We got up at 6:30 and had free pancakes at the restaurant that the hotel gave us vouchers for. We dr

Thanks so much to everyone on this board who have posted over the years on the Utah parks. I have read them all. Special thanks to spirobulldog, Myer, tomfuller, apartment rentals in chicago Michael and InSandy. We had a fantastic trip. Here is my trip report. My huaband and I went alone on this trip. We are late 40 somethings who love to hike, see scenery, do historical things but are not much for fine dining or nightlife.
I picked apartment rentals in chicago Jim up at the airport in Denver at 7:30 in the morning apartment rentals in chicago as he was coming home from a business trip. We loaded up all of his stuff and headed west. The Aspen leaves in the mountains were beautiful. We stopped apartment rentals in chicago in Frisco for drinks and a break. Drove on to Grand Junction for a lunch break We pulled over at a scenic view in Utah to look over the landscape and stretch yet again.
Turned off of I 70 and headed to Goblin State Park. Lots of Porshes on the road and they zoomed by us in all of that straight open countryside. We pulled in at Goblin Valley around 3:00. It was sunny and hot ( mid 80 degrees). What a strange sight. apartment rentals in chicago We wandered around the goblins, taking pictures, aiming for the shade every chance we got and trying to guess what some of them looked the most like. We drove to the campground, used their clean bathroom and drove out. We took maybe one and a half hours in the park total. Fun stop if you are in the area.
We followed the signs to Little Horse Canyon which wasn t far away. The parking lot had a number of cars in it. Fun trail and we enjoyed climbing over rocks and through the slot canyon. We didn t go too far as we were worn out from the drive and both of us had been awake since 3 am. Saw several other people on the trail. Very dry and hot.
From Little Horse Canyon we drove the rather starkly ugly countryside through Hanksville. apartment rentals in chicago The scenery changed as we entered Capitol Reef and the drive through the park towards Torrey was lovely. We noted all kinds of stops we wanted to explore the next day in the park.
We stayed the night at Austin s Chuckwagon. Torrey is a really small but cute town. The old school house is worth a look. We went to Red Cliffs for pizza and cold drinks. They were very friendly and turned on the football game for us while we waited for our food. Our hotel room was next to the office on the main floor. It had a refrigerator which was nice. Wi fi worked so Jim checked emails. We checked in with the kids. In the morning, we had some noise from the toddler who was with his mom working in the office next door. If we had been trying to sleep that would have been an issue. We did not use the pool but it looked nice. Fine place to stay for one night.
apartment rentals in chicago We got up early and went to the Robbers Roost for coffee and tea. Nice local coffee shop with books and local flavor. We headed to Capitol Reef, stopped at an overlook before apartment rentals in chicago the Visitors Center and loved the view and the cooler morning apartment rentals in chicago air. At the Visitor Center, apartment rentals in chicago we got our map and bearings and headed straight for the Gifford apartment rentals in chicago House for pies. I got a peach pie and Jim took a strawberry rhubarb. We took them to the picnic area across the street and enjoyed the quiet and the scenery with some tasty breakfast pie!
Our first hike was Hickman Bridge. A little work at the beginning of the trail but the natural bridge was beautiful. There were a good number of other people on the trail but we still had the bridge to ourselves long enough to take pictures and enjoy the scenery alone. We went a little up and to the right of the bridge apartment rentals in chicago for a view back through it and then finished the loop back down. Would highly recommend this hike. It is not strenuous apartment rentals in chicago but gets the blood pumping.
We drove to the cabin that the large pioneer family had all lived in and marveled that anyone could live like that. We walked up the Grand Wash trail for 20 minutes or so just to get the feel of the tall towering rock walls. Next stop was the schoolhouse and then the petroglyphs. The big bus tours were parked tight and it was very difficult to see the petroglyphs but all you have to do is wait 10 minutes and the buses pull out and it is quiet again. The boardwalk in there is shady and pleasant to walk on while you look at the rock art.
We then drove the scenic drive all the way to Capitol Dome. Got one of the last parking spots at the end of the dirt road. We hiked the trail past some more petroglyphs, the pioneer register of names carved in the rocks and then to the tanks. That was a bit of an uphill,hot slog to some mildly interesting pools of water in the rocks above. By this time in the afternoon, we were ready to get off our feet and get really cold drinks with ice. We drove back to Torrey to get drinks and then headed south down Highway 12.
The drive from Torrey to Boulder on Highway 12 was surprising. Since we came into the area from Green River and Hanksville, to see mountains with trees right south of Torrey was a bit of a surprise. We stopped at lots of scenic overlooks and soaked in the beauty of the fall leaves. This drive in the fall is spectacular with the Aspen. We stopped and did some short walks into the colorful trees. We were surprised to see cows ambling back and forth across that road and hoped that all the tour buses would dodge them. We got to the Boulder Mountain Lodge for check in around 5:30.
The Boulder Mountain Lodge was lovely. The grounds are fun, with a pond and birds. The hottub was awesome and had a lovely backdrop of scenery. We were in room 16 on the ground floor at a building towards the back and away from the road. The room was large, apartment rentals in chicago had a refrigerator and bathrobes. apartment rentals in chicago There was a seating area out in the front and the back of the room. Everything was clean and the beds comfortable. Would stay there again for sure.
We walked next door to the Burr Trail Grill for dinner. We split an entr e as neither of us was that hungry but the burger and potatoes were good. We enjoyed the hot tub and chatting with another couple and watched some of the Monday night football game. Wi fi worked great and we checked in with the kids.
We slept in and left the parking lot at 8:45 while the bike tour van was still loading the bikes for their group. Had not seen or heard them but they all stayed in another building. We stopped at the Anasazi Museum a few minutes up the road. It was small but the outside excavation and the replica apartment rentals in chicago were interesting. They had bathrooms and a nice gift shop inside. apartment rentals in chicago We were not there very long before we drove on south towards Calf Creek Falls in the Grand Staircase- Escalante National apartment rentals in chicago Monument.
Calf Creek was one of the highlights apartment rentals in chicago of the trip. The parking lot was filling apartment rentals in chicago quickly and it was a very hot day- mid 80s. It was a 6 mile round trip hike that was easy but for the heat and the sandy trail which made some work getting your traction. apartment rentals in chicago The trail was hot with no shade until the last 20 minutes and then the cool , shady, section next to the creek was fabulous. The first sight of the falls was just spectacular. I was not expecting so much water this late in a very dry year. It was cool and misty around the falls. There were a handful of people there but everyone was cooperative with getting in and out for their pictures under the falls quickly. We did some wading in the frigid water but it was such a welcome relief after the hot walk. We took lots of pictures apartment rentals in chicago and talked to some ladies from Canada. The walk back was easier as my feet stayed apartment rentals in chicago cold for the first 2 miles or so! We got back to the truck around 1:00 and guzzled some cold drinks.
Next stop was a short walk down to the Escalante River at one of the other trailheads and then on into the town of Escalante for lunch at Subway. The Subway was packed with people. We popped into the nearby Visitor Center and then at the Petrified Wood State Park. The lady at the entrance booth said it was a one mile loop trail to see the petrified wood. Sounded great. We parked and noticed right away that the mile trail was going to be uphill from the start. It was hot with no shade and wasn t until you got to the top that you saw any petrified wood. Once we saw some, it was unique and had a pretty color to it. We trudged back down the trail and met several people who were giving up and not going to continue the up hill hike. I am glad we saw the wood but the trail was a bit unpleasant in the heat.
Back to Highway 12 and more scenic overlooks and the view of the Granaries. I wondered who actually found those way up in the rocks and what they look like inside. Very interesting. We drove on to Tropic and checked into our hotel Americas Best Inn right next to Clarks restaurant. Everything apartment rentals in chicago had been booked for months so we were happy to have a room. Some others at the office were being told that the closest hotels apartment rentals in chicago with vacancies were in St. George! The hotel was just okay. We had a king room so the space was tight. The bed was comfortable though and the corridor was quieter than I had anticipated when I saw it. The wi fi didn t work well though. We had dinner at Clarks- just got a chicken quesadilla and salad to share with iced tea. It was fine but not cheap. I loved all the old pictures of the area and the pioneers in the area that were displayed on the walls. Like everywhere else we had been, we were in the minority apartment rentals in chicago as English speakers. I think all of Europe was traveling in Utah this week. Made for some fun people apartment rentals in chicago watching.
We drove the 7 miles into Bryce Canyon NP that evening. We stopped at Inspiration apartment rentals in chicago Point and watched the sun set. I will never forget that first sight of the main part of Bryce Canyon- the sheer number of hoodoos and the color. apartment rentals in chicago I think I was speechless and then just kind of giggled. Magical and completely unlike ANYTHING you will see anywhere else in the world. We drove back to the hotel in Tropic- saw lots of pronghorn and deer.
We got up at 6:30 and had free pancakes at the restaurant that the hotel gave us vouchers for. We drove to Bryce Canyon. We hiked the Navajo Loop- Queens Garden trail. Very few people on the trail and the scenery was spectacular. We took pictures by the do