We got a slow start packing up from our house outside of Zion. I think everyone welcomed a slow start when staying in an actual house with room to play. We knew it might be a rainy day, so we also weren't in a hurry to get to Bryce Canyon National Park. What we didn't think far enough ahead to realize is that when it is raining/drizzling in the lower elevations, it would probably be snowing at higher elevations... needless to say we drove in a snowstorm to enter Bryce Canyon National Park that afternoon... it was gorgeous at least.
Once inside the park we were able to convince most of the kids to take a short "walk" to the bottom of the Hoodoos... this was not well received by Ben and, as you can see from the pictures, we wasn't super cooperative for pictures, but you can also see his, "I can't really stay mad for too long" face;) By the time we made it most of the way to the bottom of the canyon (we didn't want to push our luck today after our promise of no hiking) the sun had come out and it was quite warm. This lead for some breathtaking views of the different theaters. So far all of the National Parks have been amazing in their own way, Bryce was no exception. The geography is fairly mind blowing. There were gorgeous natural bridges, spires, and hoodoos overtime you turned around.
Once inside the park we were able to convince most of the kids to take a short "walk" to the bottom of the Hoodoos... this was not well received by Ben and, as you can see from the pictures, we wasn't super cooperative for pictures, but you can also see his, "I can't really stay mad for too long" face;) By the time we made it most of the way to the bottom of the canyon (we didn't want to push our luck today after our promise of no hiking) the sun had come out and it was quite warm. This lead for some breathtaking views of the different theaters. So far all of the National Parks have been amazing in their own way, Bryce was no exception. The geography is fairly mind blowing. There were gorgeous natural bridges, spires, and hoodoos overtime you turned around.
PB&J Count: 34 (apparently no one minds PB&J too much when you are freezing, the snow is falling and you get to eat it in a nice, warm vehicle;))
The next morning we woke up excited to be taking the scenic route over to Moab which took a bit longer, but was supposed to be totally worth it to climb up over a mountain ridge and be able to see beautiful scenery the whole way... Well, what we got to see was a legitimate snow storm with actual, plowable, snow accumulation... It was hard to tell we were even on a mountain because in most places you couldn't see just off the side of the road... No one had been out to treat the roads or plow them so things were a bit slippery and there were lots of vehicles from warm and sunny states that had no idea how to drive in the snow. Needless to say, it was a long morning. We will have to look at someone else's pictures from that drive to appreciate it. We did eventually come down out of the elevation, the sun came out, and we enjoyed a quick stop/drive through Capitol Reef National Park. We stretched our legs and got to see some neat petroglyphs on the side of the road.
The next morning we woke up excited to be taking the scenic route over to Moab which took a bit longer, but was supposed to be totally worth it to climb up over a mountain ridge and be able to see beautiful scenery the whole way... Well, what we got to see was a legitimate snow storm with actual, plowable, snow accumulation... It was hard to tell we were even on a mountain because in most places you couldn't see just off the side of the road... No one had been out to treat the roads or plow them so things were a bit slippery and there were lots of vehicles from warm and sunny states that had no idea how to drive in the snow. Needless to say, it was a long morning. We will have to look at someone else's pictures from that drive to appreciate it. We did eventually come down out of the elevation, the sun came out, and we enjoyed a quick stop/drive through Capitol Reef National Park. We stretched our legs and got to see some neat petroglyphs on the side of the road.
The rock is changing as we drive east into rock that is darker and even in some places quite black. We made it to Moab in time for dinner and were thankful that the day's driving was over. Moab looks like a very exciting place to spend the next several days of our trip!
PB&J Count: 40, (We splurged for Subway after a harrowing snowstorm drive, but compensated with PB&J for dinner because everyone was so tired and we hadn’t grocery shopped yet;)
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