Nevada, Utah and Arizona

Leaving the west coast, we headed southeast but before we went back into nature we made a quick stop in Las Vegas. We spent half a day there walking around the strip and seeking refuge from the heat in the cool casinos. 

After a weekend of luxuries such as flushing toilets and actual beds, we were beginning to miss our tent so we moved on to our next stop: Zion National Park in Utah. Here, we only had a few afternoon hours. Enough time to take a stroll along the river to the edge of The Narrows deep in the canyon as well as a short hike to Emerald Pools. We concluded this short visit with a couple of local beers. 

Zion National Park

From Zion, we drove northeast for a couple of hours across hills of green to the edge of Bryce Canyon where we camped out for the night. Next morning, we entered the park and from Sunset Point descended down into the natural amphitheater walking beside bright orange rock. Afterwards, we drove up to Rainbow Point and went for an easy but rewarding hike with stunning vistas. 

 

Natural amphitheater, Bryce Canyon 

 

Bryce Canyon

Then it was time to head south again to the great Grand Canyon in Arizona. We had a full day there which we used to hike all the way down into the canyon to the Colorado River and then back up again. However, this was not our original plan. Our early intentions were just to hike a few miles into the canyon and then return via a trail we had read about in a Lonely Planet book but as we were descending, the water got closer and we just had to keep going. After about three and a half hours, we made it to the riverbank and took a nice, ice cold swim in the emerald turquoise waters. 

Hiking down into the Grand Canyon

The hike back up again was insanely strenuous to say the least and maybe we should have read the part leading up to the trail description in the Lonely Planet book a bit closer as it states: “Hiking down into the canyon itself is a serious undertaking (...) and do not attempt to hike all the way to the Colorado River and back in a single day.” Oops. But the refreshing swim in the river made it all worth it. 

Going for a swim in the Colorado River

The Grand Canyon after sunset

Our final stops in this part of the country were Monument Valley and Arches National Park in Utah. These places are dominated by red rocks thrusting upwards from the earth in all shapes and sizes. Now, we head north leaving these landscapes of red and orange behind form something a little greener. 

Monument Valley

Arches National Park