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Friday, December 30, 2016, Canyonlands National Park This would be our last day of outdoor activity for the trip, and it was a great one. We visited Islands in the Sky the day before, where we hiked along the rim of the canyon looking down into its vastness below. The Needles are colorful rock spireContinue reading “The Needles”

Thursday, December 29, 2016, Canyonlands National Park This trip was centered around the “Big 5” National Parks in Southern Utah. The “Big 5” was something we had heard about only shortly before planning the trip, but it is fairly common for people to string together visits to all five on one trip, just as weContinue reading “Island in the Sky”

Wednesday, December 28, 2016 – Moab, UT and Arches National Park My day started with a five-mile run around Moab. I’ve written before about how much I love an early morning run in a new city or town, and Moab was no exception. Moab is not very big, so five miles took me through theContinue reading “Arches!”

Tuesday, December 27, 2016 – Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef National Parks The cabin in Glendale really turned out to be a spectacular spot – plenty of room for all of us, right on US 89 so the snow was kept clear, and convenient to both Zion and Bryce Canyon. The only drawback was itsContinue reading “Where is the Coral on this Reef?”

Monday, December 26, 2016 – Zion National Park We returned to Zion on Monday, and what a difference fourteen inches of snow can make! The same views we saw on Friday were now blanketed in white. The day was clear and bright, which made the snow gleam all the more. We planned our activities inContinue reading “A Different Looking Zion”

Sunday, December 25, 2016 – Glendale, Utah and Bryce Canyon National Park Christmas morning brought a white winter wonderland. We ended up with a total of 14 inches of snow from the storm. We made a pot of coffee and built a fire in the fireplace to enjoy Christmas morning. We brought stockings which hadContinue reading “White Christmas”

Saturday, December 24, 2016 – Glendale, Utah In 2016 we were all still Floridians. We didn’t know that within a few years we would all live in the Upper Midwest or Northeast and that snow and ice would be a normal part of winter life. Snow was definitely a novelty back then and we wereContinue reading “Snowed In”

Friday, December 23, 2016 – Zion National Park After our drive-through of Zion on Thursday we were ready to hit the trails and explore. We entered the park from the east and drove with the rising sun at our backs, lighting the rocks, trees, and canyons despite the overcast sky. Every once in while theContinue reading “Angel’s Landing”

Thursday, December 22, 2016 – Las Vegas, NV to Glendale, UT via Zion National Park The drive from Las Vegas to St. George, Utah was quite different for us Floridians. Winding through the desert with rocks, mountains and no trees was very different from the swamps and forests of Florida. However, although we were inContinue reading “Desert Rain”

Wednesday, December 21, 2016 – Tampa to Las Vegas Our trip started out with an uneventful flight from Tampa to Las Vegas. Everyone was hungry when we arrived, so once we had our luggage and rental car it was straight to In-N-Out. This is quite a habit for us whenever we travel to California, Nevada,Continue reading “Vegas Lite”