Southern Utah- putting the National Parks Pass to use

anwmn1

My son was on spring break last week so I decided we would take a road trip to Utah to see my brother and his family and then hit as many National Parks and Monuments that we could.

Day one- Saturday March 10th:
It started out busy with going to get the rental car, load it, and then get to a wedding I was assisting at by 3pm.

A few from the wedding-






My duties were done at 6pm so I gathered up my gear and high tailed it over to pick up my son at his mom's house. The trip was officially under way and we had many miles to cover.

When we reached the Nevada/ Arizona border it was time to call it a night by camping out in the car.

Hoover Dam at 11pm


After a rough and cramped night in the car I awoke early to start driving again. About 30 minutes outside of Vegas our first stop was Valley of Fire State Park.

The sun was already up and bright but we managed to get a few good shots in this unique little park. If you are ever in Vegas it is worth the short trip out to it.

One of the loop roads


The Arch


There were a few Petroglyphs to see-

Yes up there....




Now you have to go back down...


Some other petroglyphs that my son spotted


Time to go - still have a lot of miles to cover.



We arrived in Salt Lake City around 5 pm and took some time to relax and shower. After dinner we went down town to shoot the Mormon Temple and a Catholic Church for some night architecture shots.

The temple


The Catholic Church


a few extras




Day 3 - Monday March 12th:

Spent most the day just hanging out with my family. After lunch we drove up towards some of the ski resorts to play in the snow a little bit and see the views.

As we stopped at one of the sledding hills we saw this group of guys that had built their own snow ramp and were going to jump the creek- literally! Great timing but wrong lens. :cry





My brother asked me if would mind watching the girls later that night so he and his wife could go to a movie or something. I said sure- if you watch my son while I go check out the Salt Lake. A deal was struck and I was off.

The Marina:


Playing with dof




A barren scene



A lone sailboat


Day 4 Tuesday March 13th: We got up early and started the drive down to Bryce along scenic Highway 89. We arrived at Bryce and stayed the night in Tropic for the next two days spending time at both Bryce and Grand Staircase Escalante.

Bryce Canyon






Out on a ledge...:yikes



Grand Staircase Escalante:

Slot Canyon outside of Canonville


There is water under the ice!!


Shooting each other...Camera Duel!!


Dinousaur Tracks--





Devils Garden- great part of Grand Staircase Escalante! Has everything, sandstone features, hoodoos, arches, and natural bridges.

anwmn1

Day 6 Thursday March 15th:

After shooting the sunrise at Bryce we made the drive over to Zion

The Drive in






Wheeping Rock

anwmn1

Day 7 Friday March 16th:

After Zion we were hoping to see the North Rim of the Grand Canyon but we found out that the main park is closed until May. There was an option to take a 61 mile rough dirt road but I decided to pass on that for this trip.

Instead we headed over to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park. If you do not have a quad or a camel there is not a lot to see here.







My little guy checking out the quads.



An action shot



After the dunes we were on our way to Kanab when we found Moqui Cave. The cave is natural and was purchased in the early 1900's and turned into a bar and dance area. It is now a tourist trap but has a pretty large collection of neon rocks.

The entrance


The register- pretty cool


The Bar




The rocks- taken with 20 second exposure and had to manual focus due to autofocus not able to pick anything up.

anwmn1

Day 7 continued:
After Moqui Cave and lunch we saw a turn off for Pipe Springs National Monument and decided to check it out. Pipe Springs was a mormon settlement that made butter and cheese in large ammounts as part of a mormon food network. They also traded with Indians and others that past through the area.

Built like a fort




After spending some time here we once again were on our way to Page when ofcourse some thing else comes up to see.

The Vermillion Cliffs





The Vermillion Cliffs at 80 MPH

anwmn1

Day 8 Saturday March 17th- the day to go home

Saturday finally came and it was the day to get home- but first......

The Grand Canyon South Rim- Desert Vista
The Watchtower


Looking Out




Looking Up




Wupatki National Monument









Sunset Crater National Monument









We finally got back to Phoenix 5 pm on Saturday.

The Stats:

National Parks/ Monuments 8
State Parks 2
Jr. Ranger Badges earned 8
(by my son)
Shots taken Over 1,000 !!!!!
(between the two of us)

Miles Driven 2,187

Animals my son got to see:
Wild Mule Deer
Wild Turkey
Various Birds
Lizzards


The Best Part: Lots of Father and Son time!

Thanks for looking and comments are always welcome!

Skippy

anwmn1 wrote:

Day 8 Saturday March 17th- the day to go home
Saturday finally came and it was the day to get home- but first......
The Grand Canyon South Rim- Desert Vista
Wupatki National Monument
Sunset Crater National Monument
We finally got back to Phoenix 5 pm on Saturday.
The Stats:
National Parks/ Monuments 8
State Parks 2
Jr. Ranger Badges earned 8
(by my son)
Shots taken Over 1,000 !!!!!
(between the two of us)
Miles Driven 2,187
Animals my son got to see:
Wild Mule Deer
Wild Turkey
Various Birds
Lizzards
The Best Part: Lots of Father and Son time!
Thanks for looking and comments are always welcome!

What a wonderful trip and a very educational one for your son too.
From Desert to snow and mountains all in 8 days too
Your son will not forget this trip I'm sure, it's nice that your son is interested in learning photography too as young as he is.

You've collected a wonderful assortment of pictures, definately brag material for sure thanks for sharing your journey..... Skippy
.

mmroden

wow....wow! nicely done! I'm a sucker for slot canyons, I love those things

System

Wonderful shots. Thanks for sharing.

anwmn1

Skippy wrote:

What a wonderful trip and a very educational one for your son too.
From Desert to snow and mountains all in 8 days too
Your son will not forget this trip I'm sure, it's nice that your son is interested in learning photography too as young as he is.

You've collected a wonderful assortment of pictures, definately brag material for sure thanks for sharing your journey..... Skippy
.

Thanks Skippy.

It is great that he likes it already. Unlike me he will be able to take photography in school- he already takes it in a summer program.

I have had to make his own page on my site so he can post his shots and let the family see.

anwmn1

mmroden wrote:

wow....wow! nicely done! I'm a sucker for slot canyons, I love those things

I have always wanted to shoot one so it was a joy for me. I am now in search of more. Already planning a trip to Antelope Canyon- one of the most famous slot canyons.

There is more of the slot canyon in here

Thanks again!!

Aaron

anwmn1

sarahcsu wrote:

Wonderful shots. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the post Sarah!

anwmn1

Grand Canyon Pics
I realized that the Grand Canyon Pics were missing so here you go-

South Rim- Desert Vista

The Watchtower



Inside looking up



Inside Looking Down



Looking Out





Thanks again!!

GREAPER

Great stuff. What a great trip. Thanks for sharing.

Brian

20DNoob

Thanks for sharing, you've brought back great memories of when I was in the SW.

waveneyman

Great set of pictures Aaron you're son won't forget this in a hurry
2187 miles in 8 days AND over 1000 shots...sounds like my kind of trip. Time for some planning - of course I'll have to cross the pond first:D

waveney

StevenV

beautiful scenery, wonderful pitures... but my favorites (and perhaps the one most important to have backups kept in a good safe place ) the "dueling photographers" and "checking out the quads" shots.

Tee Why

Boy, looks like a fun filled vacation/trip.

cwphotos

Very awesome. Love all of them. Seems like the perfect father son trip. What has Disney world got on that !!!

anwmn1

cwphotosVery awesome. Love all of them. Seems like the perfect father son trip. What has Disney world got on that !!!

Thanks- I can't speak for Disney world but he does like these trips better than Disney Land which he has been to twice.

We have another the first week of June- I can't wait!

Tee WhyBoy, looks like a fun filled vacation/trip.

Tee Why thanks for the post.

StevenVbeautiful scenery, wonderful pitures... but my favorites (and perhaps the one most important to have backups kept in a good safe place ) the "dueling photographers" and "checking out the quads" shots.

Steven- thank you very much and agree with your selevtion of favorites. I have also created a page for him on my site.

waveneymanGreat set of pictures Aaron you're son won't forget this in a hurry
2187 miles in 8 days AND over 1000 shots...sounds like my kind of trip. Time for some planning - of course I'll have to cross the pond first:D

waveneywaveney- come on over. There is plenty to attempt to squeeze in. I need to cross the pond myself and head your direction.

20DNoobThanks for sharing, you've brought back great memories of when I was in the SW.

Thanks for the post and happy I could bring back some memories for you.

GREAPERGreat stuff. What a great trip. Thanks for sharing.

Brian

Brian- thanks for the post.

ian408

Hey now the watchtower was something I thought was pretty cool on the
rim. Very cool and thanks for adding them to the show!

anwmn1

ian408 wrote:

Hey now the watchtower was something I thought was pretty cool on the
rim. Very cool and thanks for adding them to the show!

Wish I would have caught it the first time and I couldn't figure out how to add it in where it was suppose to go. Kept getting a message saying I couldn't do that edit.

Aaron

kdog

Awesome trip report, Aaron!

I was skiing at Squaw Valley with the family that week and missed this. Really great job on the pictures and annotations. Looks like you and the little guy had great time. I'll bet you hated to see it end.

Cheers,
-joel