Exploring the Wild Wild West | Grand Canyon Roadtrip and More!

Greetings Daizies,

At the beginning of 2020 I definitely thought I was about to be getting my passport stamped UP and really utilizing my Global Entry that I JUST bought in 2019 lol. But we all know how that went. As a traveling queen this year was a true test of my ability to stay put and to figure things out when I had no way to easily pack my bags and ESCAPE. While international travel for me has taken a hiatus, I was so blessed to have the ability to go on a road trip with my best friends across 5 states and hit major national parks! I was so surprised and at awe in how much beauty I saw in the United States to where sometimes it felt like I really was in a different country. There are so many elements I can talk about but I’ll just summarize each location and my favorite parts 🙂

Logistics

There are pretty much 2 transport options you can do for a roadtrip. An RV or a traditional car/van. We thought about an RV but eventually the pros of the car outweighed the pros for an RV and looking back I am really glad we went with a car instead. After those long stretches of driving it was nice to shift to a room, even if for a day or two, and have access to a hot shower and space to move around.

• Honda CR-V with Turo – A car-sharing app
• 10 days, 9 nights (drove through 1 of the nights)
• 4 drivers with shifts of 3 hours max
• Each night we would spend in a hotel mapped along with our destination points
• Route 1 to Arizona we had hotel stops in and Idaho, Utah, Arizona
• Route 2 to Yellowstone our hotel stops were in Utah, Idaho, and lastly Montana. So we basically went the same direction back but further North and West to hit Montana and Wyoming

Route to Arizona

Idaho

• Snyder Vineyard
• Twin Falls

Leaving from Washington, we arrived in Idaho within one day and stayed in LaQuinta Inn in Boise. Our first activity was spending the day at Snyder Vinyard for wine tasting. The vineyard was open for wine tasting by appointment only for Covid-19 precautions and when we entered there was one group there on their way out so we had most of the area to ourselves. Like with most of the trip thereafter, I marveled at the amount of space and miles of land in the areas we visited. It was a cute event to start off our trip! As we drove further towards Utah, we stopped off at Twin Falls. I expected to see two waterfalls, hence the name Twin Falls, but there was just one. You can visit Twin Falls as a quick stop for about 30 minutes.

It was a quick stop for pictures and watching the sunset and we ended the night in Utah. We didn’t spend much time in Utah the first time around besides going to the grocery store. Some of my favorite snacks for the road trip were:

• Greek yogurt and bananas – Having a cooler was a great idea! The yogurt with bananas on top served as a quick and healthy breakfast for on the go along with any complimentary snacks they had at the hotel
• Pretzels
• Nutri-Grain bars
• Gluten free blueberry bread
• Cream cheese danishes

Arizona

• Grand Canyon National Park
• Horseshoe Bend
• Glen Canyon Damn Overlook

I used to live in Arizona from the time I was 9 until I was 11 years old. I was excited to come back to the state where I spent a piece of my childhood and visit the Grand Canyon, a place I had always heard classmates visit but never had a chance to see myself. Early in the morning (9:30am which is early enough for me lol) we got the first glimpse of the Grand Canyon. My first thought was “wow, this is amazing!” It just extended for miles and miles and miles. It looked exactly like it did in pictures.

• 

We walked among the Rim Trail, located in the South Rim, for about 45 minutes and of course stopped for lots of pictures and videos. Be sure to bring MORE water than you expect you’d need! The walk back seemed like it was never-ending and all of my snacks and water started to run out. When we finally reached the Grand Canyon Village for food, I was elated. Till this day I dream about the grilled chicken sandwich and fries I had once we made it to food and shelter.

The Grand Canyon can be explored in one day unless you plan on doing activities like hiking or riding a mule. I for one, am not one to hike for miles and miles so after one full day, I felt I saw all it had to offer and we were off to other sights the next day.

We drove 2 hours from the Grand Canyon to Horseshoe Bend in Page, Arizona. Again I’ll put heavy emphasis on the water and make sure you’ve had enough to eat. The walk from the parking lot is 15 minutes, and while that seems super short, it can seem twice as long in the desert heat.

Just a 9 minute drive away, you can view the sunset at the scenic Glen Canyon Dam Overlook. I felt so calm and one with nature, just watching all of the colors of the sunset colors morph as the sun slowly became invisible with just it’s rays left to tell the story. Being out watching the sunset ahead of me helped me to breathe and simply relax. I remember smiling and being amazed at how fascinating the Earth is and wanting to savor the moment of peace.

Utah

• Fairyland Point in Bryce Canyons
• Bryce Wildlife Adventure Museum
• Horseback riding
• ATVs
• Calf Creek Falls

Bryce, Utah was one of my favorite places of the trip. I felt like I got to really learn about the day-to-day lives of people living in a small town and living a completely different life than mine in the city. I found that people knew a lot about each other’s families and who ran what business just up the road.

My day started with a picnic in the fields. After driving for miles and miles I always wanted to just sit in the open land and eat. I think the idea was better than reality though, as the sun was definitely beating down on my skin but I’m glad I got it out of my system nevertheless. The Bryce Wildlife was a small two floor museum that featured taxidermy and fossils of wildlife from around the world. If you can make it past the eeriness of the taxidermies themselves, learning about the animals from the descriptions and signange is quite fascinating. I briefly walked around Fairland Point which was an area in the Bryce Canyon Park. No need to hike the whole thing to see the amazing view, 20 minutes was enough for me. It was cool to see the formations up close.

I loved the experience of riding a horse throughout the fields and near the rim of the canyons. I was very high up but still felt secure and amazed by how smart and gentle “Cowboy” turned out to be. I would definitely recommend spending time in Bryse and booking this activity while in town. We did ATV riding at dusk (bring a jacket), and we got pretty close up to seeing the elk and deer which was beautiful. I wouldn’t compare it to some of the fast ATV riding experiences I’ve had elsewhere, it was more of a stroll through the hills lol.

We closed out our time in Bryce leaving bright and early at 5am to drive Lower Calf Creek Falls about 1.5 hours away. It was so cold in the morning but quickly warmed up after walking about 10 minutes.

I was surprised that the trail is through sand the entire way; adds some extra resistance. If I had known, I would have worn my active sandals rather tan accumulating pounds of sand in my socks! Hiking earlier in the day allowed us to make it pretty far into the trail before the heat of the sun really hit. Looking around me at the curves of the rocks, the birds flying over the trees and the bright sky made me feel like I was inside of a beautiful still from National Geographic. The waterfall was worth it in the end I was so excited to swim in my first waterfall – and yes it was freezing cold!

Wyoming/Montana

• Yellowstone National Park

• 

Yellowstone National Park is a huge geographical wonder that I never would have expected I’d visit this year. I remember learning a little bit about the geysers in history class in middle school and thought they looked cool. The pictures I saw in the books were of the geysers erupted so I didn’t get that exact view. I was surprised to learn that Yellowstone extends across multiple states and that it takes hours to get from one viewpoint to the next. The map given at the entrance will be your best friend as it is hard to find service to search for locations using GPS. The Grand Prismatic Spring was our starting point and it was my favorite!

We drove non-stop from Montana back to Washington, a brutal task but we made it through. Driving through sunset had it’s perks. We made it back to Washington safe and sound and it was a successful road trip. I really had such a great time and felt refreshed coming back which is the best part of traveling. Don’t sleep on roadtrips and National Parks!

Have you ever been on a road trip? What was your experience?

As always,