I have been to.

Most of those trips were either with people I love, going to visit people I love, for people that I love and once or twice, for the hope of love. No matter what happened (or didn’t) along the way, all of those places have left a mark on my heart/soul.

Last April’s journey out West was no different!

Let me tell you all about it 😉

The first thing you need to know about me as a traveler is that I try not go into planning trips with preconceived notions, which, depending on the place, can be difficult. Las Vegas, for example…as appealing as “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” is to thousands of people every year, it was never a place on my list of dream destinations.

When bestie asked if I wanted to go out West, my full bodied yes was for Zion, Bryce Canyon and The Grand Canyon…for the great outdoors. I truthfully had little interest in Las Vegas but I’ve trusted her travel planning for decades and promised to be open to the experience. I am glad I did 🙂

We left North Carolina on a mid morning flight. Between writing for a while, pen to paper, and sharing favorite lines from the books we were reading, the 4 1/2hr journey passed quickly.

Flying into a 3 hr time difference had its advantages as, upon arrival, we touched down just after lunchtime. I’ll fully admit to going from a little indifferent to a little bit of awe at the sight of Las Vegas backdropped by a mountain range.

Yes, I’ve seen the television screen version of the city but that’s never been in the light of day. And, it was a totally different animal.

Imagine the adult version of a little kid with their nose & hands plastered to the window and you’ll have a picture of what it was like to be me in the back seat of an F-150 riding out of the city and into the great wide open 🤩

I’m from the East Coast, so the terrain out west had me gleefully feeling like I was in another world! I’ll again mention how magnificent it was to see the city in the daylight with the Spring Mountians showing off behind it. Anything that creates that much contrast with the beholding of it, deserves a second mention.

As the city shrank in the rear view and multiple lanes of traffic dwindled down to mostly open road, my delight hit a peak level. The way that we were swept so quickly out of the chaos and into peace reminded me of some of my other travels and I knew, I’d likely be the happiest on the road, watching the world go by.

The landscape was dotted with juniper and piñon trees, short/full with dust kicking up between them.

Desert mountain ranges hit different when you are use to the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina and they command their own respect. My favorite visual of the first leg of the trip was looking out to pay my respects to those rocky faces and seeing a cargo train approaching, as if it might run right through us. That’s how long/slow the winding of the roads are. For me, if there is anything better than a city backdropped by high country, it’s a long train cutting though the center of it all!!

Our first stop was Zion National Park and it truly was something to behold. On approach, you can see the emergence of it’s peaks, coated in orange, brown and sand coloring. Majestic was the first word that came to mind (and perhaps the most used descriptor of the trip).

A tiny town ushered us in to the park entrance, on a two lane street lined with souvenir shops, accommodations, and several places to eat. This picturesque vantage point brought a giant smile to my face and peace to my heart.

In case I didn’t mentioned it before, my trip companions and I are avid campers, meaning we wouldn’t be checking in to the adorable cabins we noted on the way into the park. Once we passed into the Zion entrance gate, we took a right and headed to the area marked for camping 🏕️

I was awestruck once again as we pulled into the space that would be home for a few nights and found ourselves surrounded by the sandstone cliffs.

Getting our tents set up is first priority anytime we go camping, so I wrangled in my emotions until we were all set up. Once that was done, we started a fire, set up our chairs and poured a celebratory beverage.

I have been to many beautiful places but our first night in Zion National Park, watching the sunset fade into a star filled night sky, will be forever at the top of the list.

Our first full day of the trip consisted of another favorite activity of mine, HIKING! Being completely unfamiliar with Zion’s trails, we chose a shorter one, Emerald Pool with less elevation gain but plenty of visual payoffs.

Right!?! I don’t know about you all but I imagined that this was what The Great Valley was like from The Land Before Time. It was HOT but we were adequately prepared with our daypacks full of hydration and snacks. The region was having a dry spell so the water wasn’t flowing nor pooling, like it usually would, so when we got about 3/4 of the way to the turn around point and heard from multiple sources that continuing wasn’t worth it, we trusted the input and opted to sit down for lunch instead.

That turned out to be a great decision as we made a few friends who knew Ireland well. I’ve been there twice, so we had a lot to talk about. The break gave us the gusto we needed to make our way back to the trail head, which is at one of 8 shuttle stops.

Now, we have a National Park in NC and it just might have a shuttle BUT I could tell by my detailed map of the shuttle service that we were in a park that was vastly larger that the one I was use to. Thankfully, we where able to take said shuttle all the way back to the Visitors Center, with only a short walk back to our campsite.

Unfortunately our third companion was injured a few weeks before our trip and couldn’t hike with us BUT she kept the fire going and we had a warm welcome back to camp for the afternoon/evening.

***

The next day saw us rising with the sun and packing up to head to our next destination.

Yes, it’s going to the be that kind of trip 😉

The road trip from Zion National Park to Bryce Canyon National Park showcased the variety of landscape southern Utah has to offer. Desert gave way to higer elevations, a bit more greenery, open fields, grazing cattle and horses ❤

We made a rest stop in Long Valley and it gave us a peek at some taller pines, their fragrance welcome on the wind. It wasn’t a long stop but it was peaceful.

For the last 30 or so miles up to Bryce, the rolling hills gave way to some flat, open land with only a few shops and a creek breaking up the terrain. You could see the top of the canyons in the distance, this time with vivid orange coloring decending to almost white sand.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day and the Visitors Center was packed! Not to mention most of the trail head parking lots. I was amazed to see the variety of in park accommodations that were available and made note to check that out if I ever returned.

As for us, we only planned to be in the park for the day, so a parking spot was all we needed. Our injured friend had to again sit out of the day hike but was kind enough to drop us off at trail head before she settled in to a spot.

Sunrise Point is at an elevation of 8000ft and boasts the most incredible views, for miles. Loads of fellow tourists were perched at the top, admiring the site but Ashe and I were eager to get on the trail.

We chose the Navajo Loop and Queens Garden Trail , knew that it had a steep section of switchbacks and opted to go down that section, no matter what the return incline held, lol.

Admittedly, my first steps were filled with anxiety. Most beginnings in popular areas are crowded, people not yet intimidated by what the trail might hold. This particular path was narrow, one side supported by canyon side, the other, wide open. It’s the other people on the trail that make me nervous…the ones you can tell don’t hike often and don’t have a good sense of trail etiquette.

Unfortunately for me, one of the prime photo opportunities on this trail was less than a quarter into it and I was beginning to panic a little. Every other step saw someone coming up and around the corner, hastily pushing past those going down. The photo spot is technically a few steps off the footpath but again, wide open around it. I began to cry a little, the overstimulation of it all (and the height) starting to get to me but Ashley was paying attention to the crowd flow and spotted a break in it where we could safely get the moment captured. She took my arm and said “I’ve got you and I am not letting you miss this opportunity!”. With that I let her guide me to the edge (not really but it was in my mind) and we got the shot!!!

The triumphant thing about letting yourself feel your big feelings is the boost of enthusiasm I got just after that moment!!

The decent into the canyon held majesty every other step. From the picturesque sky above, the sediment formations (known as Hoodoos) and the pockets of shade from sporadic pine trees, to the desert chipmunks that would saddled up beside us on a log, hoping to share our snacks, we smiled through our wide eyed wonder (and periodic labored breathing) from Sunrise to Sunset Point.

As a curvier woman approaching middle age (perimenopause), there are a thousand intrusive thoughts I could have let get the better of me…But, my body did everything I asked of it (and MORE), including deep belly laughs, whenever the moment called for it, which with Ashley and I, is A LOT 🙂

It took several rest breaks for us to crest the top of the trail again and we had more than earned our exhaustion.

Another wave of emotion hit me as I took one last look out into the canyon before we walked back to the truck.

This time it was a release of pure gratitude and wonder. Traditionally, I’ve been very hard on myself in terms of “where I think I should be” but this time, my tear-filled eyes simply said “look at where you are!”.

I think my overall momentum changed that day. Just like hiking a trail, life itself is full of challenges, highs & lows, things that make you question yourself and yet, also, SO MUCH to be in awe of. I am very thankful that I take notice of all those things and keep traversing whatever comes my way.

Bryce Canyon was a tough one to leave but that’s the way of things when you have an itinerary.

Southern Utah had put a mark on my heart and we couldn’t leave the area without stopping for an extra souvenir.

It was mere minutes before the little shop was about to close but they graciously let us come in an look around with no rush.

I didn’t really need another trivet but how could I resist one that so perfectly captured my Utah experience? It’s sitting on my desk as I type this!

A little over halfway through this post, I realized it would be best if I broke the trip up in to several pieces, after all 2,000 words is a lot if you all are reading more than one blog today 😉

Thank you for taking the time to be here! I really appreciate it!

Stay tuned for The Grand Canyon, Hoover Damn and LAS VEGAS!! Coming Soon

❤ CNC