Number of days – 16

Distance traveled – 2340 miles

States visited – 3.  Arizona, Utah, Colorado

National Parks visited – 8, plus national landmarks

I just came back from a 16 day solo Road Trip to visit some of the national parks and natural landmarks.  I think the timing was just perfect.  Yes, it was cold, but the places I’ve visited have very few visitors during this time – December!  I could not imagine visiting these places during their peak seasons.  I did some hiking and on some occasions, I was literally alone on the trail.   And of course, I have a habit of scaring myself when doing these solo hikes.  Those what ifs…  But I really did enjoy those solitary hikes.  Very peaceful.

I have created separate entries for each place that I have visited.  I am providing the links to this post.

The adventure started @ Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.  I rented a car, and was very fortunate to have an almost brand new Jeep Cherokee with just 4k miles, heated seats and steering wheel, Android Auto ready, and Sirius XM!   These features were my sanity-saving company on the cold long drives between destinations.

Itinerary.

Day 1-4.  3 nights @ Grand Canyon National Park.  Stayed @ Maswik Lodge @ the village.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport -> Sedona, AZ -> Grand Canyon National Park.

I don’t have any good pictures @ Grand Canyon, although I’ve watched the sunrise and sunset at different points, because of incorrect camera settings!  I also planned to do a trailing star photo but was just too cold the night I did it.  I ended up with just this…

Day 4-5.  1 night @ Page, AZ.

I had such a wonderful time @ Antelope Canyon that I decided to have a separate entry for it.

Day 5-7.  2 nights @ Zion National Park.  Stayed @ Springdale, UT.

Day 7-9.  2 nights @ Bryce Canyon National Park.  Stayed @ Panguitch, UT.

Day 9-10.  1 night @ Capitol Reef National Park.  Stayed @ Torrey, UT.

Day 10-13.  3 nights @ Moab, UT.

Arches National Park.

Canyonlands National Park.

Last minute decision was made on the last night @ Moab to visit Mesa Verde National Park before heading to Blanding.  Unfortunately, Mesa Verde experienced a blizzard-like condition the night before and the places to visit were closed.  I had quite an experience, though, driving the icy road from the visitor center to the chain mesa.

Day 13-14.  1 night @ Blanding, UT.

Visited Natural Bridges before heading to Monument Valley.  The ‘scenic’ road from Natural Bridges to Monument Valley, Rt 261, passes through Moki Dugway, a scary and steep unpaved road, with a maximum speed of 5 mph!

Day 14-15.  1 night @ Monument Valley.  Stayed @ The View inside the park.

Day 15-16.  1 night @ Chambers, AZ

Petrified Forest National Park before driving back to Phoenix Airport for departure.

Day 16.  Departure.  Very Sad Face

It was such an amazing experience I’ve had on this road trip.  And I am hoping that I could do it again, with minor changes;

1 – Camping to be included in the plan.  I originally included camping on this trip, and I’m just glad I did not pursue that direction.  I am not ready yet for cold, winter camping.

2 – Have one of those emergency satellite communication gadgets, Spot or Garmin In Reach, for those solitary hikes.

3 – I hope I’d have my own camper van the next time I go on a road trip like this

Hike the hoodoos. But be warned, for they are playful. Be a kid, for they will make you see things when you enter their world.

Date established: February 25, 1928

Date of visit:  December 7-9, 2018

Day 1.  Arrival.  Wintry scenic drive.

It was cold and snowing when I arrived at Bryce Canyon National Park.  There was nothing to see at the park’s main viewpoints because of snow.  The scenic road to Rainbow Point was closed.  The ranger at the Visitor Center said that the road might be opened when the weather clears up a little.  I waited a little at the Visitor Center.  Yay, the weather finally cleared and the road has been opened to public.  Here are the views I’ve seen on this scenic drive…  Nothing…  So I took pictures of the signs and markers

But before I left for the day, the clouds cleared and I saw this…

Day 2.  Hike the hoodoos.

It was sunny (but really cold) the following day, and I enjoyed a snow hike below the canyon rim.  I entered the world of the hoodoos and was taken into another world.  It was magical.  Simply a winter wonderland hike.

Day 3.  Sunrise.  

I came back to the park on my third day to see a glimpse of the sunrise.  I was late, but still happy with the view I’ve seen.

Departure.

It was time to leave.  I just wished I could stay a little longer.  But I had to go.  It would be a long drive to my next destination.  Once again, I promise to be back…