Except for a few side trips (to California, Idaho and Yellowstone), we spent about three months in Salt Lake City area, while we prepped our truck for the next leg of our trip.
We installed A/C (a necessity, we thought), organized our @321 things, and received a new family size roof top tent from our sponsor (Cascadia Tents)
Monday the 19th of September, we left Salt Lake for good. The next part of our journey had begun.
And begun it had, with an influx of the type of activities and experiences that remind us why we ABSOLUTELY LOVE TRAVEL!
It started with a visit to Capitol Reef National Park, and a hike that tested our levels of endurance.
The next day, we traversed a tough (and extremely bumpy road), 50+ miles to Hole-in-the-Rock, a National Monument, and were humbled by the events that transpired there.
Then in the morning, we explored Dry Creek slot canyon, and trekked across the burning desert.
We visited colorful Bryce Canyon National Park, and stayed at a luxury cabin in the Dixie National Forest (eating candlelight dinners and singing Christmas songs).
Not a bad week 🙂
But it's not just all the fun activities that fosters our love of travel.
It's all the small moments that make it up - gazing at the stars in the Southern Utah desert; watching the sun rise on an open horizon; testing our personal endurance in nature's playground; quiet family chats by lamp light; listening to coyotes howl or elks bugle; the intimate association with our natural environment; the surplus of quality family time; the freedom to go and do what we want.
In each moment - whether it's hurdling an obstacle on a hike, or mustering the personal forbearance to manage a mini 'crisis', or taking-in the scenery of a spectacular view - it's an opportunity for growth and improvement, which is the natural byproduct of traveling.
Why do you love to travel?
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What a great ‘in the wild’ shot (the roof-top tent)! Loving the updates and photos. Love to everyone!
Wow, I love this post. My family lives in Atlanta but we just got back from a long weekend in Florida with a stay on the East coast in an area that is not very populated. One night, my three year old son asked me why there are so many lights in the sky. I felt sorry for him because Atlanta has so much pollution and light pollution that he had never seen so many stars so clearly.
It reminds me of why I love travel and the time we were camping on an uninhabited island in the Bahamas. Our son was two and noticed the moon for the first time. He was so excited and learned the new word right away!
That’s a great story! Thanks for sharing it.
Hi, I just wanted to make sure to say Thank You for allowing me to travel along with you and your family. I am disabled which means I would never be able to see the sights you so graciously post for your viewers. Now I can walk along the rocky and desert trails with you when I never have been able to before. I also wanted to make a comment about your family — it is soooo refreshing to see kids being allowed to be kids, what a beautiful family you have. Have a SAFE and Fun Filled trip. 🙂 Denise Thomason
Denise,
Thank you so much for your comment. That means a lot that you shared that with us! Please always follow along 🙂