Southwest Road Trip

May 2016

Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, & Colorado

Are we there yet?! I'm sure we are all wondering when this shelter-in-place will end! As we are all stuck in the house on isolation this month, I took this as an opportunity to go back in time to one of me & Tom's first adventures together. We put our young relationship to the test by driving around the Southwest of the US for 10 days. Luckily, we came out the other end even stronger as best friends and with many memories! We shared lots of laughs & scares, exhausting hikes & starry skies, and even more car sing-a-longs & sandwiches along the way. I hope this inspires you to get outdoors for a walk, hike, bike ride, or maybe even camp in your backyard! In the meantime, stay safe and remember to social distance!

Check out our other pages for our FULL itinerary!

Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas

Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

Must do, Must see

Watch the evening Bat Flight: From about May to October, thousands of bats fly out of Carlsbad Cavern in the evening, weather permitting, to eat insects. The program is free and you do not need reservations. Seating at the amphitheater is first come-first served. Find the schedule and more information here.
Guadalupe peak (tallest point in Texas at 8,749ft): 8.1 miles heavily trafficked trail, hard difficulty level, 6-8 hours round trip, 2,867ft elevation change
Explore the Big Room and Natural Entrance trails: The most popular route, the Big Room, is the largest single cave chamber by volume in North America. This 1.25 mile (2 km) trail is relatively flat, and will take about 1.5 hours (on average) to walk it
Kings Palace Tour: This is a 1.5-hour, 1 mile long, ranger-guided tour through four highly decorated chambers taking you into the deepest portion of the cavern open to the public. The park rangers often do a brief black out for you to experience the natural darkness of the cave. Check out the scheduled times & book online in advance.

Tips and Tricks

We camped at White’s City RV Park which is right outside Carlsbad National Park. The drive to Guadalupe Mountain National Park was about 30 minutes. There are a few hotels in White's City if you're interested. Also home to Cactus Cafe for some comfort food and the White's City Gift Shop for firewood.
Guadalupe Mountains Entrance Fee: $5 (valid for 7 days)
Carlsbad Caverns Entrance Fee: $15 (additional fees for guided tours)

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Must do, Must see

Bright Angel Trail to the Three-Mile Resthouse: 5.4 miles heavily trafficked trail, hard difficulty level, out & back, 2,086ft elevation change
Other popular day hikes from the South Rim include: Grandview Trail to Horseshoe Mesa and South Kaibab Trail to Skeleton Point
Bike along Hermit Road: rentals from shops like Bright Angel Bicycles
Ride a mule into the canyon
Take a helicopter tour over the canyon
Yavapai Museum of Geology
South Rim Grand Canyon View Points: follow this link for a list of some of the best view points and how to get to each one

Tips and Tricks

Entrance Fee: $35 (valid for 7 days)
Numerous campsites available but you MUST book early! We ended up booking late and Ten-X campground still has sites, they were just a little more expensive than the National Park campgrounds

Zion National Park, Utah

Must do, Must see

Hike the Narrows: The narrows is a trail through the Virgin river bed along the most narrow point of Zion Canyon that you can hike from top-down or bottom-up. The top-down is a one-way hike which requires a permit as you start outside the national park. This option is for experienced hikers only and requires intense planning and preparation as this is a two day, 16 mile hike requiring back-country camping. The bottom-up is an out & back hike that originates in the national park and does not require a permit. This option is most popular and can be tailored to a variety of levels of experience. Some people were just playing in the river water at the mouth of the Narrows while you can stretch the hike up to 10 miles total length, out & back. If you plan on hiking more than half a mile out, I recommend looking into renting waterproof gear! There are rental options inside the park; we were very glad we rented shoes and dry-suits for the very very cold water. There are also waterproof backpacks & hiking sticks available; you can also line the inside of your backpack with a trash bag as an option. Even the most experienced hikers fall and get wet on the narrows so be prepared!

[The Narrows: yes, at some points the water was up to our waist & even higher!]

Angels Landing Hike: 5 mile heavily trafficked trail, hard difficulty level, out & back, 1,630ft elevation change, famous for its steep drop-offs, very narrow sections, and viewpoints
Horseback riding
Mountain biking
Canyoneering: think of it like reverse mountain climbing that requires skills like route finding, rappelling, problem solving, swimming, and hiking

Tips and Tricks

Entrance Fee: $30 per vehicle
Check weather & river conditions to evaluate if the Narrows is open/safe to hike. Snow melt can cause high water levels and fast currents in the spring. Best from late spring to early fall. Always be cautious of thunderstorms & flash floods.
Zion National Park has it's own shuttle service to help guests get around

Arches National Park, Utah

Must do, Must see

Delicate Arch: 3.1 mile heavily trafficked trail, moderate difficulty level, out & back, 613ft elevation change
Landscape Arch: 1.9 mile heavily trafficked trail, easy difficulty level, out & back, 259ft elevation change
Biking, camping, canyoneering, star-gazing, rock climbing

Tips and Tricks

Entrance Fee: $30 per vehicle
Best time to photograph the picturesque Delicate Arch is at sunrise/early morning

Moab, Utah

Must do, Must see

White water rafting on Colorado River with Red River Adventures
Walk around downtown Moab: check out art displays, restaurants, ice cream parlors, boutiques, etc. We had a wonderful, carb-heavy pasta dinner at Pasta Jay's!
Moab Brewery
Arches National Park
Canyonlands National Park
Canyoneering: think of it like reverse mountain climbing that requires skills like route finding, rappelling, problem solving, swimming, and hiking
Mountain biking
Stand Up Paddle Boarding
Four Corners Monument: 2.5 hr drive from Moab, UT. Monument at the point where four states meet - Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico

Mesa Verde National Park, Utah

Must do, Must see

Cliff Palace tour: This one-hour, ranger-guided tour involves 120 uneven stone steps and climbing five, 8-10 foot (2.6-3m) ladders on a 100 foot (30m) vertical climb. Total walking distance is about 1/4-mile (400m), round-trip. The Cliff Palace is made up of about 150 rooms and is the largest cliff dwelling in the park. Tickets can be purchased in advance here
View the Spruce Tree House
Drive the Mesa Top Loop Road: six-mile loop
Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum

Tips and Tricks

Entrance Fee: $20 per car (May 1 - Oct 31), $15 per car (Nov 1 - April 30)
Guided tours are an additional cost. Find schedule & prices here

Palo Duro Canyon, Texas

Must do, Must see

Hiking, biking, equestrian trails
Rock Garden Trail: 5 miles, heavily trafficked, moderate difficulty level, out & back, 777ft elevation change
Lighthouse Trail: 5.7 miles, heavily trafficked, moderate difficulty level, out & back, 492ft elevation change
Zip line

Tips and Tricks

Palo Duro Canyon is the second largest canyon in the country. aka The Grand Canyon of Texas
Entrance Fee: $8 daily

Key Tips & Tricks

~for your next camping road trip on a budget~

Food

Be sure to pack plenty of snacks and water for your hikes! We used CamelBak water reservoirs in our backpacks with an extra 32oz full bottle attached externally with a carabiner. The general rule is to bring 1 Liter of water for every 2 hours of hiking planned. We also carry a water filtration straw with us as a back up, in-case of emergency.
We ate mostly sandwiches on our trip to save costs! We had a cooler in the back of our car with waters, Gatorade, lunch meat, cheese, condiments, and fruit. We also brought a couple loaves of bread, bags of chips, some cookies, and lots of hiking snacks. By bringing a variety of deli meats & cheeses (including a package of precooked bacon from SAMs Club), we never got bored of the sandwiches while saving us both time and money.
Some of our favorite hiking snacks include: granola bars, protein bars, Gatorade energy chews, trail mix, beef jerky, etc.

Hiking

Alltrails is our favorite trail information site/app which includes a map, difficulty level, distance, and sometimes even photos & comments from other hikers!
We both carry a backpack when we hike with water & food supplies as described above. In our backpacks, we carry a medical kit and other survival tools to include a rope, knife, fire starter kit, safety blanket, whistle, +/- bear spray, compass, map, flashlight, portable phone charging battery pack, spare insect repellent & sunscreen, etc.
Clothing: I cannot stress enough to do your research on the weather and plan accordingly. Often times, I will hike in shorts and a tank top. If the trail is lightly traveled/overgrown, consider wearing leggings to protect your skin. I always carry a light, water resistant jacket as well. Sun protection is also important; wear a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, etc.

Transportation

We drove my Ford Escape and laid all the seats down in the back for all of our stuff. Take a buddy with you to help keep each other alert & awake and make the long stretches of driving manageable. Be smart; DO NOT DRIVE DROWSY!

Camping

Research campsites in your destination well in advance. Some of the sites around National Parks will open a year in advance and book up quite quickly. BLMs (Bureau of Land Management sites) are another option to look into. Campsites are an easy way to save costs on your trip! Be sure to look into whether or not your campsite has bathrooms, potable water, showers, laundry services, fire rings, RV hook ups, etc.
Know what wild animals are common in your destination and follow recommended camping procedures. Some sites will have bear boxes to place food when you are away.

We have a small, 2 person tent that is easy to carry. We usually place foam mats on the floor of the tent and then our sleeping bags on top. We have small compact pillows that expand when taken out of their bag. I also often use some extra clothes or my backpack to support my head additionally, if needed. Tom and I have a no shoe policy in our tent as well to prevent getting a bunch of dirt in our sleeping place. Our tent is also open air; the top is a mesh so we can see the stars at night. This is great in Texas and other hot climates however, when camping in colder areas, we have a tarp-like attachment to place over the top that helps keep in the heat.
We often bring cooking supplies to camp as well. We have a small pot & pan set with propane tank for cooking. We also have reusable plastic cups, plates, and bowls with camping silverware that we keep in a mesh bag for easy drying. Some campsites will have grills as well - look into whether you need to bring charcoal or other grilling tools. One of my favorite camping recipes is the American Foil Dinner that I learned as a Girl Scout. I've included the recipe here. Aluminum foil is probably my favorite, most versatile camping cooking tool! Great to use for plates, creating a flat cooking surface on a grill, etc.
Bring your hammocks too! This is a fun way to hang out after a long day of hiking. Learn how to tie a variety of hammock knots here.

We crammed this trip into 9 days and it's definitely possible! It was a whirlwind of fun and I loved spending so much one-on-one time with my best friend. However, if you don't want to sleep in the car while your partner is driving, or you want to spend more than one day at each park, we recommend adding on a few extra days so you can enjoy yourselves! Get outside & enjoy the great outdoors! Just be sure to plan ahead and be safe while you're out there!