Crusin' Through Rocks
Hello Lovelies,
I am back with another Fall trip that I took from late October to early November. This was my first ever road trip and it was with a group of girls. To all my ladies out there, a girls’ road trip is a MUST, it is good for the soul. We started off as a group of four girls and then became five. Our road trip took us through four different states. We began in California —> Arizona —> Utah —> Drove through Nevada on the way home. Overall our road trip was a week-long and I stayed in California prior and after. Below will be a step by step of our road trip duration… it will not include the days I spent in San Diego.
Friday ( 1st day of a road trip) San Diego —> Joshua Tree
We stayed in Joshua Tree for 3 days and 2 nights. The Airbnbs in the area is all super cute and great photo ops.
Visit Joshua Tree National Park… consist of Joshua Trees and multiple rock piles that you can climb. The climb on certain rock piles is more strenuous than others. We chose a pretty high rock and it was hard to go up and down because certain rocks you climb upwards were not safe to go downwards. We still had a lot of fun and the view from above was gorgeous
Go stargazing at Joshua Tree because it is the desert the sky is much clear and the start shines brighter. We were lucky enough to have seen the stars and moon on a Blue Moon night
Sunday Joshua Tree —> Page, Arizona (7 hours)
Sunday morning we left Joshua Tree and headed towards Page, Arizona. We chose Page as our week-long stay because of the closeness it was to Horseshoe Bend, Grand Canyon, and then to Zion National Park, Utah. We rented an Airbnb House as it would be a more comfortable stay for 4 girls that were working from home. Our Airbnb was on 2 acres of land and had such a pretty backyard. Thankfully it was close to a Walmart as well as several other small stores. We grocery shopped at Walmart and cooked most of our meals for the week. Our day-to-day routine was to wake up, work, cook lunch, work, did some small hikes/played board games, and cooked dinner. It was such a great relaxing and fun week.
Monday we took it as settle in the night, we played board games and workout outside.
Tuesday, my company had closed their offices for election. My friend and I worked from the same company so we took that Tuesday to visit some local trails. We started off in the morning with some coffee from LP Expresso. They had the best teas and croissants. We then went to a Hanging Garden trail that was a moderate trail on rocks and it took you up to a hanging garden that was really pretty. Along the trail, you were able to see an overview of the gorgeous rock landscape. Afterward, we stopped by the Glen Canyon which was so gorgeous, we visited the Glen Canton Dam which was on the other end. and afterward visited the gift shops nearby. We met a very sweet lady who was running one of the shops that use to was a tour and she was really informative about the area. Everything was within a 10-15 minute drive from our Airbnb. It was such a relaxing and adventurous day (shoutout to our company for giving us that election day off). Later in the evening as the other two girls got off work, we all headed to Horseshoe bend. We got there right at sunset (recommend getting there earlier), it was pretty packed for a Thursday night but luckily we were able to get some pictures and recordings in. There is not much of a hike, it is just a long trail down towards the overlook area from the parking lot.
Wednesday night after work, the girls and I did the Skylight Arch (Kanab), which was on the border of Arizona and Utah. In order to get there, we had to do some off-road driving which was Super fun!! We got some awesome drone shots. The view at the Skylight Arch was gorgeous especially the sunset. I would recommend going in the evening to see the sunset sky. We could not find the arch when we were on top hiking however, we saw it on the drive past the area. I would recommend trying to head back to your parked car before it gets dark as it turns pitch black once the sun fully sets. The rock can be a bit scary since it is not fully paved out in certain parts.
Thursday night ( one of our friends came by as she was linking up for our weekend trip to Zion) after work we all went to the Grand Canyon to watch the sunset. It was such an amazing sight as the sun hit the rock mountains and as it slowly set you could see the minor color changes. We stayed late past the sun had fully set to stargaze. Stargazing out there is a must (in the fall time come prepared with blankets and warm outerwear), the sky is so clear and the stars glow brighter. We were able to see the milk-way as well.
Friday morning, we headed out towards Utah, which was about a 2-hour drive. We checked into our glamping tent and then we headed out towards the Coral Sand Dunes. We got to the sand dunes as the sun was setting and the wind was picking up. We honestly only stayed for 20 minutes because the wind was too strong and sand was getting all over the place. I would advise visiting it before sunset that way you can have time to do activities there such as sandboarding. ($10 entry fee per car)
Friday - Monday (Zion National Park)
We stayed in a glamping tent at Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort, they have several different housing options such as glamping tent, wagon tents, and cabins. I found the glamping tent on Airbnb as a listing however you can also book through the original site. Overall the resort was nice and accommodating. They had a restaurant with great food and different amenities such as a pool, hot tub, gym, and activities you can participate in. Unfortunately, due to COVID, many amenities were closed, and also it was snowing that weekend and it was freezing cold to be going to the pool. The resort was about a 30-40 minute drive to the national park which was great as we start each of our days off early in the morning.
Saturday we woke up at 5 am and head out around 6:30/7 am to get there before 7:30/8 am. We did Angel’s Landing first because it tends to crowd up after 9:30 am and because it is a narrow and difficult steep hike it is best to do it where there are fewer people around you. It was such a fun adrenaline rush hike with an amazing view. It was very windy at the top but the view was amazing! Thankfully we did it early because it began to rain as we were headed down. After Angels Landing we walked around the park a bit and then headed back to the resort around 3 pm because it was beginning to storm. That night we grabbed dinner with two of our friends that happened to be at Zion at the same time at use. We ended the night by the campfire.
Sunday morning we woke up early as well to head to the park to meet up with our two friends. We did two hikes total that day.
Emerald's Pool @ The Grotto ending at The Lodge (2 hrs)
Watchman Trails (2.5-3 hours)
*We ate Lunch at the Lodge, the sandwiches are so good!!
It did continuously snow throughout the day which was a nice sign to see, however, it was pretty cold and the snow did get annoying at times as it hit your face. After several hikes, we saw the sky clouding up and we decided to head home. Thankfully we did because on the way home it was pouring snow and we actually got stuck in the snow. We did not have snow tires either (Travel Tip: Snow tires are a must when traveling in the fall/winter), we had to push our car up a hill to get it out of the snow. We are beyond grateful that a kind couple behind us helped us up the hill. The good thing was that we got stuck on the hill going into the resort, we were not stuck on a highway or anywhere that would have a lot of cars would be driving by. That night we stayed in because the snow was picking up a lot.
Monday morning the snow had collected several inches. We slept in and waited for some of the snow to melt. Around 10 am was when the snow was melting and we checkout and headed back to San Diego, concluding our road trip.
The trip itself was amazing and much needed after being stuck at home all the time. It was refreshing to go out in nature and enjoy the fresh air and view. The ladies I went with are awesome and we had such a wonderful time bonding.
Booking national park ticks (nps.gov) tips: Always book a month in advance on their release day, certain parks need shuttle passes such as Zion. If you do miss the first ticket opening date, they always release limited amounts 1-2 days before. Make sure to read the rules and prints for each national park ticket fee. Due to COVID, certain parks have restrictions. Always check the weather leading up to your park days. Stay hydrated, stay safe, and always take pictures for memories. If you plan to visit many national parks then the Annual Pass is a must, it is $80 and it covers all the entry fees for all National Park. You can get it at your local REI store or online. It saves you a lot of money if you’re visiting more than 3 national parks a year
Enjoy these shots I took from Zion National Park.
Our expenses for the road trip