"Maybe the journey isn't so much about becoming anything. Maybe it's about unbecoming everything that isn't really you, so that you can be who you were meant to be in the first place."
- Unknown
April was so exciting because we visited four National Parks. We spent the beginning of the month in New Mexico at Heron Lake State Park due to an unexpected snowstorm. We needed to be able to hook up to shore power to run a heater at all times because the average temp was 29 degrees and we had never driven Nancy through the snow. We have a Mr. Heater portable propane heater that was gifted to us before we hit the road, but we knew we didn’t have enough propane to run it all day and night for 48 hours so camp hook up it was. Paying for this state park camping broke our boon docking streak we had been on since we left at the end of January for the open road. Desert weather is crazy. One minute it can be 90 degrees and the next thick snow. Thankfully Nancy is fully prepared for either! After the New Mexico snow storm cleared, we headed for Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado.
I think Mesa Verde is one of Gregg’s favorite National Parks we have been to yet! He has Native American blood in his family, so he really resonates with the old dwellings in the cliffs. I however, have a bad taste in my mouth for Mesa Verde. This is where I almost broke Nancy. Steep hills that travel up and down the side of mountains provide great views of the long roads back into the different points of the cliff dwellings. One particular hill was really steep and Nancy felt like she was having a hard time so Gregg suggested switching to a lower gear to help her out. While this seems really simple, I made it really complicated. I switched into reverse as we were rolling down hill at about 25 miles an hour. The entire check engine and other various dashboard lights came on and Nancy shut off. Right before Nancy shut off, Gregg yanked her back. With the car off and the steering wheel stiff, we rolled off the side of the road and where I sat in shock and Gregg hiked up the closest hill to blow off some steam. After about fifteen minutes of thinking our journey was finished and for sure that the transmission was blown, we cranked her up. No lights came on and she switched gears with ease. Gregg had saved our Nancy girl with his quick reflexes of pulling her into drive almost as soon as I had thrown her into reverse. WHEW! After exploring Mesa Verde we headed for Utah. The views during the drive to Moab did not disappoint. The La Sal Mountain range in the distance with various rock formations, arches, and the Moab desert is something we miss already!The BLM land with the La Sal Mountain range came in at a close second to the Valley of the Gods as our favorite BLM land in Utah. Valley of the Gods pictured below. The name is nothing short of what this place has to offer. Also while in Utah we explored three other National Parks including Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, and Zion National Park. Arches National Park was our first stop. We explored Arches with friends from back home in MS, John Morgan and John Collins. John Collins is a raft guide in Glenn Wood Colorado, only a two-hour drive from Moab, and they were headed there for a few days and invited us to come. Before heading to Colorado, we spent our last night in Moab camping with some new friends we had met through JC and JMO along the Colorado River and it was breathtaking. During magic hour we had our first experience of bouldering and it is no joke! If you don’t know what bouldering is, give it a quick Google or click here. Gregg and I were sore the next two days. We spent three days in Glenn Wood rafting the Colorado River (which was freezing), enjyoing warm showers, new friends, good food, new tattoos, and finally we decided we needed to head back to warmer weather. We decided to go ahead and leave Moab and head to Bryce Canyon and Zion. On the way out of town we stopped at Fisher Towers to hike and explore. To get to Bryce Canyon, you have to drive through Page AZ because there is no highway connecting you through to the other side of Utah due to all the National Parks. While in Page we stopped at Horseshoe Bend, which was SO cool, but also really crowded. We suggest going super early if you plan on visiting Horseshoe bend. We wanted to explore Antelope Canyon while in Page, but $30 bucks for a guided tour is not our budget. Apparently someone died recently due to rapid flooding of the canyon and now guided tours are required to see the canyons. On the way to Bryce Canyon we also got to see the infamous place where Forest Gump decided to stop running, Monument valley! Next was Bryce Canyon. My favorite National Park was Zion, although Bryce Canyon was really cool too coming in at a close second! I was excited about Bryce Canyon National Park because a friend, Jane Oliver, said this was her absolute favorite place she had visited in Utah. The Hoodoo Mountains were captivating. From the first look out point we stopped at, we could see the highest plateau in North America. This is also where we saw Ponderosa pine trees for the first time. These pines are unique because of their extra long pine needle and orange colored trunks that make it less likely to burn all the way up the tree if the forest were to catch fire. After exploring the different trails and viewpoints of Bryce, we headed towards Zion NP. On the way to Zion we stopped at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, which is the largest no kill shelter in America, was so amazing! We even paid five bucks for an all you can eat vegetarian and vegan buffet overlooking gorgeous views of Utah. We drove through Zion to get to a small town on the other side a few days before we actually explored the park. This is where Nancy’s breaks went out and we had to have her whole front end rebuilt! That blew our whole budget for the month of April. Gregg will post our “April By the Numbers” soon. Close to a thousand bucks is what it was going to cost to have her fixed. That is almost 20% of what we paid for her. Gregg and I were so upset. We had to sit down and have the talk of whether or not we were going to sell her and head back to MS or pay the troll toll and continue the journey. Reluctantly, we had her fixed. Now she has brand new brakes, rotors, break pads, new center link, new power steering and A/C belt, alignment, and new air valve in the front right tire. After we got Nancy fixed, we got a hotel for my birthday! So amazing! We went for a few drinks and sushi and spent the rest of the evening with some locals in a hot tub, one of which shared the same birthday as me! They told us about some local hot springs called Arizona hot springs. If you follow us on instagram, you know that this is the hike that we got lost on with seven other people who ended up saving me with food and water! After the hotel it was onward to Zion. We learned our lesson about Zion and drove in a lower gear the whole time enjoying Nancy feeling like a new truck! Our first day in the park we hiked Angel’s Landing! We have a good bit up about this hike including a video on our instagram if you haven’t gotten to check it out, they will be posted below! Angel’s Landing is easily the hardest hike we have ever done. I am scared of heights, but the view and exhilaration was so worth it! After Zion we headed for Arizona. The hot springs was our last stop before making it to Sedona, which is where we are now! For more pictures and our video from hiking Angle’s Landin in Zion, click the instagram link above as well! We would love to hear any stories, comments, or questions you have! -a
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We are two passionate millennials aspiring to live a budge-friendly and sustainable lifestyle, living on the road in an RV, traveling with three dogs.
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