10 Day Road Trip
DAY ONE
Heading to the airport that morning in Grand Rapids, MI, we weren’t sure what to expect for traveling during a global pandemic as it had been quite a while since we last traveled. We were tired from attending a wedding the night before but we can’t ever say no to a good time even if we have a 6 AM flight out the next morning. We flew with Southwest Airlines into Las Vegas, NV, where we experienced quite the temperate change from back home. (Note to self - wear light layers so you can take some off in your transition from airport to place of stay). We took the airport transportation busses to the car rental place, checked out our vehicle for the week and on the road we went. We drove through the Vegas strip and took a scenic detour to our Air BNB. After checking into our place of stay, we were exhausted. So NAP TIME it was. I highly recommend napping the first day of your trip - it sets you up for success on your first full day.
We changed out of our comfy travel clothes and into our attire for a night out in the city. My first thought while driving into the city was ‘‘there are SO many people…everywhere, this architecture is immaculate, and I am sweating my butt off.’’ LOL. We parked just outside the city on a side street and walked our way in. There were lights and music everywhere - no wonder they call it ‘the city that never sleeps’. Tasty cocktails to go? Absolutely! We enjoyed an expensive cocktail as we walked through the old Vegas Strip that was bursting with street performers playing instruments, groups doing various stunts, bartenders serving handcrafted drinks, and shops beyond shops of souvenirs and handmade goods. There was even a zipline you could ride above the whole strip accompanied by a digital roof that displayed colorful images that would bring your attention from ground level to ceiling, unable to miss any of the details.
The buildings just kept getting larger and larger and brighter and brighter the further we drove towards the new strip. We parked just outside the strip again so we could avoid parking fees. At this point in the night we had already walked 5+ miles (thankful for my supportive Chaco sandals). Walking the strip was quite eventful as it was similar to the old Vegas Strip but just on a whole new level. More lights, more entertainment, more architecture, MORE people. (Note to self - don’t visit the strip on a Saturday night so you can actually get some cool photos and views of the iconic buildings, design and architecture). It was so busy, we struggled to see the things we really wanted to. And not to mention that dinner at ANY restaurant was a 2+ hour wait that we really were not anticipating. We settled for fast food but who wouldn’t want that after walking nearly 11 miles? With full bellies, we headed back to our Air BNB got our gear ready for our first National Park day. Lights out and we slept like rocks.
DAY TWO
Good Morning NV! It’s time to drive to our first destination, Zion National Park in Utah. We paid for a campsite in the Zion Canyon Campground & RV Park and we highly recommend staying somewhere in the base of the canyon because you never have a bad view from sunrise to sunset. Due to COVID restrictions, the shuttles that take you to trailheads were running at 25% capacity which means we had to be tactical on when you got your shuttle pass. If you didn’t hit the “purchase ticket” button right at 9AM, your chance of getting a shuttle pass for the next day was SLIM. It happened. We hit the button at 9AM but we didn’t make the cut and we didn’t travel all this way to not be able to complete the hikes we wanted so we bought some passes from someone on All Trails and they were worth every penny. That afternoon, we shuttled up to the trailhead and took off for Angel’s Landing. Weeks prior, the chain section was closed due to COVID restrictions and we were so thankful they had opened back up.
We began our hike around 2:30 in the afternoon. It was warm and the air was super dry. The first part of the hike was paved and quite easy footing but as you continue, the trail definitely transitioned from pavement to rock + sand. Most of the path was sunny but the canyon began offering some shade and a cool breeze approximately 3 miles in. There were quite a few switchbacks leading you up through the canyon out to Scout lookout. This is the highest point of the hike before you begin the chain section of Angel’s Landing. This lookout is considered a “decision point”. A lot of people were hesitant to continue the next half mile in the steep ridge chains section of the hike. There are step drop offs and challenging footing to the top but I had to ask myself if the amazing view of all of Zion Canyon was worth.
It was certainly worth it and I’d do it again. The anchored support chains definitely came in handy in many areas, especially when passing people. Was I shaking? YES! Was I nervous as crap? YES! But once we got to the top, I was SO thankful I dove in and overcame my fear. We stayed up there for a while - it was the most beautiful view we had ever seen and we didn’t really want to come back down. The way down was hard on our knees with some of the steep switchbacks but boy was it faster than going up! We finished our hike around 4:45 in the afternoon and headed back to our campsite where we cooked some dinner over the fire and cozied up in our warm layers as the sun set. It was COLD here at night - low 30’s which wasn’t ideal for tenting but I’m glad we had the right gear to keep us warm.
DAY THREE
Good Morning UT! We woke to a brisk, frosty campsite and a lovely text message that my sister delivered a niece that morning. We decided we wanted to watch the sunrise over the bright red canyon with a warm coffee in hand so we walked from our campsite over to the HooDoos General store and got a handcrafted coffee. It was delicious and the view of the sun beating on the deep red canyon walls was unforgettable.
Today we planned to take the shuttle up to the Narrows and take a long hike through the river. I would highly recommend renting the boots and walking sticks from Zion Outfitter for this hike. The water is quite cold because there is a cool breeze running through the canyon opening as you hike up the river. The water hiking boots were really nice because they provided not only some warmth for your feet but also much more grip on the rocks when crossing the river back and forth. It can get slippery in some areas from algae buildup. I am not very tall and my legs are quite short and there were a few points the further we got into the canyon that the current was difficult for me to pass through so I was thankful I had the walking stick to help with balance.
Jordan was smart and wore his water resistant hiking pants because they were quick drying. I on the other hand, didn’t and just wore a pair of my running tights and they did not dry very well and I was quite frozen by the time we reached our turning around point up in the canyon. The cool breeze and wet clothing did NOT mix well. If I had to do it again, I would have warn nicer hiking pants and brought a light jacket with me.
We headed back to our campsite, took broiling hot showers and bundled up in warm, dry clothes before picking up some dinner and enjoying a nice warm fire. We ordered takeout burgers from Zion Canyon Brew Pub and they were dynamite! Highly recommend them after a long hike!
DAY FOUR
Good Morning again UT! We woke to some sunshine casting on the side of the canyon again. Absolutely breathtaking! We decided to do a small hike before taking off to our next destination. We decided to spend the next night in an Air BNB to get out of the cold for a night. We hiked the Canyon Overlook. It was about a mile long and totally worth the views. We did have to take our own vehicle up the scenic drive all the way up the canyon to get to the trailhead as the shuttle doesn’t take you to this trailhead. We decided to take it easy today because our bodies were sore from all the hiking and sleeping in the cold on a thin sleeping pad. We were looking forward to a warm Air BNB and a normal dinner. We stopped at a Walmart on the way to our stay in Hurricane, UT, to pickup some groceries for dinner that night. Man did it feel good to cook a homemade meal again. We went to bed super early this night (I believe it was 7:30/8PM). We were ZONKED and ready to head to Bryce Canyon the next day.
DAY FIVE
It’s time to take off to the next park - Bryce Canyon. We had just over an hour drive to the park. When we arrived, it was only 26 degrees F. Brrr! We thought we were going to freeze in our tent at night but we tried it anyway because we did have the right gear however. We setup camp in Sunset Campground on one of the tenting sites. They were first come first serve so we snagged a site quite early in the morning before we wanted to head out for our first hike. First hike on the list was the Wall Street + Queens Garden Loop Trail. This trail was full of rust colored hoodoos weaving in and out of red rock formations and wall street is FULL of switchbacks. I wasn’t feeling well this day (and I think it was partly elevation) so we took it easy on this hike. I really struggled back up through the switchbacks in Wall Street. Jordan was way ahead of me but I eventually made it to the top. My two favorite things about this hike were the natural colors in all the rock formations and the views you could see for miles. We stopped to listen to a ranger giving some information on how the hoodoos were formed over the years and the history of the park itself (highly recommend). We explored the “touristy” part of the park after this hike and then headed back to our campsite for an afternoon book-reading/nap and a yummy dinner.
The park offers free entertainment and “classes” during the week so we took the opportunity to sit in on a class about the stars. The class took place in the evening and we talked about light pollution and the harshness it has on the stars in the sky. It was certainly interesting to know that Bryce Canyon is one place in the world with the least amount of light pollution hence why the stars were so vibrant there. So vibrant that we drove up to Bryce point with our sleeping pads after the class to take a look at the stars in the open sky. It was freezing + VERY windy. Highly recommend doing this but don’t forget a warm blanket! The sky was so clear that the milky way was quite visible and distinct in the sky which is something we had never seen well before back home from all the light pollution of the city. Once we had enough of being cold, we headed back to camp to get ready for bed and snuggle up in the tent for warmth.
DAY SIX
Brrr!!! There was frost on our tent this morning but we surprisingly stayed quite warm in our tent with our gear so we were thankful for that. First things first, we made a fire for warmth and heated up some water for hot cocoa and a package meal breakfast. This was our last day in Bryce so we made the best of it and headed out for a longer hike to explore the other side of the canyon. We drove to the trailhead for the Fairyland Loop Trail. This trail was full of hoodoos like the first hike we did but it also had trees, wildflowers and much more greenery mixed in between which made it feel like we were in a whole different canyon. The hoodoos weren’t only the deep red color from queens garden and wall street, they were more of a dull white/tan color. This hike was moderate - lots of up hills followed by gracious down hills. We didn’t really see any wildlife like we had hoped to. The loop was approximately 8 miles in total and definitely worth it!
Once this hike was done, we had packed up camp and took off for our next stop in Page, AZ. This was approximately a 2 hour and 45 minute drive. We had originally planned on camping in this area but gave up on the freezing cold temperatures at night and ended up finding an Air BNB to stay at instead. We had another chill night this night. Grabbed some groceries from the local Safeway and made a delicious dinner on the patio. We did some research for exploring Antelope Canyon the next day. Unfortunately, the Upper Antelope was still not open due to COVID because you could only do scheduled tours due to spatial constraints and so the upper canyon was closed. However, we did some more digging and found out you could still access the lower part of the canyon but you would have to do it via watercraft through Lake Powell. So we found a tandem kayak to rent from WazSUP Kayaks in Page.
DAY SEVEN
We took off this morning for our kayak paddle and hike of the lower Antelope Canyon. What was really nice about the kayak rental was that they dropped off and picked up the kayak for you right at the boat launch. So we just met the delivery person there and went on our merry way. They were really helpful with directions on how to get to the lower canyon. We paddled approximately 1.5 miles through Lake Powell and into the Canyon. It was quite an easy paddle. We just parked our kayaks at the base of the canyon opening and hiked our way in. I would recommend wearing water shoes because it’s really mucky at the base of the canyon when you unload from your kayak. We hadn’t brought any with us so we just had to take off our tennis shoes.
This canyon was breathtaking and we feel like we didn’t miss out even though we couldn’t go to the upper canyon. It was the most beautifully colored twisting canyon walls we had ever seen. It almost didn’t seem real. The lower canyon comes to a fork a couple miles in from the water. We went right at the fork and continued to explore. The further in the canyon you go, the tighter the corners get for weaseling your way through. At one point, we were rock climbing just to continue on but we found that really fun. We ran out of time for our kayak rental to explore down the left fork of the canyon otherwise we certainly would have. We could have spent all day there because it was so mesmerizing. We hopped back in our kayak and paddled back to the boat launch for our kayak to be picked up. By the time, we were ready for some food so we drove over to El Tapatio for some margaritas and appetizers. Not much else happened that night. We played some board games that the Air BNB had for us to use and then hit the hay for an early rise to the next destination.
DAY EIGHT
This morning we got up early and drove on over to the Grand Canyon. This was about a 2 hour drive. Unfortunately due to COVID, the only entrance that was open to the park was the South Entrance. This put a big damper on our travel plans as we had hoped to backpack the canyon from rim to rim (north to south) but didn’t get the chance to due to shuttles being closed at those entrances. We made the best of our time here and did some hikes we still wanted to do. The first day there it was pretty chilly and SUPER windy at the top of the canyon. We walked to Mather point and checked out the visitor center when we arrived. There were Elk and big horned sheep everywhere in the park (the elk were massive might I add). We booked a room at the Yavapi Lodge for the next two nights. Upon check-in, the lodge receptionist gave us some free coffee/tea vouchers to be redeemed at the Canyon Village Market which was just a couple minute walk from our room. This was really nice in the cold morning to have.
When you are first visiting the canyon, don’t be afraid to ask the staff or rangers what their favorite parts of the canyon are. We are glad we did! One staff member told us to hurry and head over to Yavapi Point for sunset before it got too crowded so we could get a good view. This point is at the upper most height of the canyon and allows you to see the sun setting across the west side of the canyon. It was one of the most beautiful (yet very chilly and windy) views of the sunset we had seen. Not to mention all the wildlife you could see everywhere in the park. We then headed back for a warm nights rest so we could do a big hike the next day!
DAY NINE
Good Morning Grand Canyon! We ate some hard boiled eggs and fruit for breakfast and set on our way to the trailhead for our hike. Our plan was to hike the Bright Angel Trail to Plateau Point. This ended up being approximately 13 miles out and back. This hike is challenging and not because of the footing or the landscape. What goes down, must come up - right? The whole hike out was obviously downhill into the canyon and the whole second half was all the way back up hill. We started out the hike with winter gear - hats, gloves, winter jackets. It was COLD. But by the time we reached the base of the canyon, the temperature had increase significantly and we were thankful we wore many layers. We ended up in tank tops and shorts at the base of the canyon and sweating our butts off. My 2 liter CamelBak was empty by mile 11 which thankfully I had filled up my Nalgene at one of the water stops along the trail for a backup. I would recommend taking a larger water reservoir with you on this trail but do check to see if the water stations are open (they do close some of them when it gets too cold).
The scenery of this hike was pretty neat actually - it changed with the climate. In the beginning, it was pretty rocky in the beginning with some trees and shrubbery along the trailside which attracted lots of the great horned sheep along the canyons side. Those buggers are quite agile! It was cool to watch them trek along tiny pin points in the rocky canyon side. The further down into the canyon you went, the scenery changed to match the climate. We started more so seeing desert plants from the cactus family and once you reached the Indian Gardens, there were tons of exotic type plants along the way.
We kept hiking until we made it to Plateau Point where we sat down to have a bite to eat. Let me warn you about the chipmunks and squirrels - they are NOT nice and they WILL try to come steal your food right out of your hand. Don’t feed them because that’s what makes them be aggressive and bite humans and the last thing you want is to have a stupid chipmunk or squirrel bite and have to hike 6.5 miles back out of the canyon afterwards. But on a more positive note, we enjoyed our lunch with a FANTASTIC view of the Colorado River. We could see people were rafting down it which was cool. We would have loved to do that if it had been earlier in the year. The pictures you could take from Plateau Point were still breathtaking even though we weren’t at the very bottom of the canyon. Once we rested for a bit, we took off to make the difficult trek back up and out of the canyon. We were pretty tired by mile 12 but knowing there was a food truck at the top made it better! By the time we got back out of the canyon, we were freezing again because the tank top and shorts we had on from earlier were certainly NOT warm enough for the top of the canyon so we layered back up and snagged a bite to eat. That evening, we cozied up in our warm room and rested for the evening before our last day!
DAY TEN
The last day (insert sad face). Let’s be real here, we were ready to get back home to our normal beds and living space. This morning we got up early and headed out for a big breakfast at Pine Country Restaurant in Williams, AZ. We had a delicious meal that sent us feeling full on our way out. We left this day free to do whatever we felt like so we explored the small Route 66 Museum in AZ. It was neat to see the story of how Route 66 came about and its transformation over time. After that we went and enjoyed a burger from the local IN-N-OUT Burger. We then hit some of the local shops in Scottsdale, AZ before heading to our final Air BNB in Las Vegas before our flight the next day. We rested that night and away we went back to Grand Rapids, MI the next morning.
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