Spring Break (or was it winter?)

We went on a tour of southern Utah for spring break and had so much fun! We took the kids to see some sites that we haven't done in a long time and it was amazing. The weather was not exactly spring-like, but we made the best of it. We were glad to be in a hotel and not camping. (I am always happy for that!). It even snowed on us during one of our hikes but we were prepared with coats, hats, and gloves! We were lucky to get in all but one of the hikes that we were planning on doing. There are some wonderful things to see and do in this part of the country. We were just continuously amazed by the variety and beauty as were driving to all these different places.

Our first stop was this crazy hot spring pool in the middle of nowhere on the way to southern Utah. It is literally down a dirt road, in some farmers cow pasture and he lets people come and swim. It is the perfect temperature and you can dive down (probably 20 feet) and explore- we loved it. Paul's parents were with us and Dad thought it was the greatest!

So after our little dip we continued on to Bryce Canyon and went right on a hike down into the canyon. It was the Queens/Navajo loop and was about 3 miles in around and back out of the canyon. Wow! Bryce is amazing. The next morning we also got in another hike before the weather turned snowy in the afternoon, than it was swim time in the Ruby's Inn pool!

After Bryce we headed on to Torrey which is right by Capitol Reef national park. The drive between those parks was spectacular but we were glad to be in the car. That day was FREEZING! Luckily the next day was better and we were fine to explore around Capitol Reef. We hiked to a natural bridge, and along a wash with steep cliffs on each side. Beautiful! We also saw Indian petroglyphs, the tiny schoolhouse which Paul's grandma attended, and had yummy homemade pie and ice cream at an old homestead.

Our next stop was Goblin Valley. This was just a quick stop on the way to Moab where we got out and climbed around on some of the "goblins" for an hour. I had heard of Goblin Valley before but we had never been. It is definitely an experience! It is probably the weirdest place I have ever been. You honestly feel like you are on another planet. It's hard to describe- but it is this huge valley of sand with lots of freaky rock shapes unlike anything I have seen before.

Our final stop was Moab and Arches national park. We have been here lots but at the last minute decided to go once more. We were actually hoping it was going to be warmer but then the storm stuck around another day. It wasn't too bad and we didn't get rained on. The kids (and Paul) were just happy to go to our favorite pizza place- Zax. It's all about the food, baby! We went on the hike to Delicate Arch which we realized we hadn't done since I was pregnant with Maddie. It was about time and it was as great as I remember!
All in all it was a great trip with some great memories. We figured we probably hiked almost 15 miles and Kenzie did the majority of it so we were proud of her. Amazingly not too much complaining even! Now on to 6 more weeks of school till summer!