The National Park Hop

         From April 4-24 we were in Palm Desert, California, which was one of my favorite areas we have ever stayed in.  The beautiful desert town and surrounding area offered plenty of shops, grocery stores, beautiful scenery, restaurants, hiking, and other fun attractions.  I already wrote about some of our California adventures in my last blog, so I'll add to that in this post! I hope you enjoy!

        On April 10 my mom and I rode the highly-recommended and very popular Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.  My dad and Mia stayed at the camper since they aren't big fans of heights, and they had good reason to be a little intimidated--the tram car glides smoothly along cables from Long Valley up two and a half miles to the Mountain Station in the San Jacinto Mountains--8516 feet above sea level.  This was a truly incredible experience and the views were breathtaking.  The Aerial Tramway, the dream of a man named Francis Crocker, has been in operation since the 1960s.  In 2000 the tram cars were replaced with rotating cars that provide passengers with 360 degree views of the valley below and surrounding land.  The Tram attracts visitors from around the world--we heard a variety of languages being spoken during our visit, and we even chatted with a sweet family from Italy!--as well as locals that come up to escape the desert heat and enjoy the mountain snow!

Lunch with a view!

This guy was hiking with a cat on the top of his gear!

Ready to do some hiking at the top!

As we were driving back from the Tramway we went through a neighborhood and saw this cool car--California vibes, right?

        We were only about an hour and a half from Joshua Tree National Park at this campground, so we went there two days.  This fun and unique national park's defining characteristics are its spiky Joshua trees that look like something from Dr. Seuss and its rock piles that are perfect for climbing.  

In Joshua Tree there's this Cholla Cactus Garden with all these cacti that have so many little spikes they look like they have halos surrounding them. 

Big lizard 🦎

Cholla cactus flowers

Prickly pear cactus flowers

Keys View 

Desert sunset in the park

At the peak of Ryan Mountain hike!

Arch Rock

Boulder scrambling is a popular activity in Joshua Tree--and there's plenty of opportunities for it!

On Ryan Mtn. trail

Beautiful cactus flowers 

The quirky Joshua trees!

        The Palms to Pines Highway to Idyllwild was also highly recommended by my nana and her husband who had done it on their motorcycle, so we drove that one day and it was SO good!  The views were amazing and the stops along the way were lots of fun--we did a short informational trail out to the beautiful high desert with plaques along the way telling about how the Cahuilla Indians that are native to the area used the desert's resources.  There was even a speaker box with recorded traditional songs that you could listen to as you took in the sweeping views at one of the lookouts. My dad also got pricked by a cactus at this stop, which was the first time I think any of us have had that happen during our travels--it was hard to get out of his leg but at least it did come out.  Higher up on the highway we reached the quaint mountain town of Idyllwild.  We browsed the local shops for a little bit, then went to do a trail before dark.  I really enjoy trails where we're hiking through the forest and the sun is shining down through the foliage, and this was one of those trails.  We were out a little later than we would have wanted, but we got back to the truck before dark and then made our way back down the mountain while enjoying great views of the lights of the cities below with a colorful backdrop of post-sunset colors.  

At the lookout

At the Visitors Center before we started the Highway were these metal plates with desert scenes

At the Cahuilla Indian lookout

This pinecone was so huge!

        One of the coolest things we did during our stay in Palm Desert was the Ladders Trail--a desert hike through a valley, a slot canyon, and up metal ladders.  I highly recommend this trail if you are ever in the area; we agreed it was our favorite hike so far this year.  After the slot canyon and ladders we went up to a hill and hiked along a ridge.  My dad said it felt like we were in someplace from Star Wars, with the barren hills surrounding us as we walked along the ridge, gazing into the narrow valleys below. 

The slot canyon

Mia picked wildflowers and put them into my braid like Rapunzel

Hiking on the ridge

        The same day that we did the Ladders Trail, we also went to the Salton Sea, a toxic landlocked sea that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife says was formed: "when Colorado River floodwater breached an irrigation canal being constructed in the Imperial Valley in 1905 and flowed into the Salton Sink." (1) The Salton Sea today is an important ecosystem for several bird species, and we got to see a few of those as we drove around the sea, exploring this odd little corner of California. 

Bombay Beach used to be a popular beach town, but today it is an eclectic mix of junk turned into quirky art. 

A panorama of the Salton Sea

A palm grove at the Salton Sea provided for a nice little hike 

Salvation Mountain, a few miles from Salton Sea, is a mountain painted with slogans of God's love and Scripture, the vision of  a man named Leonard Knight.

We saw an owl sitting on top of this post as we were driving! He was so cute. 

        The Coachella Valley (where we were located) is where the most dates are grown in the United States. I am a big fan of these sweet, sticky fruits, and while we were here we got to go to a date farm (kinda).  Shields Date Garden has been around longer than any other in the valley, and it was actually celebrating its centennial this year.  We enjoyed watching the movie on the history of the date farm and the growers' practices, walking around the garden, and sampling some date types that I had never tried before, as well as one that was developed by Fred Shields (the original owner of the date farm) himself! 

The garden had statues depicting biblical scenes from the life of Jesus Christ. Above is Jesus as a child teaching in the temple. 

The garden also had lemon, orange, and grapefruit trees

Another day we went hiking in Whitewater Preserve, and the trail up the mountain was so beautiful, covered in wildflowers with white-capped mountains in the distance and sandy-colored hills on our right.  It made me feel like I was in Switzerland as we hiked along the ridge towards green hills through sunny blooms. 

There were pretty flowers even before we started the trail

We hiked partly on the road to get from the visitors center to the trail, and there was this huge excavator just parked on the side of the road. 

        We had such a wonderful time in Palm Desert, and after spending nearly three weeks here it began to feel like home.  This was also the longest stay we would have for the rest of the foreseeable year, and from now on we would be moving quickly from spot to spot.  Our next destination was Death Valley, where we would be staying in the park for four nights.  My expectations of what Death Valley would be like were proven wrong before we even got to the campground--my dad put it well when he said the way people made it sound it was just "a giant sand dune with a heat lamp." But Death Valley is so much more! There are canyons, mountains, salt flats, and green plants.  We even got cold one night! Even crazier--we experienced a thunderstorm!--though that's super rare. 

Little Ubehebe Crater

Ubehebe Crater

Photoshoot at Mesquite Sand Dunes

Mesquite Sand Dunes was just down the road from our campground and had such soft, fine sand 

A skill I recently acquired--the ability to do a split!

On our first hike in Death Valley the canyon walls had so many different types of rock mixed into them. 

We went to Dante's View one night for sunset, and that night was one of my favorite experiences we had the whole time in Death Valley. That night was magnificent, beyond words. 

We hiked up on the ridge above Dante's View, and the views of the salt flats below were literally jaw-dropping.  Up on the ridge, we had 360 views of the rolling purple-red and blue summits surrounding us. 

This photo turned out even more incredible than I expected. 

. The pictures don't capture the pure majesty and beauty of the moment, the feeling of being high up there all alone with the wind, and the golden light from the setting sun making everything ethereal, and the color and contrast of our surroundings causing me to be in awe of God.  

Mia had the idea for this picture of my parents kissing before the setting sun. 

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands."  Psalms 19:1

It was actually overcast for a good portion of our time in Death Valley

Hiking!

This billboard in the visitors center says the same thing I was talking about earlier--there's way more beauty and diversity to Death Valley than most people expect to see. 

We got up super early one morning to catch the sunrise at Zebriskie Point. Though the sunset was pretty anticlimactic, seeing the moon set was cool, and the sun cast a pretty red glow on the western mountains. 

        A campground in Hurricane, Utah; near Zion National Park, was our next stop.  We hiked nearly every day here, both inside and outside the park, and we got to see some beautiful scenery; from red rock alcoves, to towering monuments over a sea of green trees, to slot canyons.  

The end destination of Taylor Creek Trail in the northern part of Zion

Taylor Creek trail had two historic cabins along the route, and I enjoyed looking through the windows and imagining what it would be like to wake up in the small one-room cabin with sunlight streaming through the windows and the creek bubbling along a few yards away. 

We saw mountain goats (or bighorn sheep, we weren't completely sure 😆). 

Canyon Overlook 

One of our favorite things we did while in Zion was actually not in Zion--it was in Kanab, UT. Buckskin Gulch is the world's longest and tallest slot canyon, and it was such a fun and unique and beautiful hike. Little sunlight made it through the narrow gap between the canyon walls, so the hike was nice and shaded from the midday sun--we even got cold as we went deeper into the canyon. 

These pretty flowers were growing in the shade on the trail before we reached Buckskin Gulch

The rock colors and layers are so beautiful

The chipmunks were sooo cute, but they are determined when they want your sandwich--I know from experience, trust me. 

Red Reef Trail was an adventurous and pretty hike 

At the left of this picture you can see my mom climbing the side of the rock wall, this part was pretty intimidating to come down, but provided a unique challenge. 

This fallen tree on the Red Reef Trail was hollow, you could walk inside of it

The dino tracks are a little hard to make out, but they are there

        On May 5 we moved to a campground near Bryce Canyon National Park for four nights.  The weather here was cold and windy, and it even snowed our first night here--which was actually so cool, because Mia and I had wanted to see the beautiful red formations (called hoodoos and fins) with a white blanket of snow on them, like in pictures we'd seen of Bryce Canyon in winter.  Our only hike in the national park here was Queen's Garden to Peek-a-Boo Loop to Navajo, and it was an amazing trail--five stars, for sure.  We walked through stone arches that looked like castle gateways, among white, orange, and red hoodoos, and above an 'amphitheater'--a bowl-shaped valley filled with hoodoos and fins.  Outside of the national park, we drove on the scenic Byway 12, an All-American designated road, which means that the road and the stops along it is an attraction all to itself.  It was truly magical, with awe-inspiring views.  We also spent a little time in Red Canyon Conservation Area, a few miles outside of Bryce.  My mom and I hiked here one day, and it was a fun way to spend time together and also get outside and explore. 

Ebenezer Bryce, a Mormon settler who built a road to the rim of Bryce Canyon, is the man for whom the canyon is named. 

Snow is so magical! 

One of the rock arches on the Queens Garden trail

On Scenic Byway 12 there was a glamping spot with these old cars that you can watch old-fashioned drive-in movies in. We weren't staying there, so we just stopped to take some pictures of the antique automobiles before continuing on our way. 

See what I mean about the views? If not, keep scrolling down--you will.

This waterfall on Mossy Cave hike, which is in Bryce Canyon but we did on the same day we drove Scenic Byway 12, was made by Mormon settlers in the 1800s by redirecting a river. It was actually prettier than the mossy cave for which the hike is named. 😅

My mom's and my trail in Red Canyon had gorgeous views 

        Capitol Reef was our sixth National Park this year, and our next stop after Bryce Canyon.  This underrated National Park is gorgeous, unique, and definitely worth a visit.  One thing I loved about Capitol Reef was the mix of historical and geological aspects--in the 1800s Mormons settled in Capitol Reef and started a small community called Fruita.  They planted orchards with fruit trees that still produce apricots, peaches, apples, cherries, plums and pears; and even built a small schoolhouse for their children that still stands today.  The community lasted until the early 1940s.  On the geological side of things, Capitol Reef is home to a famous feature called the Waterpocket Fold--a crease or wrinkle in the earth about a hundred miles long.  There's also plenty of beautifully colored rocks and mountains that surprised us with their unexpected splendor. 

Pictographs on these cliff walls in Capitol Reef are thought to have been carved by early native peoples

Goosenecks Overlook was one of the most beautiful views we saw during our time in Capitol Reef. Reminiscent of Yellowstone's 'Grand Canyon', the strikingly contrasted colors in the canyon walls and the stomach-lurching drop to the canyon floor made this Overlook stand out from others. 

My dad wanted his picture with this giant tumbleweed

This eroded rock had two little 'windows'

This rock looked like a tree stump with growth rings!

On our hike to Cassidy Arch--see what I mean about the beauty of Capitol Reef?

Can you spot me and my family out on Cassidy Arch?  Legend has it that infamous Wild West outlaw Butch Cassidy (whose boyhood home is located just about an hour and a half from the national park) hid out near here in the late 1800s. 

The view on Navajo Knobs trail. This trail had the best views in the park, but it was a butt-kicker--nearly 10 miles long. 

At the top of Navajo Knobs, you have 360 degree views of the surrounding landscape. 

My mother on her 'throne'.😆

The formation in the center of the picture is the Castle

Getting mini pies at Gifford House is tradition at Capitol Reef National Reef.  When the fruit from the Fruita orchards is in season, they make pies out of the fruit right from the trees!

We got the peach and cherry pies--delicious!

Mormons who moved out West in the 1800s were encouraged to spread out and share their religion with others.  The family in the picture above homesteaded in Fruita in the tiny house in the picture below. 

Looking through the window of the house showed the simple surroundings--a dirt floor and stone hearth.

Mom the sumo wrestler 😅

Burr Trail is a 5 star drive. 

        To finish up the Mighty Five (Utah's five national parks--Zion, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Arches, and Capitol Reef), our next stop was a campground north of Moab, Utah.  From here we visited Canyonlands and Arches National Parks and Dead Horse Point State Park.    

North and South Window Arches

Double Arch was one of my favorite arches we saw.

Inside Double Arch

Bowtie Arch

Corona Arch

Delicate Arch (I'm not in the picture, I didn't want to come down to it). This arch is the one featured on Utah's license plates. 

An arch viewed through an arch! The sunset colors on the sandstone were lovely.  

Turret Arch was another favorite

The Three Gossips

Park Avenue Viewpoint. They say the fins of rock resemble the towering buildings on Park Avenue in New York City. 

The sunset at Panorama Point was enchanting.

The sunset cast beautiful colors on the La Sal mountains to the east. 

More cactus flowers!  We saw these on our hike to Corona and Bowtie Arches. 

Balanced Rock

The legend of how Dead Horse State Park got its name goes back to the days when cowboys would corral wild horses on the peninsula, and once they chose the ones they wanted, they'd let the others go free. One time the cowboys did not release the horses for some reason, perhaps they forgot, but the result was that the trapped horses died of thirst and the state park earned its morbid name. 

Stormy skies plagued us about our whole time in Utah, but thankfully it didn't rain very much and the dark clouds protected us from the hot Western sun. 

I spent the extra rest time at the camper cooking and baking.  

        The last stop we made in Utah was one night at the Bonneville Salt Flats, and we got to meet up with our good friend Kristi here, which was really nice. The salt flats themselves were just that--salty and flat. Water pooled on the salty surface caused reflections, and some people drove their cars over the flats, speeding over the boundless plain.

        Our time in California and Utah was so much fun, full of unique experiences, marvelous scenery, and dramatic landscapes.  Next we are on to the Pacific Northwest region, so stay tuned for that!  Thanks so much to everyone who read this blog, I hope it made you smile!  ❤

(1)  "Background Information on the Salton Sea." California Department of Fish and Wildlife. https://wildlife.ca.gov/Regions/6/Salton-Sea-Program/Background