Join us on our adventure out to Utah to see the Mighty 5.
Day 1 - Friday, June 2
We departed at 7:23 a.m. As we were driving away, V said “Next time can we go to Hawaii?”. We will have to see about that kid! Then she asked “Are we going to the bison?” They loved our trip to Yellowstone and Theodore Roosevelt NPs the summer before. We made good time driving down to Iowa, then through Nebraska. We made it to North Platte at 5:20 p.m. and went right to Applebee’s for dinner. Then we went to the Trading Post before going to the hotel. We checked into the hotel at 8:00 p.m. Unfortunately, the pool was down, so we spent the rest of the time in the hotel room.
Day 2 - Saturday, June 3
I woke up at 4:30 a.m. and finished my book. So I decided to go for a 30 minute walk. I got back to the room, showered and walked next door for coffee at 7:00 a.m. At 7:30 a.m. I woke up the family so we could get going. We had breakfast, loaded up the van, and were on our way at 8:00 a.m. At 8:20 a.m. CT, we entered Mountain Time. We stopped at the Colorado welcome center for a rest stop. On our way, we had realized we left our tarp at home. So in Denver, we made a detour and stopped at REI for a new tarp at 10:50 a.m. We were back on the road at 11:22 a.m. Emily drove through the mountains while mostly everyone slept.
At 4:42 p.m. we arrived at Sego Canyon Petroglyphs. This was a last minute stop. I had seen it listed on the National Geographic map of Utah we were using. It was a really good stop! It was really neat to see the Petroglyphs. From there, we continued on to Arches. We arrived at Arches National Park at 5:50 p.m. Thankfully, it was late enough in the day, and there wasn’t a line to get into the park. We saw signs that said “2 hours wait from here” and “1 hour wait from here”. The gate wasn't staffed at that time, but we had our annual pass, so we were good. We made a quick stop at 6:19 p.m. at the Fiery Furnace for the bathroom and quick walk. We got to our campsite - 28, at 6:45 p.m. We set up camp and ate dinner.
Day 3 - Sunday, June 4
We got up and had a quick breakfast before leaving the campsite at 7:30 a.m. We made it to the Wolfe Ranch at 7:55 a.m. and hiked to Delicate Arch. We got to Delicate Arch at 9:01 a.m. We stayed there for a while, taking pictures, eating a snack, and gaining energy back for the kids. The last bit was a little nerve-racking being there with the kids. We had several conversations with them about taking it slow and staying by us. T was pretty tired on the hike up, but had gained his energy and was very cheerful hiking down. The hike total distance was 3.54 miles. We made it back to the car at 11:00 a.m. and drove to the Delicate Arch Viewpoint & Lower Delicate Arch Viewpoint.
At this time it was already 89° out. We stopped at Panorama Point at 11:10 a.m. then we went to the visitor center at 11:35 a.m. After the visitor center, we had lunch at one of the covered picnic tables by the parking lot. This rock formation was by the picnic table and V asked "why does that guy have only one eye?" Which made us look and laugh. We left the visitor center at 12:50 p.m.
The kids were tired and it was hot out so we dropped Marcus off at Park Avenue at 1:00 p.m. I drove the kids to the La Sal Mountains Viewpoint, then to the end of the trail. Once Marcus finished the trail he drove the kids to the bathroom, then to where he started, while I started hiking back to where he started. Marcus really liked this trail. I liked it as well, but it felt odd not seeing anyone for most of the hike. Marcus met me with the kids almost at the trailhead, then he walked with the girls through Park Avenue. Thaddeus and I drove to the other end again and met Marcus and the girls at the finish. It was a lot of back and forth, but allowed us to both hike the trail, and give the kids a bit of a rest.
We stopped and quickly saw Balance Rock at 2:30 p.m. by that time, it was 90°. We went back to camp to relax a bit. Marcus left from the campsite to hike Broken Arch at 4:00 p.m. and got back at 5:00 p.m. I then left to hike Broken Arch and hiked to Sand Dune Arch as well.
Sand Dune Arch was such a treasure. When I got back, they had eaten dinner and spent time exploring the campsite. They could see Skyline Arch from our campsite, and they thought that was really neat. They would climb a rock behind our tent and enjoy the view. I ate, and suggested driving to the Sand Dune Arch. The family didn’t want to go, but Emily convinced them it would be worth it! We left at 7:00 p.m. at it was 88° out. We all hiked Sand Dune Arch. The whole family loved that arch and the space around it was so unique. We spent quite a bit of time there. It also felt cooler by the arch, so it was a nice way to escape the heat.
Afterwards, I drove back with V and Marcus took the two bigger kids back to camp via Broken Arch. They loved that hike with him.
The fact that both of us were able to do that hike, the kids were able to take a break, we were all able to eat dinner, and then bring the kids to Sand Dune Arch is one of the reason's I love staying in the parks. Some of the best trails from the campground.
Day 6 - Monday, June 6
Marcus, P, and I got up at 5:30 a.m. and I made coffee and started pancakes, and sausage. We woke up T and V at 7:00 a.m. and they ate breakfast. We washed up and left camp at 7:40 a.m. and headed to Canyonland National Park. We had to stop at Arches National Park visitor center to go to the bathroom before heading out of the park. We got to Canyonland National Park Visitor Center at 9:15 a.m., went to the bathroom, and put on sunblock.
We dove to Mesa Arch and arrived there at 9:52 a.m. and hiked to the arch. Then we left the arch and went to Upheaval Dome at at 10:30 a.m. and we hiked to the first overlook. It was 90° and the kids and Marcus were tired and hot. We had a great parking spot right at a covered picnic table, so we decided to hang out at the table for a while. Marcus cut up the watermelon, which was great! And he ended up making panini sandwiches that were delicious and just what we needed. It was a big watermelon and there wasn't any left. It really helped us. After our long rest, we were ready to move on. We went to the Green River Overlook, and the White Rim. Then we went to Grandview Point Overlook and hiked for a little bit. We left Grandview Point Overlook at 2:21 p.m.
As we approached Arches National Park we could see there was a long line to get into Arches National Park. We needed ice anyway, so we drove to Moab for ice. We first went to a park, which was right by a pool, so we decided to go swimming to cool off and take a shower. (a perk of tent camping and keeping our clothes bags in the van. After swimming, we got gas and ice at 6:42 p.m. then headed to Arches. We were in Arches at 6:46 p.m. We got back to camp and had a taco dinner. We like to talk with our kids about navigation, and how to tell where a trail is, also what to do if they go lost. We like to ask them "how can you tell where the trail is?" When it was dark out, we went on an evening hike. We had our flashlights, map, and compass with us, but we didn't use our flashlights. We would keep pausing and checking with the kids to see where they thought the trail went. We also talked to them about how things look different in the daylight, and how you can use landmarks to help find your way. They had a fun time with this. We got back to camp at 10:15 p.m. and went to bed.
Day 7 - Tuesday, June 7
Emily and Marcus got up at 5:00 a.m. and made coffee and eggs. At 7:00 a.m. the kids got up and we made oatmeal for them. We then left and drove the short distance to Devil’s Garden trailhead.
We hiked to Landscape arch, then on to Partition arch and Navajo arch before heading back to the car. That was quite a hike! It was quite the hike, and once again, we had to remind the kids they need to be very careful on this trail, to take it slow and stay by us. They did a great job and really loved this hike. We had hiked 4.18 miles, and the kids were tired at the end! We went back to camp to get some cold Gatorade and V's lovey as she was very tired. Then we drove to the Windows. I hiked the Windows really quick while Marcus waited in the car with the tired kids. We got back to camp at 12:35 p.m. and made lunch. Then we rested, and played around the camp. We tried, but none of the kids napped. At 4:08 p.m. we decided to go for a drive to cool off for a bit. It was 95° out! In Moab, Marcus took T and P for a short walk over a bridge as V had fallen asleep. Then V and I joined them. At 5:55 p.m. we were back at Arches, drove to camp and made dinner.
After dinner, we packed up camp as much as we could so we could get an early start the next day. Then we went on a hike to Tapestry Arch. That's the trail we were walking on the night before, so it was fun to show the kids the trail in the daylight. Then we went to the Ranger's program. V was still really tired, so I ended up walking back with her while Marcus stayed with the other two.
Day 8 - Wednesday, June 8
We woke up early, had a quick breakfast and departed camp at 6:39 a.m. and left the park at 7:09 a.m. We were hoping to spend some time at Capitol Reef National Park on our way to Bryce Canyon, and Marcus had been told about Lower Calf Creek Falls and he wanted to check that out too, so we really wanted an early start. At 9:50 a.m. we parked at Hickman Bridge, in Capitol Reef National Park. After a very short while, we decided to turn around because the kids and Marcus were having a really hard time. We’re not sure if it was the heat, or just being tired. But they were not wanting to hike at all. We stopped at the petroglyphs and I got out and looked around, they are so neat to see.
At 10:53 we arrived at the visitor center for Capitol Reef National Park. After the visitor center we went to the Gifford house. I wanted to spend more time at the park, but everyone else wanted to keep going, so we headed on our way. Plus Marcus still wanted to check out Lower Calf Creek Falls. He thought he was told it was 3 miles round trip, and from what I could tell it was 6 miles. At this point, the most the kids had hiked was just over 4 miles. We found the trailhead and it was really busy! I read the sign, and it said it was over 3 miles one way. Though we would have loved the hike, we didn't think the kids were up for it, plus we thought it would take too long, so we kept going. We had lunch at a food truck in Escalante.
We made it to Bryce Canyon National Park at 3:45 p.m. We went right to our campsite and set up. While we were setting up, we found out we could have a campfire - the only campsite that allowed it the whole trip! The camp host kindly offered us some wood. Then we went to the visitor center. After the visitor center, we made Hamburgers for dinner. We had the pies we had gotten from the Gifford House for dessert! Marcus and the kids went to the night program while I cleaned up the dishes and took care of the trash.
This was by far our favorite campsite during the trip. The pine trees offered some shade and it was noticeably cooler. I am still bummed we didn't spend more time at Capitol Reef. We will have to go back one day. However, getting to camp early, diffidently made a big difference with the kids. They were ready to go the next day!
Day 9 - Thursday, June 9
We got up and had a hearty breakfast of pancakes, bacon, eggs and coffee at 7:00 a.m. We arrived at Sunrise trailhead at 8:23 a.m. and hiked the Queens Garden Trail - Navajo Loop Trail - Wall Street - up to Sunset. The hike was a total of 3.95 miles and it took us just under 2 hours. The kids really enjoyed this hike. The Voodoos were really cool to see. It was fun going through the small archways. Wall Street was really neat to look at and hike out of.
After the hike, we went to the lodge to check it out for a bit. Then we went to the general store really quickly to get shower tokens, and stuff for s’mores before going back to camp for lunch of watermelon, bell pepper, cucumber, crackers, meat, and cheese. At 1:00 p.m. we drove to the end of the park and started making our way back. V was really tired and fell asleep in the van, so we took turns getting out. First stop was Rainbow Point. Then we stopped at Ponderosa Canyon, Natural Bridge, and Fairview Point. We then left the park and drove to Mossy Cave, which is part of the park. Though we didn’t find the cave, we all had a blast cooling off in the water.
We stayed there for over an hour. We were planning on showering that night, but we didn’t get back before the showers closed. We were back at camp at 5:15 p.m. and made stew for dinner while the kids played with other kids from the campground. After dinner, the kids and their parents came over for s’mores. We had a fun time hanging out and having a campfire. It was such a fun relaxing night.
Day 10 - Thursday, June 10
Marcus got up and out of the tent at 5:00 a.m. to watch the sun rise. I got out of the tent and made coffee around 6:00 a.m. When Marcus got back, I went for a short hike. We had breakfast of oatmeal, pancakes, sausage, and cheerios, then packed up camp. We were glad we had a shorter drive today, and could take our time.
At 10:00 a.m. we left camp and went to the general store to take showers. It felt so good to rinse all off the dirt off and get clean! After our showers, we headed to the visitor center so the kids could get their junior ranger badges. At 11:40, we left the visitor center on our way to Zion.
We arrived at the East entrance and drove through Zion to get to Springdale. We at lunch at Zion Canyon Brew Pub. There was a long wait, but for the most part, we enjoyed just sitting in the shade waiting. Lunch was really good. We then picked up some groceries because, as planned, we were mostly out. We decided to walk to the Visitor Center as we were able to do that from where we had lunch. We spent some time checking out the visitor center. Then we walked back to the car and drove to the campsite at 4:48 p.m. We set up camp, and had a light dinner. After that, Emily, P, and T went on a short hike. There were deer all over the campgrounds. It was very hot, with next to no shade.
Day 11 - Friday, June 11
Every morning, Marcus would get up and apply for the Angel's Landing permit. Unfortunately, he never got it. Marcus and I got up at 6:00 a.m. and made coffee and eggs. The kids got up at 6:45 and had cereal for breakfast. We walked to the visitor center and got on the shuttle at 7:57 a.m. We arrived at the Narrows at 8:39, and got out to hike.
We hiked 1 mile to the water. Marcus decided to hike barefoot. P and I hiked in our Chaco sandals. T's sandals were giving him blisters, so we told him he could hike in his tennis shoes. He thought that was really cool. V also wore her sandals. The kids loved this hike, they thought it cool that we hiked in the water. There were some sections that the water went up to my thighs. Marcus carried V a lot, and I carried T at a few points. We hiked another mile in the water before deciding to have a snack before turning around and heading back. We finished the hike at 12:36 p.m. We got on the shuttle at 12:36 and T fell asleep on the way back. We had lunch of sandwiches and soup. It was so hot that we just hung out at camp. Then had dinner of hot dogs, chicken, and pasta.
Day 12 - Saturday, June 12
At 5:45 a.m. Emily was up and out of the tent and made coffee. We took the shuttle to the lodge and hiked to Upper Emerald Pool. The kids were really tired on this hike. After the hike, we took the shuttle back to camp and had taco meat for lunch. It was another really hot afternoon - over 100°. The ground was so hard we couldn’t put our tent stakes in. Marcus tried tying down the tent, but this was such a problem with how windy it was. This was diffidently out least favorite campsite. When we had gotten back to our campsite, it was so windy and plowing the tent all around. We saw a group of people who were collecting their tent that had blown a long ways away. We decided to drive around to cool off a bit. We ended up at the Kolob Reservoir and played in the water. It was a nice 77° there! It was also a really neat drive. The water was so cool. We left Kolob Reservoir at 5:00 p.m. and had pizza in Springdale before heading back to the camp. The kids once again made friends with kids and we ended up chatting with the parents.
Day 13 - Sunday, June 13
Marcus and I got up at 6:30 and made coffee. We made eggs and pancakes for breakfast. We finished breakfast at 8:00 a.m. and walked to the visitor center to get on the shuttle. This day we had to wait the longest for the shuttle. We waited for about 20 minutes, and got on the shuttle at 9:30 a.m. We left at 10:00 a.m. to hike to Scout Lookout and just a little past.
We held off on this hike for last day because Marcus wanted to hike Angel’s Landing. If he ended up getting it, we didn’t want to do the hike again, so we saved it for the last day. The hike was a total of over 6 miles and we didn’t get back to the trailhead until 1:30.
Surprisingly, the kids did fabulous on this hike. Especially T. He was so chipper and happy the whole time. They did really well on the switchbacks. We decided to take the shuttle to the lodge to have lunch. That was such a great idea. It was so nice to be inside and cool! We were all so hungry too. After that, we took the shuttle back to the visitor center, then walked to the campsite to get the van. Marcus had promised the kids earlier that they’d get ice cream, and they didn’t forget! We got ice cream at 3:44 p.m. and went to a few shops. We drove through the park one last time, then we went to the visitors center to get the kids junior ranger badges. We had leftovers for dinner at 7:30 p.m. and packed up camp a bit.
Day 14 - Monday, June 14
Marcus and I got up at 5:45 a.m. We had breakfast of eggs and pancakes, and packed up camp. We left camp at 10:45 a.m. We didn’t have a real rush because we found out that one of our friends that we had planned on visiting had COVID, so we weren’t able to visit with them like we had planned. At 12:45 p.m. we stopped at Beaver, UT for McDonalds and gas. We arrived at the Airbnb at 4:40 p.m. It was so nice to have long showers and baths. We were all so dirty! I also started the laundry. We then went to have dinner at Pizzeria Limore and headed back to our Airbnb. The pizza place was recommended to us by our friends, and it was good! We had received a notice from our Airbnb contact that they wanted to show the Airbnb the next day at 3:00. We hadn’t figured out what we were going to do yet, and didn’t really want them to show the place with our stuff there, so we decided we would leave the next day. The kids went to bed as I worked on putting the laundry away and we cleaned up a bit.
Day 15 - Tuesday, June 15
At 6:15 a.m., I walked to meet up with one of our friends to say hike quickly outside. It was a pleasant walk to the park. Then I walked back at 7:49 a.m. We stopped to get bagels and muffins for breakfast, then were back on the interstate. We stopped at Taco Johns for lunch in Rawlins, Wyoming. We stopped at Mule Creek Junction Rest Area at 5:45 p.m. then gas at Hot Springs at 6:45 p.m. We got to Rapid City Olive Garden at 7:39 and ate before heading to the hotel. They kids were really excited to swim so at 9:26 p.m. we headed to the pool for a bit. It was a late night!
Day 16 - Wednesday, June 16
I got up early and wanted to walk. So I walked and got coffee, then headed back to the hotel. We left the hotel at 7:20 a.m. and were at Wall Drug at 8:06 a.m. We walked around there until 8:45 a.m. Then headed on our way. We stopped at Arby's in Mitchell, SD for lunch at 12:50 p.m. then continued the rest of the way home.
Total van miles: 3,598
Total hiking miles: ~86.3 - my watch was dead a lot in Zion, so I didn't have all of the time there recorded.
To help with the heat, we had a big water cooler, we would keep ice in it as much as possible. We had 5 insulated water bottles various sizes that would keep water cool. We would bring those on every hike, and fill a Nalgene water bottle with water and ice tea mix. That was easier to drink then just warm water. At Arches and Zion we set up our fly for shade. But Bryce Canyon was shaded, so we didn't need to set it up there.
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