1800 miles put on the rental car, 4 National Parks, 3 states, the hottest week on record (122 degrees F), 2 best friends, and 1 engagement! Day 1 in Utah, and we just left Zion National Park, and we headed to our next National Park, Bryce Canyon!
Zion Park and Bryce Canyon National Parks are roughly an hour and a half to two hours away from one another, depending on the route taken. We sat back and allowed all our senses to soak in the memory. We sipped our cold brew, listened to music by Indigenous people, enjoyed the aromatic potpourri of sunblock, coffee, and hand sanitizer, held hands, and admired the beauty bestowed upon us as we ventured through the scenic drive.
The terrain slowly shifted from the reds of Zion to dense patches of forest and finally gave way to the rainbow of colors and hoodoos and unique rock formation of Bryce Canyon. Again the scale of these rock formations is difficult to portray in a photo, to give you a frame of reference, Bryce Canyon National Park reaches elevations of 8,000 and 9,000 feet, roughly 4,000 feet higher than Zion National Park.
The higher one goes in elevation the less atmosphere and the further apart the oxygen molecules are, thus oxygen levels at 8,000 feet are about 75% of what they are at sea level. Acute altitude symptoms can occur at these elevations. Between the altitude, heat, temperature, and excitement of the engagement we were on cloud nine, lol!
People were lined up to take the memorable pic in front of the official Bryce Canyon National Park sign, seeing as we were a bit crunched for time, we wanted to be able to see everything in the park before dark, and at this point, we were closing in on 4 pm. So I snapped the pic with these lovely people in it, lol!
Our first stop, Inspiration Point!
Bryce Canyon is the home to the largest collection of hoodoos in the world. Hoodoos are irregularly eroded rock spires also known as fairy chimneys, tent rocks, and earth pyramids. They are found throughout Bryce Canyon National Park showcasing their contrasting hues of white, pink, and red.
We then stopped off at Sunset and Sunrise Points. Inspiration Point, Sunset, and Sunrise are all in Bryce Amphitheater one of the most iconic locations in the park. Rim Trail is an easy walk, 0.5 miles between Sunset and Sunrise.
We stopped off for an engagement picnic dinner! It was so romantic, just the two of us, Walmart salads, mixed nuts, pretzels, sparkling water, and an epic view!!! The park was crowded, and we were blessed to have this picnic area just for the two of us.
After our picnic we noticed cars pulled over admiring something, it was a deer, it was amazing watching all the people in the other vehicles so excited to see a deer. It was a great reminder to appreciate what we have and realize that what we might take for granted or see as mundane is a rarity and treasure to others.
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As we drove up to the Natural Bridge the sun angles had changed and the view was breathtaking. I was so worried about not being able to see the colors and gorgeous landforms in all their beauty once the sun started going down but the opposite occurred, the views just became more majestic. As we looked out on the epic view I couldn’t help but think about us, here we are in our mid-forties and both of us are starting our careers over and will be starting life over again, life 2.0. I’ll be honest, I used to think once you hit 40, the equivalent of embarking on the late afternoon early sunset of life meant that you had peaked, everything was pretty much downhill from there. Bryce Canyon nearing sunset taught me otherwise, what lies ahead are going to be the best years of our lives filled with vivid color, and adventure, and I’d be amiss if I didn’t mention the beauty in the erosion, in the past, the beauty of growing and learning from the past and resolving to shine on the sunset that is our lives.
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As we approached Ponderosa Canyons, Rainbow Point, and Yovimpa Point, the highest elevations in the park, and the sun hit those landforms, hoodoos, etc. just right I squeezed his hand a little firmer and let out a deep exhale realizing I had finally found my person, my person I want to explore the world with, live every day to the fullest with, enjoy the ups and downs of life, shine and celebrate the peaks of life, bask in as many sunsets as possible together and hold his hand till I take my last breath on this planet. Little did I know just how close that last breath might have been that night!
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As we drove out of Bryce Canyon we stopped off one last time at Sunset to say goodbye to Bryce’s Amphitheater and thank God for the magnitude of beauty provided, explored, and treasured before leaving the park.
As we left the park the real test of our relationship began! Driving out of the park at 9 pm we quickly learned that everything closes early, the gas station, the pizza place near the campgrounds, etc. We had what was supposed to be an hour or so drive to Torrey. We learned early on that in Utah if it says 66 miles plan on that taking two hours. It was dark, the roads were winding, and there were sections of 65 miles per hour followed by hairpin turns at 25mph with God only knowing what type of drop-off on the other end because it was pitch black. And it was just us on the road. It’s eerie, like the entire state closes at 7 pm. Oh, and then we see signs for free-range cattle, as in, you might be going 65 miles an hour in the dark come around the corner and there is a freakin cow!!! I couldn’t help but think of the quote from Twister, “I gotta let you go, we got cows”. So there we were, tired from the altitude, heat, temperatures, and sun from the day driving in unfamiliar territory in the pitch dark, no other travelers on the road and trying our best to be super vigilant for cattle, deer, elk, and jackrabbits that might be ahead on the road. And then it happened, we saw one…we tried to stop, we did, but it didn’t run across the road, it went right for the car!
Stay tuned to hear what we hit, if we made it to our shady location, and our adventures at our next national park, Arches!….
Mom on the go in Holy Toledo 