In November 2018, Matt and I made the long trek home to Georgia after finishing a contract in Oregon. So I thought what better way than to check a few places off our bucket list while traveling home. Our first stop was the beautiful state of Utah in Bryce Canyon National Park. We only had time for one hike here so I chose for us to do Wall Street and Queens Garden hike. It was about 3.5 miles long, but to me I felt like it showed us the most views starting from on top of the canyon wall going into the canyon then coming back out to the top. All the views were amazing changing in color as the morning sun was rising.
After we left Bryce Canyon we had lunch then headed on to Zion National Park which was about 1.5 hours away. We drove the scenic highway inside Zion National Park then as we headed out we stopped and hiked the Zion Canyon Overlook Trail. This trail is only 1 mile long and pretty easy to hike. The Overlook was phenomenal looking down into the canyon.
The next morning we headed down to Arizona towards Marble Canyon which would be our central location for the next few places we visited. Once we got settled in our campground we headed South to Grand Canyon National Park and spent the afternoon there. We stopped at several viewpoints on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and hiked some of the Rim Trail. The Grand Canyon will literally take your breath away with its endless views. I hope to go back one day and hike into the canyon.
Our last stop in Arizona we headed to Page, Arizona to see Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend. We had booked our tour for Antelope Canyon in advance, which is what I recommend because they tend to sell out fast especially during the spring and summer months. You can also look up the best times to do the canyon based on the sunrise. The colors in the canyon are changing constantly as the sun rises throughout the day. The tour lasted about an hour and can be cancelled last minute due to weather changes. If it rains the canyon floods and the tours shut down during that time, so try to plan ahead and do your research to get the most out of your Antelope Canyon experience. Our tour was through Dixie Ellis Lower Antelope Canyon Tours.
After our tour, we stopped by Horseshoe Bend and took in the view of the Colorado River sweeping through the canyon. Our time in Page, Arizona had come to an end and it was time to head back up towards Bluff, Utah. On our way there we took the scenic route through Monument Valley where you may recall this area is popular for filming several movies for example Forest Gump.
We stayed in Bluff, Utah which was about 2 hours South of Moab, Utah. We spent a full day in Moab and exploring Arches National Park. Our first hike of the day was in Moab, the Corona and Bowtie Arch Trail. It was about a 2.5 mile hike and was pretty neat getting to walk under some beautiful arches. Afterwards we headed over into Arches National Park. We drove the scenic drive in the park and hiked many trails including Double Arch Trail, Delicate Arch Trail, and Windows Loop and Turret Arch Trail. A lot of the hikes are very short and easy in Arches National Park. All of our hikes together totaled about 7 miles for the day.
The last stop in our road trip before we headed on home was Santa Fe, New Mexico. Now this was a fun town and I could see us going back to this area for a weekend getaway. The town is very colorful and full of history. We explored downtown, shopped the plaza, and visited the oldest house and church in the U.S.A.
Oldest House in the USA 
Santa Fe downtown
For dinner we ate at the highly recommended restaurant called The Shed. I had some of the best authentic Hispanic food in my life! Matt and I both ordered the enchiladas with red and green sauce with a fried egg on top. Goodness my mouth is watering just thinking about it! This is definitely a place you want to visit if you are ever in Santa Fe. After Santa Fe, we booked it on home to Georgia, but getting to check some bucket list places off in Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico was worth it!
