Wanderlust

A Night In Vegas

Once we were done hiking the Narrows in Zion National Park, we started our journey back to Las Vegas, Nevada. We had a super early flight the next morning, and had to return our rental car back to Hertz before 5pm.

The drive took about 2.5 hours and was just as beautiful as the first day. Since we were out west, we had to stop for lunch at In N’ Out Burger. When we passed it on our first day, we knew that we wanted to stop on our way back. Taylor had been looking forward to it all week!

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For our last night in Vegas, we stayed at another Airbnb, just because it was easy and simple. We know it isn’t expensive to stay in the hotels on the strip, but since we were only there for one night, we didn’t feel the need for a hotel room. Before we checked in, we explored the old strip for a few hours!

We had no luck at gambling, so we stopped at Starbucks before heading to the airbnb. It was only a short 15 minute drive from the strip.

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When we arrived at the house (click HERE to see it), it was very clean and the host was very welcoming. They showed us our room, gave us water, and stayed out of our way. Since we had to return our rental car, we quickly showered and changed, then set out for Hertz.

Once we dropped off the car, we ubered to the strip!

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We walked for miles, weaving in and out of the different hotels. Everything really is bigger and better in Vegas! Since we had a very early flight the following morning, we didn’t want to stay out extremely late.

We ended the night by watching the famous Fountains of Bellagio in front of the Bellagio hotel.

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13708386_10210078943356011_348245096186333753_o — Headed back to the east coast!!

Not only did we have an incredible time in Utah and Vegas together, but it has been so much fun writing about the adventures and experiences we had. This will be a trip we’ll never forget! Thank you for following along! 🙂

The Narrows of Zion

Our last night camping went well, and we were woken up around 8am to the blazing sun. At this point in the trip, we were pros at taking down the tent and packing everything into the rental car. Once everything was packed up, we stopped at the bath house on the way out to change and get ready for our final hike.

We couldn’t come to Zion without seeing the Narrows!

There are 3 ways to hike the Narrows.

A day hike from the bottom and back: you will start by hiking the Riverside Walk and make your way to the river. In less than a mile, you will be hiking in some of the narrowest parts of the canyon. There is no end destination, so you will have to hike up and return the way you came. You don’t need any permits for this option.
Day hike from top to bottom: This get’s even more difficult. Round trip, this is an all day, 16 mile hike that absolutely requires a permit.
Overnight hike from top to bottom: A strenuous hike requires 2 days, along with a permit to complete. You can only stay a maximum of one night, and need to be cautious of flash flooding. Also, it’s important to pack accordingly.

Thankfully, there is an easy route that can accommodate people who have less time, young children, or aren’t ready for such a strenuous hike. If you want to experience the beauty of the Narrows without all the fuss, you can complete the Riverside Walk. This is a paved trail that follows the Virgin River up to the start of the Narrows. To access the Riverside Walk, you’ll need to hop on the Zion shuttle bus and take it to the last stop.

Zion National Park uses a fantastic system to help cut down on the traffic in the park. During their busy season, they close down the scenic drive that leads to a majority of their trail-heads. They restrict all parking to the main parking lots, or the small town outside of the park. Then, a shuttle system runs up and down the scenic drive taking people to their desired trails. This helps tremendously, and they run a multitude of buses at once so you’ll never wait more than 10 minutes.

After hopping off the shuttle, we began the Riverside Walk. As a suggestion, we recommend wearing warmer clothing for this hike. Not only is the water freezing, but the breeze is cool and it’s hard for the sun to reach you when you’re walking alongside the river.

As you’re walking, you’ll notice that the water is a gorgeous emerald blue. If you have time, you can take a break and enjoy it!

Only a select few will actually hike the entire 9.4 mile trail. At least 60% of this hike is spent in the water. The further along you go, you can find yourself walking, wading, or even swimming! Once you make it to the end of the Riverside walk, you have the choice to enter the water, or turn around. What most people do, is they complete the riverside walk, which is very simple. When they get to the part where they need to start walking through water (which is the start of the Narrows), they either turn around or they just walk through the water for a little bit. We would highly recommend walking through the water, just so you can get the real effect and take in the amazing views.

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When you first enter the water, there will be a ton of people. We recommend going a little further than most of these people, just because you’ll have the opportunity to take everything in without all the screaming kids and other tourists.

Be mindful of the weather, because flash flooding within the Narrows can be deadly!

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We spent about two hours wandering and taking pictures of everything. The views were absolutely breathtaking, and Taylor and I decided that we are going to do the full 9.4 miles the next time we we’re visiting.

Hiking the Narrows was a great way to top off our time in Zion. Next stop, Las Vegas!

Bryce Canyon & Zion Canyon

Our second night camping was another success! The Wonderland RV Park was so great, that we hated to pack up and leave the following morning. Once we loaded up the car, we drove towards Bryce Canyon National Park.

We were very excited to visit this next park because it’s one of the top National Parks in Utah’s Mighty 5, along with Zion. Bryce Canyon’s entrance fee is $30 per vehicle. At this point, we had paid off our annual pass!

We took a photo apart, but the people taking our photo insisted we stand together since we were an engaged couple…

Like every other park we visited, we stopped at the visitor center to find a map. (Taylor and his maps) While we were inside, Taylor wanted to crawl under the fake rock display and stick his head up through the bubble. While he was under there, the other children let him know that he was too big…ha!

We parked our car and started hiking the Navajo Loop! This is a moderate hike that requires 1-2 hours to hike 1.3 miles. Trust me, you will want to take your time because it is a beautiful hike! You will see some geological sights known as Wall Street, Two Bridges, and Thor’s Hammer on this short but steep trail.

13653154_10210078783912025_2670110421958929874_o — Thor’s Hammer

This was one of our favorite trails! We had SO MUCH FUN together as we walked up and down the switchbacks, and took in all the red and orange colors that hovered over us. We had never seen anything like this before.

As suggested by the trail name, you hike a complete circle. You start at the top of the canyon and hike down, then you hike back up to the top. It starts and ends at the same place, so you can choose to go either way, but they recommend going clockwise.

Once we hiked to the canyon floor, we sat under a tree to have lunch! We ate our sandwiches and enjoyed the afternoon, UNTIL A SNAKE CRAWLED OUT IN FRONT OF US.

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Bryce Canyon was so much fun! At this point in our trip, it was Thursday and we would be flying home early Saturday morning. Since our flights were in and out of Vegas, we wanted to spend some time in Vegas before heading out! We also wanted to spend more time in Zion National Park because our time was limited on our first day. For this reason, we didn’t camp in Bryce. Instead, we drove an hour back to Zion.

The campground within the park was full, so we had to travel outside a few miles to stay at the High-Road Campground.

This was our least favorite campground out of the three we stayed at. It was basically just dirt and a few trees, with an outhouse. It cost us $30 for one night.

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On the other end of the campground, there was a full bathhouse. It was really unclean, and only 1 toilette (out of 5 or 6) was working. Also, the women’s shower was out of order and you had to go around the back, in the dark, to the backside of the men’s bathroom where a curtain was hung to shower. No thank you. If you plan on camping in Zion, make sure you book one of the other campgrounds months in advance, as they fill up quickly.

After setting up our tent, we found a great Italian place in town! Zion Pizza & Noodle was such a great place to eat after hiking all week.

They have huge pasta dishes and even better pizza! We ordered cheesy garlic bread with marinara, and a BBQ chicken pizza!

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Both were fantastic! When we come back to Zion in the future, we will be eating here again. Maybe next time we’ll order a pasta dish.

Once we were finished eating, we wanted to go on a short walk, so we headed for the Lower Emerald Pool trail. This is 1.2 miles, and they recommend leaving an hour to complete it. The trail is paved with minor drop-offs and connects to the Upper Emerald Pool trail.

It was a nice short and sweet walk after dinner, but it was slightly disappointing. The name of the trail leads you to believe that it’s going to be this beautiful waterfall with emerald water, but the picture above is what it really looks like. Maybe the upper trail is prettier?

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This really pretty river below is located across the street from the Zion Lodge. During the day, you will find a ton of people walking through it.

As the sun sets, several deer come and munch on the grass in front of the lodge. They are completely unphased by all the people. The lodge fills up quickly too, so we’d like to try and stay there next time. It was so beautiful and is a great place to come and relax.

Finding a seat on the bench and watching the deer and the sunset was the best way to end the day.

Canyonlands & Capitol Reef

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Our first night camping in the desert went well! While planning this trip, we really had no idea what to expect weather wise. We knew it would be scorching hot during the day (which it was), but we weren’t sure if it would be warm or cool during the night. On our first night camping in Arches, Taylor said he froze. On the other hand, I couldn’t have been more content. We will tell you this, the temperature can heat up or cool down within minutes. We never needed to set any alarms because the heat always woke us up as soon as the sun rose.

While Taylor took apart our tent, I walked to the bath house to change and get ready for the day. The bath houses at the Moab RV Resort and Campground were clean and nice! They had a lot of stalls and showers, so you never had to wait. The one thing we forgot to pack on this trip, was a towel. We are those people who ALWAYS forget towels. Whether that be a beach towel or a shower towel, we WILL forget it. Over the years, we have purchased so many overpriced towels because we’re the ones who never remember to pack them. Instead of renting one from the desk for $3, we just used our old t-shirts to dry off…disgusting yes, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do!

Before we left, I grabbed some complimentary coffee. The coffee was surprisingly delicious! Sometimes, you just can’t expect much when it’s free. We also needed to fill up on gas, and get some new ice for our cooler. There was a McDonald’s down the road that had bags of ice for only .99 cents!

As soon as we were done, we started our drive towards Canyonlands and Capitol Reef. These are the two least visited parks within the Mighty 5 in Utah. When we arrived to Canyonlands, we immediately went to the visitor’s center to find a map and fill up on water. (Without an annual pass, it will cost you $25 per vehicle to enter the park.) Right across the street, there is a breathtaking view of the canyons, that you MUST stop and see.

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Canyonlands National Park consists of 337,598 acres of truly breathtaking canyons! The entire park is divided into four districts, Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, and Horseshoe Canyon. The view in the pictures above is on Island in the Sky.

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13767333_10210078968996652_1763629663493563495_o — The Green River

After snapping some pictures, we decided to hike the Mesa Arch trail, which is only 0.5 miles round trip. They recommend 30 minutes to enjoy everything, and it’s a short hike that leads to a cliff-edge arch.

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We were in awe of the views that constantly surrounded us. We decided to drive around the park and stop at some overlooks for more pictures. This was such an interesting park because it had those coppery red-toned rocks with arches, and then it also had very white, sandy buttes in another area.

Once we were finished exploring Canyonlands, we headed towards Capitol Reef National Park.

It only costs $15 per vehicle to enter this park because it’s not as popular as the others and there isn’t as much to do. There are a few trails, but it’s mostly a very long scenic drive.

The famous Capitol Dome in the picture above looks so similar to the US Capitol building, that it inspired the name of the Capitol Reef National Park.

Carvings and paintings that date back to 300 to 1300 CE, can be found on the rock walls. This shows that people used to call this place home a very long time ago. We got to see some of them, but forgot to take a picture…oops!

Nobody knows why there is a giant crater in the rocks, from the picture above. They think either something hit it years ago, or there used to be a body of water that has dried up.

As it was getting later in the afternoon, we headed out of the park to go find a place to camp and eat dinner. After comparing campgrounds within the area, we chose Wonderland RV Park, in Torrey UT.

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Of all the places we camped during our trip, this was our absolute favorite. The staff was incredibly sweet and everything was extremely clean and well kept.

The grass was so lush and green and they even had divider walls between each tent site. Their bath houses were the cleanest we’ve ever seen and they had entire shower rooms, which made you feel like you were in your own home. The best part? We only paid $26.50 to stay here. This was the cheapest AND nicest place! We cannot say enough good things about this campground!

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After setting up camp, we ate at Slackers’s Burger Joint. The service was great and they had so many different options to choose from. We even got some ice cream for our scenic drive around Capitol Reef as the sun went down.

We had a great day enjoying both Canyonlands and Capitol Reef together.

Arches National Park

We had a really difficult time leaving the Grand Canyon Lodge after the perfect day we had before, but we needed to continue our trip by heading to another park. Due to the time difference, we woke up early and walked over to the “Saloon” to grab breakfast and coffee.

This adorable cafe was filled with yummy coffee, tea, and pastries! Taylor ordered a huge homemade cinnamon roll and I got an iced vanilla latte. YUM!

Back in the day, they used mules like this to carry everything up and down the canyon.

We took our breakfast to the back porch of the lodge and sat in the rocking chairs overlooking the canyon. It was still fairly early, so everything was calm and peaceful. This was one of my favorite moments during the entire trip.

After we were done eating and rocking, we reluctantly packed up our bags and headed towards Arches National Park. We had to leave early because Taylor wanted to take the scenic route. This was the longest drive we took during the entire trip, but it was easily the most beautiful. The views were so stunning that we had to stop several times alongside the road to take pictures.

To pass time during our long ride, we turned on some comedy podcasts and started dreaming of ideas for the wedding!

It’s easy to feel small driving through mountains like this for several hours.

After 8 hours of driving, we finally made it to Arches National Park!! As soon as we arrived, we headed straight for the visitor center so we could fill up on water and find a map. Out of all the trails, we decided that we wanted to hike the Delicate Arch and pack our dinner for the sunset. Before we could start hiking anywhere, we had to find somewhere to set up our tent.

We chose to stay at the Moab Valley RV Resort and Campground for $33. It was located right outside the park, and was a great place to stay!

They have RV hookups, cabins, and tent spots along with an in-ground pool, WIFI, and a nice bath house! And, if you’re looking to spend a few nights in Arches, they also have premium sites for tents that have a huge tent shading you! This way, your belongings don’t bake in the desert sun all day long. We were only going to be here one night and it was already late afternoon, so we didn’t need a premium spot.

Overall, we really enjoyed our stay at this campground! The staff was super helpful and friendly! They even had complimentary coffee. 🙂 Once we set everything up, we packed our dinner and headed to the Delicate Arch trail.

The trail is 3.0 miles round trip and they recommend giving yourself 2-3 hours to complete it. It’s also rated as a “strenuous” hike, but after our hike in Zion the day before, this was a walk in the park.

Most of the hike is on slick rock and you really have to watch your footing. Since there is no shade in the desert, starting this hike in the evening was perfect! We began around 5:30 as the sun was beginning to set. One of the biggest mistakes we made the day before was starting the hike at noon!

It was so windy when we made it to the top that we were afraid we would blow over if we stood for too long!

After enjoying the view for awhile, we began our hike back to the bottom.

When we made it to the car, we drove to another trail so we could eat our sandwiches while watching the sunset.

We hiked to the perfect overlook!

As soon as we were done eating, we headed back to the car. Now, here’s where things get interesting. While we were walking back, a small rabbit moved to the right of me and it scared the daylights out of me! A few minutes later, I spotted several deer in some bushes directly in front of us and I was completely terrified! Taylor just laughed at me, but I think it was because my heart was still pounding from the rabbit incident.

Once we made it back safely to the car, Taylor really wanted to park the car and look at the stars. Arches is one of the best places to do this because it is so far away from any light pollution. I wish we could’ve captured it on our camera, but you’ll have to take my word for it. There were several other cars stopped alongside the road, just so they could look up.

Next up in the Mighty 5, Canyonlands and Capitol Reef!!

Thank’s for following along! 🙂

Our Engagement Story!

On our first full day out west, we woke up early so we could go pick up our rental car from Hertz at the airport. We took a short Uber ride, and when we arrived we had no wait to pick up the car!

We rented a Nissan, Sentra for one week, which only cost us $260. The car worked out nicely for us because it came with unlimited miles and was great on gas mileage. We racked up over 1,500 miles on this trip so the unlimited miles was a huge plus! The only thing we wished that we could have changed, was the size. It didn’t offer a ton of space for our things, but we made it work. We would’ve loved something bigger and with four wheel drive for Taylor’s dirt road adventures.

Once we got our car, we headed toward Zion National Park (While of course stopping for coffee). The views on the way were breathtaking and made the two hour drive fly by!

Once we arrived in Zion, we immediately bought an annual pass for all National Parks. Without the pass, it’s around $30 per park you enter, depending on the popularity. During our trip, we would be visiting 6 different parks, so it made total sense to purchase the annual pass for $80. Not only did we get our money’s worth for this trip, but we have all year to use it too!

We stopped at the visitors center to check out the maps and pick which trail we wanted to hike. We ended up choosing Angel’s Landing, which is one of the most popular hikes.

This ended up being the most strenuous hike we did during the entire trip. Not only was it our first day in the desert, but the altitude was so high, that it made it 10x harder. We would NOT recommend this hike for anyone with small children, injuries, or a fear of heights.

When you’re hiking to the top, you are constantly on an incline for several miles. There is nothing flat about this trail. We really had to push each other to make it to the top. Taylor said that we didn’t have a place to stay that night, so we were slightly pressed for time, but it was so hard not to take a water break every 10 minutes.

The picture below shows some of the switchbacks that you would have to climb. It was such a heartbreaker to turn a corner and see what you had to climb next, knowing you would need to zig-zag your way up there.

But by conquering the climbs, it resulted in every plateau offering a breathtaking view of the park below!

When we thought we made it to the top, we looked up and realized we still had about another hour to go. From where we stood, it was another 1.1 miles to the top! The hike was hard enough making it to where we stood, but the climb to angel’s landing included a very narrow path with only a loose chain to keep you from falling off a 1000 foot drop. No thank you!

At some points, the trail was only 3 feet wide! I wasn’t keen on heights, so Taylor agreed and said we should start heading back down the mountain. This should’ve been my first clue that he had other plans for the evening. On any normal day, he would’ve really dragged me up that hill.

At some moments, going down proved to be a little scarier than hiking up!

Pictured below is the same picture as earlier, except this time we were standing at the top! It was so relieving to look down rather than up.

The trail took us about 2+ hours total! Once we reached the bottom, we got back in the car and headed to our next destination.

Taylor told me that we were going to Arches National Park and stopping for dinner along the way. I kept asking him if we were going the right way, but since I am the most directionally challenged person I know, I just assumed we were headed towards Arches. The drive was soooo long and I began to panic that we wouldn’t be able to find a place to camp. Taylor remind confident we would find something (probably hint number 2 for him having other plans for the day).

After driving for what seemed like forever, we came to a little park entrance and I was very confused because I knew we weren’t in Arches. Then, Taylor told me, “Surprise!! We’re at the Grand Canyon!” I was super shocked because Taylor has never successfully surprised me with anything. I can usually figure him out.

At this point, I immediately started asking a million questions, and he told me that he had booked a room at the Grand Canyon Lodge (North Rim) with dinner reservations at 9.

The Lodge was absolutely beautiful and one of the coolest places we’ve visited. Not only were the views incredible, but everything was cozy and quiet. The lodge is only open from May 15 through October 15 because it’s almost impossible to get to once the colder weather arrives. It’s such a popular destination, that you have to make your reservations a year in advance. They open the dates for the following year every July. Taylor got really lucky because he called several times a week to see if anyone had cancelled. Finally, they told him that there was an opening for July 4, which was perfect!!

After checking in, we walked around and explored before getting ready for dinner. If you don’t want to stay in the lodge, you can book one of these cute cabins! Some even have porches with rocking chairs.

Once we put all of our luggage in our room, we showered and changed for dinner. Taylor assured me that the dinner would be fancy since it was held in the lodge, so we both needed to dress nicely.

We had some time before our reservation, so we decided to watch the sunset over the canyon.

Towards the end of the sunset, Taylor asked a young couple if they would mind taking our picture in front of the canyon. What I didn’t know, was that he had asked them to keep taking photos because he was about to propose.

After they took our photo, Tay immediately got down on one knee and asked me to marry him!!

I was so happy and surprised and could not stop staring at the ring he pulled out!!

We were so overjoyed and could hardly focus the rest of the night at dinner! Taylor put so much thought and effort into making the entire day and night special. We will never forget that moment and we will definitely be returning to the Grand Canyon Lodge for years to come!