Day 9 brought us 5 miles of canyon hiking followed by 314 miles of solid Utah interstate driving. Route 70 brought us on a very scenic varying elevation trek to Moab, UT (a beautiful town located in the center of desert).

We woke up and headed straight to Bryce Canyon. One of the best pieces of advice we have been given is to get to the parks early (before 9).

We always stop in the visitor center first to grab our cancellation stamp and sticker for our national park passport and learn about the park and what makes it special.

After picking out our hikes we set off to park. The hike we chose was a ‘moderate’ level hike into the canyon with a few view points along the way. These 5 miles were no joke. At first you walk along the rim of the canyon.. easyyyyypeasssyyy

and then begin your decent into the canyon zig zagging along the wall and plateau for a bit.

and then you get to the bottom, take in the amazing views and realize you need to go back up.

We chatted with some pretty great people and also got a few grunts when trying to talk to people. I’ve realized I’m a lot like my mom in that I talk to everyone like they are my friend and as much as I hate to admit it can sometimes go all ‘here is my life story what is yours!?’ on them. Haha. It’s not the worst quality to have, but I actually love it. I am really interested in other people’s stories, it’s been fun.

We made it!! And just in time as a mean looking cloud rolled over head and thunder roared.

Such a great spot and the temperature was perfect – about mid to low 70s (a little hotter in the sun).

We went back towards town for a lunch to refuel before hitting the road.

Gas Stop: Selina, UT – $3.02/gal

After our scenic drive on 70 – with lots of altitude changes, 80MPH speed limits, and 18wheelers ‘owning’ the road. We reached Moab!

We set up camp at the Slick Rock Campground. We have this tent setup (and takedown) down to a science!

Moab downtown is awesome – the whole Main Street is lined with restaurants/bars with outdoor seating, shops, and of course motels and campgrounds.

We opted for the Moab Brewery for dinner and we HIGHLY recommend it.

The service from the second you walk in to the door to the moment you leave was excellent. We had Dillon as a waiter, wicked nice and knowledgeable about the brewery/distillery. I tried their house made root beer and Chris their own vodka via the Moscow mule – and we finished off the meal with their gelato. The food was absolutely delicious as well and portions are quite generous (we took the leftovers for breakfast).

We were exhausted after all of that and decided to get to bed early, joke was on us we were in such a loud part of the campground- near a school trip of young teenagers, near the bathroom, and by the RVs. Uhg. We wouldn’t recommend this place if you are camping with a tent, we aren’t sure about the RVs either as the lots were literally right on top of each other and there is barely space to park. Dot get us wrong the service from the woman who greeted us was great, the camping situation was just not ideal.

Alright – take a hike y’all,

JBJ