This year, we didn’t plan out our trip with COVID-19 in mind. We generally book all of our campgrounds and make our travel plans in December, so we had no idea what traveling would look like by the time our trip was scheduled to take place. At several points in April/May, we questioned whether we should take the trip at all- Was it safe? Would things open up? If things opened, what would they look like? Once Governor DeWine started opening some things back up and health officials said camping was a low risk activity, we felt better about our decision to still go out West. If things closed, we would make the best of it and be as safe as possible.

Well, we definitely saw the effects of COVID-19 in all of our travels so far. A lot of things are closed and limited in the national parks right now, which we totally understand! We feel lucky that we are able to travel at all and get away from the mundane quarantined life we had been living for 3 months. Traveling does the heart and soul a lot of good. Feeling connected with nature, each other, and keeping our brains and bodies active. I always feel better traveling and hiking and being outside- I know Scott feels the same way!

 

That being said- yesterday showed us some of the ugly side of park closures/limitations and we had a less than desirable visit to Zion. After dealing with it for one day, we decided to forego our plan of visiting it again. So today, we had a VERY lazy, relaxed day. We hung around the campsite for a long time, reading and napping in the hammock. Scott finally started reading the new Hunger Games book that I devoured in about a day- I can’t wait to talk about it with him!

After bumming around all morning, we headed out of the campground to the Red Canyon district of Dixie National Forest. We had been to the visitor center to get information about camping a few days earlier, so we decided to go back and hike the trails around it. We took the Pink Dunes Trail to the Hoodoo Trail to the Birdseye Trail and back. This gave a really impressive of the beginnings of Bryce Canyon and all the hoodoos and amazing colors in the rock!

 

After doing some light hiking, we headed to the town of Tropic just to see what the town was like. We got gas, and I bought some Utah beer (Moab Brewing Company is AMAZING). We started heading out of the town when we happened upon a bbq restaurant, I.D.K. BBQ. We decided to stop in and grab some food to eat on the picnic tables outside. It was pretty good! I love places that you can get BBQ but they have all kinds of sauces for you to put on yourself, rather than just one they put on for you. I got the pulled pork and Scott got some kind of sandwich. Both were tasty, and the Spicy Sauce was really good!

 

After food, we headed back to the camper where we spent the rest of the day reading and relaxing. Tomorrow, we would have a longer (for this year’s vacation) drive out of Utah and to Mesa Verde!

 

The next day, we left Kings Creek Campground and Utah. Looking at a map, you would think the drive wouldn’t take very long- they aren’t that far apart! However, there are no direct roads, and we would either need to backtrack up to Capitol Reef NP and then head back south, or go down into Arizona and back up. We opted for the latter (we hate backtracking!). Along the way, we drove across the Glen Canyon Dam, and stopped at Horseshoe Bend. This is something I had seen pictures of and thought it was just a stop along the road. Wrong! It’s owned by the Glen Canyon National Recreation, as well as the city. You pay $5-$10, depending on what you are driving, to park and walk down to the viewing area. Not a must see stop, but it was nice to get out and stretch our legs. Plus, on the way back we helped a woman who didn’t have water for her dog who was overheating, so it was fated for us to stop when we did!

 

The drive was relatively uneventful. Mostly small highway roads through Native American reservations. We were going to stop at Four Corners Monument, but the Navajo Nation has everything closed as their community has been hit pretty hard by COVID-19. Just beyond Four Corners, is Mesa Verde National Park. We had reservations at Morefield Campground inside the park. We were told to choose any spot, so naturally we picked a spot as far away from other people as possible! It was nice 🙂

 

Tomorrow, we explore what we can in Mesa Verde National Park!