Webster’s dictionary defines wanderlust as a strong desire to travel or wander. I, my friends, am here to announce that I am suffering from wanderlust. It’s a hereditary condition. In fact, I can confirm that my siblings and I all suffer from it. For me, I think it started with the little adventures my grandma and parents would take us on. My mom gave me some pictures of my older brother, my grandma, and myself off the beaten path at Minnehaha Falls. The adults in my life did a test job at creating an appreciation for new experiences and places.
There are so many moments that stick out for me from our Norway trip. Two in particular are my grandmother’s reaction to the scenery. The glimmer in her eye and childlike wonderment at the scenery before her. She was 87 when we made that trip, but her joy was childlike. I would add that both times I had to send Jake after her because she started climbing or hiking off on her own.
My kids have inherited this love of travel and I couldn’t be happier. We had so many incredible adventures in Utah while Jake was stationed there. The Cottonwood Canyons will always be one of my favorite places on the planet. Of course, Southern Utah is also the top of that list. Jake and I had so many incredible adventures through the Mighty Five. The Mayor had a great time in both Detroit and Nashville. I can’t wait to explore more of this world with them.
2025 Goal Tracker:
Run a 5K: in training
Complete Kayla Itsines program: in progress
No afternoon Starbucks (except for travel/vacations): I made it into February and haven’t buckled!
How do significant life events or the passage of time influence your perspective on life?
As the years have passed, I am amazed at how fast time has flown by. My Instagram feed, which used to be dominated by hockey, kid pics, and dog videos is now dominated by perimenopause videos, hockey, and dog videos. I’m not old enough for perimenopause, nor are my friends. That stuff is for our parents. Except it isn’t anymore, is it? Aging is a privilege denied by many, but damn it is not easy.
The fourth park on our trip through Utah’s Mighty Five was Canyonlands National Park. This park is close to both Arches National Park and Dead Horse State Park. All three are near Moab, Utah. Consequently, I recommended staying in Moab for several days to fully enjoy the area. In addition, to the parks, other sites like the Birth Scene Petroglyphs are worth visiting. Canyonlands, like Capitol Reef, is a lot less busy than Zion, Bryce Canyon, or Arches. We drove from the Bryce Canyon area to Capitol Reef, which took around four hours. It was another beautiful drive.
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
Canyonlands is the largest national park in Utah. It has over 337,000 acres of colorful canyons and rivers. It is broken down into districts. We visited the Island in the Sky district, which is closest to Moab. The other districts include the needles, the maze, and the rivers. These districts are not accessible from Island in the Sky and are not close to Moab. We spent one day at the park. If you’re looking to visit all four districts, you will need several days. If you plan on visiting the needles, don’t forget your bear spray, and don’t forget to remove all food from your backpacks.
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
After visiting the visitor center, we made our way down the canyon. Our first trail and the most famous trail at the Island in the Sky district is the Mesa Arch. After the Mesa Arch trail, we did the Grand View Point trail. I saw a cute little snake. It was only cute because it wasn’t large and it wasn’t that close to me. After the canyon rim, we decided to do the Upheaval Dome trail. Unfortunately, we ended up taking a wrong turn. Consequently, we ended up on the Syncline Loop Trail. Coincidently, this trail is responsible for most park rescues. Thankfully, we realized our mistake before we got too deep into the trail. After a near miss with a crazy trail, we decided to make our way to the AirBnB.
Before you go, here are some things to consider.
Canyonlands is remote and has spotty cellphone service, so plan accordingly. More precisely, don’t forget to download the trail maps, so you don’t inadvertently end up on a very difficult and dangerous trail.
The busy season runs from April to Early October. And while Canyonlands isn’t as busy as Zion or Bryce, you’ll want to get there early so you’re not waiting in line to enter the park
We only had one full day at Canyonlands and I would recommend trying to plan at least 2-3 days to see all four districts. Given our limited time, we did not venture beyond the Island in the Sky district.
The Canyonlands park map is a good resource for planning your visit.
Watch the weather carefully. The weather will impact your ability to complete certain hikes safely.
Prepare to be flexible. Your planned hikes may need to change depending on the weather conditions or rock falls.
There are no restaurants in the park, so you’ll need to pack a lunch or eat outside the park.
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
Some of our favorite hikes:
The Mesa Arch trail is a .6-mile loop trail. It’s easy and accessible to all levels and abilities. Moreover, the payoff is big. The Mesa Arch and the views over the canyon are stunning.
The Grand View Point trail is a 1.8-mile out-and-back trail that follows the canyon edge giving you panoramic views of the canyon below.
We attempted the Upheaval Dome trail but ended up on the Syncline Loop trail, which originates at the same point. We were not the only hikers to make this mistake. Make sure you download your trail maps before leaving the visitor center.
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
No Caption
Animals you may see while visiting Bryce Canyon (not an exhaustive list):
Black bears
Desert Bighorn sheep
Mule deer
Cooper’s Hawk
Ravens
White-tailed antelope squirrel
Kangaroo rats
Beavers
Great basin rattlesnake
Yellow-bellied Marmots
Cougars
The park has a beautiful visitor center in the Island in the Sky district and the Needles district. It also has numerous nice restroom facilities throughout the park. The park doesn’t have a shuttle system, so you can drive up and down the canyon. If you’ve never been to Canyonlands National Park, I’d recommend adding it to your list of places to visit.
The third park on our journey through Utah’s Mighty Five was Capitol Reef National Park. The drive from Cannondale, Utah where we stayed near Bryce Canyon to Capitol Reef National Park is a straight shot on Utah’s Scenic Route 12. Few drives on this earth are as spectacular as this one. It was surreal. You will drive Grand Staircase Escalante and its dramatic landscape and Canyons before taking you up an incredible mountain road. As we traveled the winding road through the blazing, colorful foliage at the higher altitudes we were sharing the road with free-range cattle.
The drive is slow, but you’ll want to spend time taking in the amazing views. Plus there are portions of the road with s-curves featuring no shoulders and steep drops on either side into the canyon below. The drive is stunning, but scary at times too. The mountain road takes you to over 10,000 feet above sea level and offers spectacular views of the valley and canyons below. Before you leave for the park, be sure you have enough gas to make it to the national park. There are very few places to stop on the way.
When we got to Capital Reef, we were shocked to see there wasn’t a gate at the entrance. You just drive into the park. It was immediately obvious that this park was significantly less busy and popular than Bryce or Zion. Consequently, you’ll need to prepare your trip around the visitor centers’s hours, which are 9-4:00 pm. I highly recommend stopping into the visitor center, and checking out what they have to offer. More importantly, however, you’ll need to ensure you take advantage of their WiFi to download and access your trail maps. There is no cell service in the park.
I highly recommend getting there early in the morning, so you can enjoy one of the famous cinnamon rolls at the Gifford House and Museum. The homestead also sells fresh pies made from the fruit picked from the parks orchards. We also bought an apple pie that we enjoyed after dinner that night. The cinnamon roll was as good as it looks and was enjoyed in a beautiful picnic area next to the house. There were gardens with flowers and tomato plants
After enjoying our authentic Capitol Reef breakfast, we went to see the petroglyphs found just off the park’s main road. The petroglyphs were so cool to see. Something is humbling about seeing them and walking the same path as the ancients. Afterward, we headed to the trailhead for the Hickman Bridge Trial. You can access several trailheads from the main road making the park easy to navigate. Again given the complete lack of cell service, make sure you have the trail maps downloaded.
Before you go, here are some things to consider.
Capitol Reef National Park is very remote and has no reliable cellphone service, so plan accordingly.
The busy season runs from April to Early October. And while Capitol Reef isn’t as busy as Zion or Bryce, you’ll want to get there early enough to get a cinnamon roll at the homestead.
We only had one full day at Capitol Reef and I would recommend trying to plan at least 2 days here. Given our limited time, we didn’t venture too far off the main road.
The Capitol Reef National Park map is a good resource for planning your visit.
Watch the weather carefully. The weather will impact your ability to complete certain hikes safely.
Prepare to be flexible. Your planned hikes may need to change depending on the weather conditions or rock falls.
There are no restaurants in the park, so you’ll need to pack a lunch or eat at the Subway outside the park. The Gifford Homestead sells cinnamon rolls and pies, but no lunch food. There are also orchards where you can and should pick fresh fruit. After a long day of hiking, I enjoyed eating the apple I picked right off the tree.
Some of our favorite hikes:
Hickman Bridge is a moderate 1.7-mile out-and-back hike that will take you to the Hickman Bridge. This is the most popular trail in the park and is fairly well-marked. It’s also the one where you’re most likely to see other people. The bridge is stunning as is the surrounding landscape.
The Grand Wash Trail is an easy 6.9-mile hike that is an out-and-back trail that takes you on a dried-up river bed through deep canyons and narrows. We took the Wash to access the Cassidy Arch Trailhead instead of driving to the trailhead.
Cassidy Arch Trail is a strenuous (and they do mean strenuous) 1.7 out-and-back hike to the arch. There is little to no shade on this trail, so prepare accordingly. Also, the trail isn’t well-marked once you make it up the cliff. They have placed some Cairns along the way, but it’s still easy to find yourself off the path.
Animals you may see while visiting Bryce Canyon (not an exhaustive list):
Desert Bighorn sheep
Mule deer
Ringtail
Golden eagles
Peregrine falcons
White-tailed antelope squirrel
Rock Squirrel
Great basin rattlesnake
Yellow-bellied Marmots
Cougars
The park has a beautiful visitor center and numerous nice restroom facilities throughout the park. The park doesn’t have a shuttle system, so you can drive up and down the canyon. If you’ve never been to Capitol Reef National Park, I’d recommend adding it to your list of places to visit.
What is your favorite type of weather?
My favorite type of weather is the perfect winter day here in Florida. The sky is clear of clouds and is a brilliant shade of blue. The temperature is in the mid-70s and the dewpoint is low.
Bryce Canyon National Park was the second stop on our road trip to Utah’s Mighty Five national parks. The drive from Cedar City to Bryce Canyon was unreal! It takes you several mountain passes and red canyons before taking you to a relatively flat drive with beautiful mountains in the background. When you first drive into Bryce Canyon National Park, it doesn’t hit you the same way that Zion does. When you drive into Zion, you’re immediately surrounded by its grandeur. This isn’t to take anything away from Bryce. It’s only to say the experience is different.
As we drove through the park, it reminded Jake and me of Northern Minnesota, which is a beautiful place. And then when you make it to the viewing points, which also serve as trailheads, Bryce Canyon takes your breath away. It will leave you breathless. The varying colors of the canyon, the hoodoos, the mountains in the background, and the trees make for an incredible view. We found as we traversed each park it was hard to compare it to the others as each park is vastly different than the others. It’s also what makes this road trip special.
Before you go, here are some things to consider.
Bryce Canyon is at a higher altitude than the other parks. Its average elevation is 8,000 ft above sea level with Rainbow Point at over 9,100 ft above sea level. If you’re not used to higher elevations, Bryce Canyon should not be the first park you visit. Give yourself time to acclimate to the higher elevation as the Mighty Five Parks’ average elevation is over 5,000 ft. There is a big difference between 5,000 ft above sea level and 9,000 ft. You should familiarize yourself with the symptoms of altitude sickness and if concerned discuss it with your healthcare provider before your trip.
The busy season runs from April to Early October. And it is busy, so plan to get there early in the morning if you’re not staying in the park.
Prepare to be flexible. Your planned hikes may need to change depending on the weather conditions or rock falls. We had planned to do both the Navajo Loop and Queen’s Garden Loop, but couldn’t only do part of the Navajo Loop due to a rock fall on the Wall Street side of the trail.
There are two restaurants in the park. We ate at Valhalla the pizza place, which was quite good. It wasn’t ridiculously expensive and the pizza and hot chocolate hit the spot.
Some of our favorite hikes:
Navajo Loop is a moderate 1.5-mile hike that begins and ends at Sunset Point. It is one of the park’s iconic trails passing Thor’s Hammer and featuring numerous switchbacks! We started on the Two Bridges side as the Wall Street side was closed due to a rock fall. This trail can be combined with the Queen’s Garden Trail or Peekaboo Loop Trail. This trail is a bit deceiving as you begin the trial by descending into the canyon. The end of the trail. is the hardest as you ascend back up from the canyon floor.
The Queen’s Garden is a moderate .9-mile hike that starts at Sunrise Point. It’s called the Queen’s Garden because of a hoodoo that was said to resemble Queen Victoria. We combined this trail with the Navajo Loop Trail, which was an awesome hike. Again the beginning is much easier than the end when you have to ascend out of the canyon.
Rainbow Point Trail is listed as a 1-mile easy hike. Jake and I found it to be a bit harder than easy due to the high elevation. This trail is at 9,100 feet above sea level, which is about 9,095 feet higher than I’m used to. However, you shouldn’t miss this trail. The views from Rainbow Point and Yovimpa Point are incredible. Even if you don’t hike the trail, you should drive up to Rainbow Point to see how the park changes as the elevation changes. Moreover, you can also enjoy the Rainbow Point Lookout without having to hike the trail.
Mossy Cave Turret Arch and Little Windows Trail is located on the East side of the park off of Utah Scenic Byway 12. It’s a .9-mile up-and-back trail that culminates with a cave and a beautiful waterfall. Since the trail isn’t in the main part of the park, it didn’t have any crowds at all. It’s a short beautiful hike with plenty to see.
Bryce Canyon Selfies
Animals you may see while visiting Bryce Canyon (not an exhaustive list):
Pronghorn
Mule deer
Golden-mantled ground squirrel
Golden eagles
Peregrine falcons
Utah Prairie Dog – you can adopt one at the Vistor’s Center, which we did. His name is Mr. Muffins.
Great basin rattlesnake
Tiger salamander
Cougars
The park has a beautiful visitor center and numerous nice restroom facilities throughout the park. The shuttle system efficiently transports guests up and down the canyon to the various trailheads. If you’ve never been to Bryce Canyon National Park, I’d recommend adding it to your list of places to visit.
What is the biggest challenge you will face in the next six months?
The biggest challenge I’ll face in the next six months is planning for one son’s graduation and the other’s wedding. I’d love to throw in a trip too, as I’m quite passionate about travel, but don’t think I’ll have the time or money to travel.
For some time now, hiking the Mighty Five has been on my bucket list. It was always going to be a matter of finding the time between the hockey trips, work, and visiting Jake. Last fall the stars aligned, I had taken time off and bought tickets on Delta to visit Jake in Utah already anticipating him going down range again. Fortunately, things changed and he wasn’t going abroad again. Consequently, I decided we should take the time to hike the Mighty Five. After all, it would have been criminal for him to live in Utah for four years and never take advantage of the National Parks in his backyard.
My trip was eight days, which gave us six days to traverse southern Utah and all five of the parks. To plan the trip, I used the Wanderlog app, so I could share our itinerary with our family. This way if something happened on a hike and they didn’t hear from us, they’d have an approximation of where we were going to be that day. This was an important tip I came across when researching the trip. Several trails in these parks must be respected as they can quickly turn dangerous. Also, the parks are in remote areas and cell service isn’t a given.
Looking down the Virgin River at Zion National Park
To fine-tune the itinerary, I leveraged All Trails, the park services app, and several blogs to figure out the best trails to hike. This proved quite helpful although there was some disagreement between the park services and All Trails as to the difficulty of some of the hikes. Before you reach the park, it’s imperative to download the trail maps to your phone. While the trails at Zion and Arches were very well marked, it was not the case at the other parks. Each park has its guide to the park and trails denoting the difficulty of each trail.
Beautiful Bryce Canyon
There is a little extra planning that needs to go into both Arches National Park and Zion. If you want to hike Angels Landing, apply to the lottery. You can no longer hike this trail without a reservation. Similarly, you’ll need to be extra prepared to hike the Narrows depending on water temperature, depth of the virgin river, and weather conditions. As for Arches, you’ll need to reserve a timed entry window for admittance into the park during the high season. Like Angels Landing, the Fiery Furnace hike requires a reservation.
Even with a lot of planning, go into the trip knowing that you may need to be flexible on your expectations. There could be changes in the weather or rock falls that impact your ability to complete certain hikes. Moreover depending on what season you’re in, there could be road closures up in the mountains. The best time to plan a trip is spring and early fall. This will give you decent weather without all the crowds of high season. We were there in early October and the parks were still super busy. And of course, bring plenty of water both with and without bubbles. Jake and I would enjoy cold, crisp sparkling water at the top of every hike.
Hickman Bridge at Capitol Reef National Park
We started our trip at Zion staying in Cedar City, which is about 45-55 minutes north of the park. We have two full days at Zion. However, I would have gladly spent more time there. The next park we hit was Bryce Canyon, which was under two hours from Cedar City. We stayed in Cannoville, Utah, which is a tiny town that doesn’t have a post office or cell service right off Utah’s Scenic Byway 12. This was our base for both Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef Park. Our last stay was in Moab, which is near both Canyonlands and Arches National Park.
Canyonlands National Park
I planned for a full day at Bryce, Capitol Reef, and Canyonlands with 2-2.5 days at both Arches and Zion. Additionally, I planned 2-4 hikes a day or about 10-13 miles. Jake and I both trained for the trip, so we’d be able to tackle the more challenging hikes. I’d recommend that anyone looking to hike these parks do the same. We could have spent several more days at each park. Moreover, we could have spent another month exploring the incredible landscape around these parks. Interspersed between the national parks are several incredible national monuments, national forests, and state parks. There is something incredible to see at every turn.
Delicate Arch at Arches National Park
What I didn’t expect was the incredible drives between the parks. The drive from Cedar City to Bryce Canyon was breathtaking. Scenic Byway 12 was one of the most harrowing, yet beautiful drives I have ever taken. From the steep drop-offs and beautiful views of the canyons in Grand Staircase Escalante to the beautiful high mountain road with free-range cattle and changing foliage, southern Utah is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. The drive alone between Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef is worth the flight to Utah. I’ve written about our time at Zion and will be writing about our experiences at the other parks. If you’re on the fence about a trip to the Mighty Five, get off the fence and do it.
Something on your “to-do list” that never gets done.
The one thing that never gets checked off the “to-do list” is dropping off the donations at Goodwill. They seem to sit and sit in the garage for months or even years on end. I’m not even sure why that’s the case as it’s not difficult to drop the stuff off. Yet here we are with stacks of bags to be donated.
Just a quick update, since I have spotty Wi-Fi and absolutely no cell signal where we’re staying. In fact, we went the whole day in Capitol Reef National Park and it was liberating. We spent yesterday exploring Bryce Canyon National Park. It was spectacular, but more to come on that later. Today we hit Capitol Reef Park, Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument and Petrified Forest State Park. We had an exhausting day clocking in over 30,000 steps and countless miles. Tomorrow we head northeast to Canyon Lands National Park. When I have better internet and more energy, I’ll write about each of the parks.
We’ve spent the last two days exploring Zion National Park. This is the first national park we’re visiting this week. Tomorrow we’ll head to Bryce Canyon for our second park of the tour. Zion lived up to our expectations. We will be back. When we return, we’re going to complete the Narrows and Angel’s Landing hikes. We could not complete the Narrows today due to weather and the risk of flash flooding.
Before you go, here are some things to consider.
The busy season runs from April to Early October. And it is busy, so plan to get there early in the morning if you’re not staying in the park.
Prepare to be flexible. Your planned hikes may need to change depending on the weather conditions. Unfortunately, we were scheduled to do the Narrows today, but couldn’t due to the rain and the possibility of flash flooding.
Some of our favorite hikes:
Emerald Pools is a moderate hike that features three uniquely colored pools and a waterfall. Arrive early as it’s a popular hike.
The Watchman trail is a 3.3-mile moderate trail up to a beautiful viewpoint of the Towers of the Virgin, Lower Zion Canyon, and the town of Springdale. This was my personal favorite.
Riverside Walk is 2.2 miles and leads to the beginning of the Narrows. It is an easy, mostly paved hike. We got to the end of the Riverside walk and decided to do the beginning of the Narrows.
Kayenta Trail is a 2-mile moderate trail that connects the Grotto trail to the Emerald Pools trail.
Animals you may see while visiting Zion (not an exhaustive list):
Desert pronghorn sheep
Mule deer
North American rock squirrel
California condor
Gray fox
Coyote
Bobcats
Cougars
The park has beautiful visitor centers and numerous nice restroom facilities throughout the park. The shuttle system efficiently transports guests up and down the canyon to the various trailheads. If you’ve never been to Zion National Park, I’d recommend adding it to your list of places to visit.
What’s your #1 priority tomorrow?
My number one priority tomorrow is getting us safely to Bryce Canyon. We’re leaving Zion and heading to our second National Park of the trip. I’m a bit nervous as Bryce has gotten some snow over the last couple of days. Nevertheless, I can’t wait to see what Bryce and the surrounding area have to offer.
It’s almost time to start packing for my trip to Utah. This will likely be my last trip to visit my Boy before he moves out of the state. I have really enjoyed our family trips to Utah. Particularly, I’ve enjoyed exploring the mountains of the Wasatch Front and surrounding national forests. It is an absolutely beautiful place to visit even if the food sucks. I’m hopeful that the food in South Eastern Utah will be better.
This trip will be different because Jake and I are going to explore the Mighty Five and surrounding state parks. For the uninitiated, the Mighty Five are Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, and Arches National Park. Southern Utah is jam-packed with wonderful places to explore. We’ll be there for a week, so it will be quite busy as we explore as much as possible. I’m really looking forward to the different hiking experiences each park will bring.
I may try to post some updates while in Utah, but most of our time will be spent off the grid. In fact, the Hubby and my folks have a copy of our hiking itinerary, so they know where we’re at. This was if we get lost on a trial and they don’t hear from us, they know where to direct people. Obviously, I don’t think anything would happen, but these parks, their canyons, and rivers can be unforgiving. I want to be prepared in the event one of us gets injured.
I’ve already bought most of the stuff we need for the hikes with a few exceptions. Once I get to Utah, I’ll pick up some bear spray. The Mighty Five have plenty of bears and plenty of latibules where they can hide. Honestly, and I don’t know why, but I can’t talk about or write about bears without thinking of Dwight Shrute from The Office. In addition to the bear spray, I’ll pick up snacks for the trail out west.
What could you do more of?
What could I do more of? Travel! I don’t travel nearly enough. I wish we weren’t strapped to 9-5 jobs that keep us from exploring the world. It’s kind of a shame that we don’t have enough time off in the year to explore the world with our families. The culture of working 24/7 is toxic and serves nobody, but the C suite and shareholders.
I’m just sitting here dreaming of Norway. One of my high school friends is there now. Yesterday she posted pictures from Bergen, which was my favorite city. Today she’s posting pictures from the cabins in Flam where my family stayed in 2017. Fjord Norway is such a magical place and the connection I felt to the country was profound. My mom wants to go for their 50th anniversary or was it the big birthday (I forget- sorry mom) and stay at the Husom Motel. This is right over the mountain via the Vindhellaveven from the Borgund Stave Church.
Jake and I have been looking for races to run in Norway. He’s a bit more ambitious than I am and was looking at one that goes over a mountain range. The race he was looking at is call led the besegloppet. It’s a 14 KM (8.6 miles) that goes over the bessegen mountain pass. Fortunately the, elevation gain isn’t insane and unlike Utah we’d be starting at a reasonable point. Also, we’re not neophytes to this type of run/hike thanks to Jake’s time in Utah. The views, however, are absolutely incredible.
While we both dream of running races in Norway, we’re both focused on getting ready for our hiking trip in the Might Five. The hikes are long, difficult and remote, so it’s important that we’re both physically ready for them. I’ve been on prednisone to clear out the asthma and supplements to improve the anemia, so my doctor doesn’t think the trip will be a problem. Nevertheless, we’re working hard to be physically and mentally ready for these hikes. I’m even working on matching neoprene socks, so we can be quite the fashion plates as we traverse the Narrows.
Are you holding a grudge? About?
Am I holding a grudge? You get I am. What is said grudge about? That’s private. If and when the time is right, I’ll share the circumstance surrounding said grudge. As for now, it’s best kept quiet.
It’s a hot one out there. The heater turned on here in the Midwest, so today’s run was a good 30 degrees hotter, at least from the “feels like” temperature, than yesterday’s. In spite of the heat, I actually ran further today. Fortunately, it’s still a much cooler run that an outdoor run back home. I’m loving running on the track up at the middle school. It makes it quite simple to keep track of my distance. Plus, there are bathrooms right there, which makes it the perfect place to run after a morning of drinking coffee.
Making progress slowly (emphasis on slowly,) but surely
The Mayor had a great first day of training camp. It sounds like he was a true rink most of the day. He enjoyed both the on ice and off ice portions of training. Today brings more do the same for the Mayor and his teammates. He had tacos for dinner. I’m sure he’s now eating his billet family out of house and home. I can’t imagine how many pounds of meat they had to cook to feed the hockey boys.
I’m heading to Utah next month and am excitedly planning that trip. Jake and I decided to explore the Mighty Five. For the uninitiated the Mighty Five are the national parks found on Southern Utah including Zion, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Canyon Reef and Arches. They’re all pretty remote, so we’ll be happily disappearing from society to explore the wilderness. In addition to the national park, there are several noteworthy national monuments (Grand Staircase Escalante) and state parks (Kodachrome Basin) I’m looking forward to exploring.
The Narrows at Zion
Definitely a distraction technique I use to catch my breath while hiking 😂
I’m hoping that ample preparation now will enhance the trip and remove some stress. To organize the trip more cogently, I’ve started using the Wanderlog travel planning app. This should help Jake and I lay out our trip and hikes in a very coherent manner. This is also make sure I can share with my Hubby/parents exactly where we’re hiking. I’ve also started to make sure we have the right equipment for all of these hikes. A lot of the hikes are pretty straightforward, but some are very long and all are remote.
