March 22, 2022

SPRING BREAK ’22 | Goblin Valley State Park

Utah has some amazing National Parks but the State Parks should not be overlooked! We LOVE Goblin Valley State Park so we made the day trip over from Moab. It’s only 1.5 hour drive so not too bad.

In the morning we woke up to a bit of snow in our campsite.

It was a surprise but also pretty.

On our way to Goblin we stopped for coffee and treats.

When we arrived we decided to start with a hike.

We did the Entrada Trail along some drainage areas and it was such a cool, unique experience. Dogs are allowed so Humphry came along with us.

We then made our way to the Valley of the Goblins, which is a big open area full of Hoodoos that you can climb and explore.

It is so fun to see the kids playing in the best (biggest) playground ever.

It’s the perfect day trip from Moab or this is a good stop if you are seeing some of the other National Parks. Last year we camped here on the way home from Capitol Reef.

On our way back to Moab we decided to grab a pizza and go back into Arches National Park to eat dinner.

This was such a fun way to eat dinner I highly recommend. At this time in the evening the park is pretty quiet.

Then we went down to the Double Arch area to go for a little sunset hike.

We have been down to this area many times but always hiked up to the Windows section. This was our first exploring the double arch side and I can’t believe we waited so long, it was stunning!

This hike is super easy and accessible to view the arches. To get up inside takes some scrambling.

The kids loved the sandy trails.

It was amazing watching the sun go down over the desert.

I will never get over this place! Hiking out in the dark was a fun experience since there is so little light out here.

Then on our way back to our camper disaster struck, I won’t go into the long story but we ended up in a hotel overnight, searching for a way to get our Tahoe fixed. Luckily we were all safe and together so it could have been WAY worse.

March 21, 2022

SPRING BREAK ’22 | Arches National Park

We spent our second day in Moab visiting Arches National Park. This is one of my favorite places and it never get old.

We started our day by going to the visitors center.

We needed to pick up our workbooks so the kids could do the Jr. Ranger program and stamp our passports.

The visitors center is super beautiful and has so much good information.

Our first stop was Broken Arch Trail, this one was a new one to us and a new favorite! It was really kid friendly and so fun.

I think this might be our 5th visit to Arches and we still find cool new places to explore. I am excited to do more epic hikes when the kids are bigger.

We had our picnic lunch and enjoyed some more overlooks. Then we went to Sand Arch which is our kids’ favorite.

We stopped on our way out of the park for the necessary picture with the sign.

Then we went into Moab for ice cream then back to the campsite for dinner.

The sunset was amazing!

Then we set out for another night hike because it’s the best way to get some energy out before bed time.

The kids love hiking with flash lights! And these trails are so pretty. Another magical day in Moab, I love this place so much!

March 20, 2022

Spring Break ’22 | Canyonlands National Park

We woke up early in Fruita, Colorado, made breakfast and coffee before hitting the road. It’s only about an hour to get to Moab.

We set up camp on some BLM land where we could have direct access to some awesome trails.

Canyonlands National Park is just down the road from our campsite so we set out to find some hikes.

First stop is to get a picture with a sign.

Then into the Visitor Center so we could participate in the Jr. Ranger program and stamp our passports.

It is so beautiful here!

We hit up some trails we didn’t do last time we were here and enjoyed a picnic lunch.

After a long day of hiking we went to Moab to grab some dinner and shopping. The kids got to pick out a souvenir and new sweatshirts.

Emmy picked out a dino puppet and was hilarious with it.

We had dinner at the Spoke on Center and then went back to our campsite.

Last year we started doing evening hikes after dinner and have continued it this year. It’s the perfect way to end the day.

January 17, 2022

A Winter Day Trip to Rocky Mountain National Park

We often overlook that we live so close to a magical National Park. It is my goal to spend way more time there this summer (We love our parks pass).

We have been to RMNP many time but never taken the time to get a stamp in our passports so we stopped in at the visitors center.

We went to the Bear Lake Corridor.

We weren’t really prepared for a long hike as this wasn’t our original intention but we explored around Bear Lake and had an amazing time.

The lake is frozen over so it’s fun to run around on.

We do have all wheel drive and snow tired but the roads were easy to drive on regardless.

A little deposit in my attempt to like winter more….

December 31, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Twelve – Saguaro National Park

I was so looking forward to visiting Saguaro National Park, seeing all of these towering Cacti was amazing.

We loved learning about the environment and the kids participated in the jr ranger program.

We did a short hike around the visitors center before getting back in our car and driving out into the park.

Our first stop was to hike up to an overlook to see some petroglyphs.

Our next stop was for lunch.

They had very nice tables to eat at with an overlook. We had packed a picnic in the morning, our little lunch boxes were well used again on this trip.

We then drove around the rest of the scenic loop. We decided that we wanted one last hike as a storm was rolling in.

This was when messages started rolling in from friends and family. Our neighborhood and my parents’ was in a pre evacuation zone because of a fire in our area. This was the start of the Marshall Fire that devastated neighborhoods near us.

We really wanted to leave and drive home immediately to be there to help friends that were evacuated from their homes and to grab important things from our home. We did feel comfort that we were dafe and everything important was with us (each other). Our dog Humphry was safe at my brothers home far from the fire.

Friends and family were sending us pictures of what they could see from their homes. We really wanted to pack up and head home as that is where our hearts were but (luckily) a snow storm was coming in that night and we didn’t want to pull our trailer into a storm. The snow was good as it put out the fire.

The views were scary but we were lucky and our neighbors didn’t have to evacuate.

We were very worried for our friends that were evacuated and for Cory’s office that was also in an evacuation zone.

December 28, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Nine – Joshua Tree National Park

We had a full day to explore Joshua Tree National so we started with the Visitors Center.

We got maps and found a few short hikes that we wanted to do.

Our first stop was at hidden valley where we did a fun hike and lots of rock scrambling. We took our time, drove the rest of the big loop and went back to our campsite for lunch.

We then went back to explore the area around skull rock, it was very busy so we observed it from a distance.

We did the Discovery Trail, made by kids for kids. It was a fun little hike.

The Joshua Trees here are huge and amazing. It’s something you have to see in person.

It is magic here! We made it back to camp made dinner and enjoyed our last night. We would have loved more time (as we always say) it’s a sight to be seen.

December 27, 2021

Christmas Cactus – Day Eight – Anaheim -> Joshua Tree

The eighth of our trip was mostly about chores and driving out of LA. We took advantage of the laundry facilities at the hotel we were staying at so we would have clean clothes for the second half of our trip. We packed our things back into our travel trailer and started heading back east. We also stopped at a couple grocery stores to restock our cabinets.

We were so excited when we got to Joshua Tree, our campsite was actually in the national park and it was amazing! We loved our site tucked into the rocks. Cannon said he liked it better than Disneyland so I probably won’t ever be able to talk Cory into going back.

We ALL want to go back and spend more time in Joshua Tree.

We didn’t have time to really explore the park since we drove in late in the day but we have the full day tomorrow.

After a few nights in a hotel in the city it was nice to be back out and camping.

December 22, 2021

CHRISTMAS CACTUS – DAY Three – Petrified Forest National Park

On our drive west from Santa Fe to Sedona we stopped at Petrified Forest National Park. It was such an interesting area to visit.

We did a few short hikes and got to see so much petrified wood.

We learned a lot about how petrified wood is formed and why there is so much in this area.

The visitors centers were nice and informative. While we would have loved more time to explore I don’t think you need more than half a day to see this park.

We only spent a few hours exploring because we needed to drive further west to get to our campsite in Sedona.

Christmas Cactus Trip Links:

Christmas Cactus – Day One

Christmas Cactus – Day Two – Santa Fe

Christmas Cactus – Day Three – Petrified Forest National Park

Christmas Cactus – Day Four – Sedona

Christmas Cactus – Day Five – Quartzsite -> Anaheim

Christmas Cactus – Day Six – Christmas Eve in Disneyland

Christmas Cactus – Day Seven – Christmas Day in Disney’s California Adventure

Christmas Cactus – Day Eight – Anaheim -> Joshua Tree

Christmas Cactus – Day Nine – Joshua Tree National Park

Christmas Cactus – Day Ten – Sonoran Desert National Monument

Christmas Cactus – Day Eleven – Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

Christmas Cactus – Day Twelve – Saguaro National Park

Christmas Cactus – Day Thirteen – Tucson -> Albuquerque + New Years Eve

Christmas Cactus – Day Fourteen – Albuquerque

Christmas Cactus – Day Fifteen – Home!

March 26, 2021

Southern Utah Spring Break- Day 6 – Capitol Reef National Park

Today is another new park for us, we have never visited Capitol Reef before.

We were told that it was not the best of Utah’s Might 5. We actually loved Capitol Reef. There were fantastic views and the rock formations were amazing.

We went to the visitors center to stamp our passports and get a map.

We stopped at the Gifford house where we had to pick up one of their famous pies. It’s really neat that you can go in and pick fruit in the orchards when they are in season but obviously March is a little early for that.

We also made time to say hello to the horses, Emmy has a deep love of horses, she can’t wait for the day she gets to ride one.

We drove out the scenic drive then down to Capitol Gorge Trail.

This was an easy 2 mile hike along a wash with lots of interesting things to see.

The kids loved seeing being in the gorge and did well on the easy trail.

We really liked checking out the petroglyphs.

We were sad that it was too cold out for a picnic but we enjoyed the views from the car and ate lunch while we drove out.
After lunch we decided to tacked the Hickman Bridge Trail. Emmy had it made in the backpack but Cannon did amazing hiking on this 2.2 mile moderate hike.

We were so glad we decided to do this trail, it was a highlight to get to hike through the natural bridge!

The hike was really fun with lots of cool features along the way, it is a bit steep so Emmy was in the pack but Cannon did really well.

It was really cool getting to walk through the arch.

Our last stop was at the Petroglyphs, the kids loved running along the board walk and the images of people and big horn sheet were amazing.

There might not be as many epic hikes here as other national parks but we found it majestic and very kid friendly!

After our hike we went to pick up our trailer and head east to Bryce Canyon. We drove straight into a storm, with low clouds and blowing snow.

We made the difficult decision that we would likely not enjoy camping or visiting Bryce Canyon in that weather. We cut our loses and turned back east. If we could wait it out a couple days the weather would be lovely but we have work and school to return to.
We are sad that we won’t make all 5 of Utah’s National Parks but I guess it’s just an excuse to have to come back.

Trip Posts:

DAY 1- TRAVEL DAY FRUITA CO

DAY 2 – MOAB

DAY 3 – ARCHES NATIONAL PARK

DAY 4 – CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK

DAY 5 – TRAVEL DAY TORREY UTAH

DAY 6 – CAPITOL REEF NATIONAL PARK

DAY 7 – GOBLIN VALLEY STATE PARK

DAY 8 – FRUITA COLORADO

March 24, 2021

Southern Utah Spring Break- Day 4 – Canyonlands National Park

Of all the times we have been to Moab over the years we have never visited Canyonlands National Park.

I can’t believe we have never made it into this park before, but it was so exciting exploring it with the kids for the first time.

The views here are incredible and photos will never do it justice!

I loved all the cliff side views and kid friendly hikes.

We visited the famous Mesa Arch

This was the most crowded part of the trip and the arch was awesome to see. I was a little worried with two wild little kids and giant drop offs into the canyon but it was all okay.