May Stop: Kenilworth, UT
I knew I was going to love Utah because I love high desert environments and rock formations. And I was right. I absolutely loved our month in Utah, it was perfect.
It is so beautiful and remote there. I could look through the bright windows in our house and see incredible rocky peaks towering over the old mining town. I enjoyed yoga on the deck with fresh air and warm sunshine from the high elevation. My runs through the desert hills were full of juniper trees and sage brush. And this was all just in our tiny community. Once we got to explore the national parks, my mind was blown.
This month felt like a coming back to myself and nature month. Tucson was full of activity, so Kenilworth was the perfect deep breath I needed before heading into another packed month in San Diego. Getting to relax at home and explore in nature revived me and gave me peace.
The beginning of the month did have a scary start though. Connor had left two days before me to get to Utah on Sunday. He got to our stay and was immediately unsure about the viability of us staying there. He said it smelled like pee and cigarette smoke with disgusting carpets and sanitary issues. There was even a massive hole in the ceiling. He tried his best to be a good sport about it, but he didn’t even want to sleep in the bed that night. For context, Connor is the biggest trooper ever and at least put up with it for a day. I would’ve cried, freaked out, and went to a hotel. So, it was actually probably helpful I arrived on Tuesday.
Connor took Monday off of work and we both spent the day talking to the host and the support team. After multiple negotiations and conversations, I typed up all of the violations according to the service’s code and had Connor request a full refund. Thankfully, they agreed to an almost complete refund and we were able to rebook a different stay without losing thousands of dollars. I still cannot believe we were able to find the perfect little house for the whole month literally that Monday. We got so lucky that not even a day or a weekend in the whole month had been booked at this spot. The host was so kind and let Connor move in on Monday, so everything went smoothly. After all of that, it was smooth sailing and the house was perfect all month long.
We hadn’t had any issues with our stays over this past year and a half, but I’m happy that we could act fast when it did and that it all worked out. I’m so thankful! Our new accommodations were perfect and we loved the surrounding area, as I mentioned. It really feels like it was all meant to be.
All of the walks and runs we did in the neighborhood were so cool because there are tons of off roading tracks through the dusty mountains. However, we had to be careful not to go into any areas where the ground may be unstable due to a massive coal mine fire. The fire has potentially been raging for decades in the mine and currently has an unlimited supply of oxygen to keep burning deep underground. This recent article from Salt Lake City Weekly gives a ton of information on it if anyone is interested. It is pretty crazy to read about. ( https://www.cityweekly.net/utah/utah-is-battling-an-underground-blaze-in-the-abandoned-mines-near-kenilworth/Content?oid=22695687 )
Kenilworth was originally founded as a coal mining camp because of the mines in the mountains and had over a thousand residents in the 1900s, but after the coal companies fell apart and the accidents in mines, it became what some call an inhabited ghost town. There are roughly 100 residents there now, enjoying the amazing views looking out over the beautiful valley with tall plateaus and the La Sal Mountains. I wouldn’t call it an inhabited ghost town because it doesn’t give me spooky vibes, but it is a lovely secluded community up in the mountains.
Pretty much every weekend, we tried to go to national and state parks. We wanted to fit in as much hiking and adventure as we could. The only downside was living 2.5 hours away from each of the parks, so every time we went, we spent 5 hours in the car round trip. Of course the driving was absolutely worth it though.
We started off strong with Arches National Park for our first weekend. We split the park in half to explore the first half on Saturday and the second half on Sunday. I always feel like we can’t experience everything in national parks because there is so much to do, but we try to fit in as much as we can.
Arches National Park has a timed entry system that we thankfully got a slot for each day. The tickets didn’t open up until the night before though, so we had to wait for the drop Friday and Saturday night. It all worked out though, and I’m glad the park does timed entries. There is only one major road through the park, so I can imagine it would get really congested if traffic wasn’t regulated.
The first half of the park that we explored contained a ton of the major arches. We got to see Balanced Rock, Double Arch, Turret Arch, South and North Windows, Garden of Eden, Parade of Elephants, ancient rock markings, and Delicate Arch. I had never seen anything like those arches. It felt like Mother Nature had dabbled in pottery for a time and formed these unbelievable rock arches out of stone, like how artists can take a block of rock and turn it into a sculpture by “revealing what is already inside”. I read a plaque about how the Zuni, Ute and Hopi tribes highly valued the arches and even worshipped them. I am right there with them. I felt like these arches were their own churches, their own holy spaces out in nature, not worshiping a religion, but the Earth.
Seeing the iconic Delicate Arch blew me away. It is the arch on Utah’s license plates and can be found a ton of other places. Before seeing it, I thought it might have been over hyped because of all the other insane arches we had seen already, but when I did see it, awed feels like too light of a term. I couldn’t believe that ribbon of rock was eroded away into an arch and then left balanced at the edge of a tremendous cliff. I could’ve sat there for hours and hours admiring it. Getting pictures by it was pretty scary for me, but I conquered my fears.
I loved experiencing all of the arches. I wish I could see them all time. The wonder I felt looking at them was amazing, and yet they also felt so welcoming. It’s like they wanted company, they wanted to be admired. I loved it.
Driving from spot to spot was also quite the sight. You couldn’t look out your window without seeing wild rock formations and beautiful land. I made a TikTok of just driving videos that I took while we were there.
I also loved learning about the geology of the landscape while we were at the parks. I tried to read all the plaques and pamphlets that I could. I wish I was studied in geology and I could explain it here, but I am not and I would butcher it I’m sure. I’ll just say being surrounded by all of the different rock layers, and getting to see how varying erosion speeds created whacky formations was so interesting.
When we did the second half of the park on Sunday, we spent all day hiking the Devil’s Garden trail. This was my favorite trail the whole month. We saw incredible, jaw dropping sights along most of the trails we did during our time in Utah, but there was something about the Devil’s Garden trail. We had to scramble up these huge sandstone fins, walk through deep sand, and cross wide washes full of desert plants. I cannot get over hiking along the rock fins, battling the high winds, and looking out over mind blowing views. It was like row after row of massive thin rock layers stacked horizontally alongside each other for miles. Each gap creating a slot canyon and dark shadows, giving the landscape so much depth that phones cannot capture.
Along the trail, we got to see Landscape Arch, Pine Tree Arch, Tunnel Arch, Navajo Arch, Partition Arch, Black Cave Arch, Double O Arch, and the Dark Angel. That Sunday happened to be Mother’s Day as well, so while we were at one of our favorite views, we filmed a happy Mother’s Day video to send to our adventurous moms. I wish they could’ve been there to see it themselves.
We bumped into a father and daughter duo at the Navajo Arch who were out enjoying the hike as well. It was a blast getting to chat with them. We swapped stories and facts about arches. I wish we could’ve ran into them again sometime during our trip. They weren’t doing the full loop, so once we got back on the trail we had to part ways.
I loved hiking all the way out to the Dark Angel too. Along the way, we sat at the base of the Double O arch to eat our sandwiches which is just crazy to think about. I would’ve never thought that one day I would be relaxing in the shade of a massive wonder of nature above my head. It never lost its charm, and the Double O was beautiful. I’m happy we got to spend time there with it. Continuing on for at least another mile on the trail took us to the farthest edge of the loop and to the base of the Dark Angel. It was a huge monolith completely standing alone against the blue sky. The dark varnish on the rocks is said to be created from high magnesium run off from the eroding rocks. It was so amazing to see, and I loved how you had to hike all the way out into the desert to see it.
That was another one of my favorite things about the hike was how remote it felt like we were. It felt like we were out in the middle of the desert backpacking, completely alone. It was almost like we could’ve kept walking through the landscape for days, pitching a tent and falling asleep under the stars. Of course, we weren’t in a remote area and we only had the one day to hike out there, but it was a very freeing feeling.
Walking back took us through all types of vegetation and we kept our eyes out for wildlife. We saw occasional chipmunks and Connor almost stepped on a snake, but no Bighorn Sheep.
We did see two Pronghorns in the evening on one of our drives home which was super cool. They looked like majestic antelope.
But even the calmer walk back on the return side of the loop was lovely. I’m so glad we split the park up into two days, and got to see all of these amazing sights.
We got to explore Moab a bit that weekend as well because we grabbed dinner there both weekend nights.
It would’ve been cool to explore the quirky town more, but the long drive home after a tiring day didn’t allow us a ton of wiggle room on time. We did walk up and down main street popping into the stores (and restricting myself to buying only one book at the cute bookstore) and sizing up dinner spots.
We landed on The Spoke for Saturday night and The Moab Brewery for Sunday night. The Spoke was delicious and we really enjoyed their patio seating. At the brewery, we just grabbed drinks and appetizers before trying to find vegan ice cream in the food truck area and driving home.
For journalism this month, I wanted to write about honeybees again! To be fair, how could I not want to write about bees in the Beehive State? Utah’s nickname is so cute, the Beehive State. I read multiple sources tracing this name back to the Latter Day Saints that settled in Utah during the 1840s, but it also represents ‘hard work and industry’. There are beehive emblems all over the area we were in. They were on highway signs, business logos, police cars, and all kinds of stuff! So, even with a few other ideas that interested me in Utah this month, the bees won out. I will keep you updated on the story progress in my website’s Project section or Published section.
During the month, we loved eating dinner out on the deck, especially with the twinkle lights on during sunset. There was a regular dinner joint we went to a few times during the month though, called Helper Beer. We were super excited to find this spot because they served gluten free beer and pizza! That’s rare to find in a bustling city, let alone a historic town out in Helper. But we loved it! I could get gluten-free pizza with vegan cheese even, and it was actually so good! I really loved their stuff, and I miss beer so much so it always brings me joy getting to have one. It was our go-to spot all month, and I would highly recommend it to anyone in town or visiting. I can’t speak more highly of it because it was so amazing.
Something fun about the area we were in was the resident herd of deer! We could almost always expect to see them during dusk grazing in the field as we drove up the road to our place. There was a buck with fuzzy antlers, quite a few does, and even a few fawns. It was fun saying hi to them and watching them live there so peacefully.
One of the first things we did to explore the towns around us was visit the Prehistoric Museum in Price. Oh my gosh, wow! I love going to museums, so we didn’t want to pass up the chance to check it out for free on Thursday night, and I was shocked right away! They had something I’ve always wanted to see, a huge mammoth skeleton! It was awesome! They also had different bison skulls and other mammal fossils that were super interesting. That room also had a lot of information on the Indigenous tribes that had lived in this part of Utah including replicas of dwellings, artifacts, art, and more. I was fascinated.
Then, there was a second room full of dinosaur fossils! I couldn’t believe how many they had, and a lot of them had been found in the mountains here because of the mining industry. It was so cool learning about the area, the people and animals that had lived here, and what happened to them all. I would totally recommend this to anyone who loves museums that finds themselves in Price, UT.
Another activity that we had a blast going to was the Saturday night street festival in Helper! They have it on second and fourth Saturdays from May through September. There were tons of food vendors, all kinds of booths with goods and information, bounce houses, live music, open art studios, and a beer garden. Like how freaking cool! I’m so glad we got the chance to go.
Helper Beer was one of the vendors at the beer garden, so we each grabbed a beer and watched the old rock band on stage.
Connor and I both love going to community events wherever we are staying because you usually get to see a big part of the community all come out and have a great time together. We had a really great time and left after the pink sunset dissolved into a purple night.
We also took a self guided tour through downtown historic Helper which had tons of cool pieces of history. There were old train cars and pieces of machinery we walked around.
The old buildings had plaques telling stories about what they used to be used for and how the town used to look back in the mining boom.
There was even a story about Matt Warner who was a bandit that ran with Butch Cassidy for a bit, but years later he eventually became a deputy sheriff of the town and a justice of peace.
A lot of the historic buildings and hotels had been transformed into art galleries and boutiques. Connor and I also made quite a few stops at the cute coffee shop, Happiness Within Coffee Shop. They had this drink called Lotus which is basically a plant based energy drink, and I was obsessed with them in Montana but hadn’t found them again since. So, that was a super fun little surprise! There were still some interesting vacancies and abandoned spots, but the town felt like it was gaining a lot of momentum and new life. It would be cool to visit again in five years to see the progress.
One of the weekends was a travel weekend for us. We went to Waco to see Connor’s sister graduate from her undergraduate program at Baylor University! It was such an amazing weekend.
I love spending time with Connor’s family, and seeing her graduate was so special. I wish I could’ve had more time with everyone, but I went home early to be with Princess in Utah. I can’t wait to see everyone again next month at a wedding! Congratulations again to Connor’s sister, what an amazing accomplishment!
The last couple weeks in Utah brought some interesting weather that ranged from snow to sun, but it didn’t get bad enough to really affect us at all.
It was just humorous when I was practicing yoga outside on the deck when the sun suddenly turned to snow and I had to move my phone under cover. I didn’t get the chance to ask any neighbors, but maybe this was normal spring weather for them, jumping all over the place.
Speaking of yoga, I’ve been keeping up with my practice since graduating from teacher training last month, but there weren’t any studios nearby I could teach at. The closest studio was a little over an hour away which was too far for me this month.
However, I’ve kept up with my own practice, and I’ve been keeping up with my marathon training. Those have been really enjoyable to do together. Hopefully next month in San Diego, I can get the chance to teach at a real studio! Wish me luck!
Our third weekend was Memorial Day weekend, so we took our extra day off from work and planned a crazy packed weekend. We hiked all three days in two national parks and a state park. Saturday we did Canyonlands National Park. Sunday we did Capitol Reef National Park. Monday we did Goblin Valley State Park. We were so dead afterwards, oh my gosh. But it was 200% worth it. I’m so glad we got to experience all of these amazing places.
Each was so different too. Arches had all of the wild arches, but Canyonlands had insane views of the puzzle piece canyons and the carved landscape. I knew nothing about Capitol Reef before going, but the slot canyons and steep hikes blew my mind. I also didn’t know what to expect from Goblin Valley, but what a whacky place full of funky rock formations. Every park was so different, it was crazy. I’m going to give a little bit more information and photos about each one below.
Canyonlands
I mentioned it earlier as puzzle piece canyons, and I want to clarify that that is not a scientific name as far as I know. I just like to call the types of canyons we saw puzzle pieces because it looks like someone is building a puzzle and they are missing pieces. The walls are chunky and high with these massive sections missing, creating jagged loopy shapes in the ground. It was so incredible seeing into the canyons at such high vantage points too.
When we first got there, we hiked to Mesa Arch. It was actually more of a short walk, but the view was pretty amazing. There was a line of people waiting for a photo under the arch, but Connor and I just looked out over the edge and drank in the view of the canyons below. The walk back on the return trail was fun because there were tons of plaques about the different plants and vegetations. Connor and I love trying to identify plants while we hike, it’s so fun! The next hike we did was also on the shorter side, but it was really interesting. We hiked the Whale Rock trail which was on this massive blob of sandstone that looked like a big whale. We had to scramble up the rock which gave us a good workout from the incline. Once we were on top, the view was cool, but I more so loved being on the back of this massive sandstone whale. I did like that the area around the whale was greener than other areas of the park, however I was having a great time running around on the stone surrounded by the gusty winds.
Then we continued our adventure to Upheaval Dome and we hiked to both lookout points. I’m so frustrated because the photos literally don’t do it justice at all. It is a massive CRATER in the ground with an equally as cool mountain in the middle! It literally looks like a meteorite smashed in the orange rock and blew it up. Plus, the photos struggle with showing the depth of this crater and mountain. We were sitting at the edge of the cliff looking down into the massive view. It was so freaking cool. What’s even crazier to me is that they don’t know if this formation was caused by salt dissolving or an actual meteorite. How crazy is that? But I loved sitting there looking at the crazy sight. That hike was probably the most strenuous out of the four we did that day, but it is still definitely doable for many ages and levels.
The last hike was the Grand View Point trail which is a stunning trail out to a lookout point where you can see huge castle like structures standing by their lonesome. The trail is extra incredible because it follows the cliff edge looking out over a panoramic view of the puzzle piece canyons below. I love a trail with a view, those are the best. The hike itself was pretty easy with more of a flat trajectory, but thank goodness because I was pretty tired at this point in the day after three other hikes. I just couldn’t get over the scenic views of the steep cliff faces and the crumbling canyons dropping further and further below. One of the plaques pointed out all of the different rock layers too which I thought was super cool. This trail was a little busier because of the incredible views and hiking level required.
There are three main areas of Canyonlands, the Needles, the Maze, and the Isle in the Sky, and we went to Isle in the Sky. It is the most accessible for cars, and we could see a lot in one day. The other areas sound amazing, but they require multiple days or extensive backpacking hours which wouldn’t have worked for us. We still had a dinner in Moab and a 2.5 hour drive back home. Maybe we will get to explore those areas in the future.
Capitol Reef
I really didn’t know anything about this park. And now that I’ve been, I’m not sure why I hadn’t heard more about it. I loved it! More people should talk about it and recommend it! It is also a huge park, so I’m sure there are a ton of things Connor and I didn’t get to experience. I did love our whole day though.
We started at the Grand Wash Trailhead which wan’t too packed with cars, we found a spot easily. As we got out, we looked up to where the trail starts and it is just these giant pale stone walls. I hadn’t gotten to hike through a slot canyon yet, and I was immediately excited when I saw those imposing walls. I again wish that photos could translate depth and height better because these walls blew my mind. Sheer masses of stone were towering above us for at least half of the hike. I wasn’t claustrophobic at all, and I enjoyed feeling like the walls were close enough to connect to. The hike through the slot canyon was also really easy because it was flat and somewhat sandy. I enjoyed that though because it allowed me to be looking up most of the time at the colorful walls around us. So amazing.
The hike got even cooler as we began the ascent to Cassidy Arch. Now, we were scaling the walls I had just craned my neck to stare at. The incline had a great intensity to it and I enjoyed the trail along the edge. Once we made it to the top, not only was the view wild, but I just couldn’t believe we were on top of those slot canyon walls now. What a change in perspective! Hiking along the top was pretty simple, even though the rocks were at an angle and my ankles were tired of walking in a warped fashion. The wind was pretty strong at the top as well, but it wasn’t consistently blowing which was nice.
Then, all of the sudden, Cassidy Arch is right there on our left. This colossal arch is set against the background of the landscape below and the sheer walls on the other side of the canyon. The gap below it was shocking. This is one of the only arches I know of where people can walk across it and stand on it. Connor and I sat down opposite of the arch and its gaping hole to people watch and gain our bearings. I can get a little woozy on tall heights because my depth perception is off. Thankfully I’m not scared of heights, but my eyes take awhile to adjust. Once I felt confident in my ‘sky legs’ (not sea legs), I trekked over to the arch and waited in a short line to walk across for a photo. Connor was at the ready and snagged a few pictures before heading out there with me as a stranger got our picture. I got onto my belly and leaned over the edge to peer down into the mind boggling drop and I wish I could bottle up that whoosh of adrenaline and amazement. We got safely back over to the stable side and watched a group of young adults repel into the drop! That was super awesome to watch, and I totally wanted to join them. Too bad I don’t know anything about rope safety or repelling down from a famous arch into a massive drop.
After eating our sandwiches and prepping for the hike back, we headed out. I absolutely loved that hike, slot canyon, and arch. 10/10 I would do it again.
The day wasn’t over yet though. We hiked back to the car and drove to our next location. I really wanted to see the Temple of the Sun and the Temple of the Moon which were about an hour away on a unpaved road. I do drive an SUV so we made it in one piece, but I apologized to my car more than a couple times. I also got the point where I wanted to turn my car around, convinced we wouldn’t be able to make it or it would take too long. Connor, an angel, kept me going and we did make it. Even with the painful drive, which was definitely beautiful by the way, I would go again. The temples were amazing. They stood on their own and had a majestic feel to them. They totally felt like huge temples, the sun’s was bigger but the moon’s was just as beautiful. I loved walking around them, and I wish I had had more time there because I would’ve done a yoga session there. The sun was setting though and we had to get back on the road to go home. Even though the off roading was painful in the beginning, it was fun to be out there racing around surrounded by colorful hills and weird rocks.
Goblin Valley
This was a pretty popular state park, and I could see why. I’ve never seen rock formations like this before. The technical name is hoodoo, but the nickname is goblin, hence Goblin Valley. We parked at the observation point where you can go down into Valley 1 with all of the goblins. If you kept hiking through that valley, you would hit Valley 2 and 3 as well. Our first hike of the day was in the opposite direction though.
We hiked to the Goblin’s Lair which was a pretty sandy hike, but easy because it was a flat walk. This is our third day of hiking some pretty intense routes, so we didn’t mind the walk. Once we got to the lair though, the trail went straight up into the sandstone walls. We had to scramble around boulders to get to the top. When I got around the last boulder, my jaw dropped. I had no idea the lair was going to be gigantic! Light filtered in from holes in the ceiling and lit up the cave. I just stood there for a little bit taking in the sharp tan walls and negative space. It was so much bigger than I had imagined. The third picture above is of Connor and I at the bottom after maneuvering down the sketchy boulders. It was a technical drop into the lair and ascent out, but it wasn’t too difficult for us. I would just caution people to be careful, slow, and sure of their footings with the sand. I loved being in there so much though. We explored the lair for a little while before deciding to climb back out and go to Gobletta’s Lair just a short ways across the sandstone walls. I loved this lair too even though it was a little smaller. It was still pretty huge to me. I climbed down into it and ran around a little before Connor and I ate our sandwiches in the cool shade. We scrambled around for a little bit outside of the caves and started our hike back to the car.
On the loop back, we got to see the famous Three Sisters! They were a fun little bonus to the trail. We snapped some pictures and continued on.
We got back to the car, but I wanted to have some fun in Goblin Valley 1 before we had to leave. We were both pretty exhausted at this point of the three day marathon, so we didn’t spend a ton of time hiking through the valley. Just going down into the valley and playing around the hoodoos was enough for me. It almost feels like you are in an animated movie surrounded by these funky, bulbous rocks. With the fun hoodoo name and the mushroom-like shapes, the rocks were really cute and I felt they had personalities. They enjoyed playing around with us as much as we did with them. We did eventually hike out of the valley and load into the car to drive home. Finally wrapping up the crazy three day weekend.
The following Tuesday was quite an adjustment for our energy levels and physical bodies. I got a little sick after running my body down, but I am fully recovered and happy as a clam (are clams happy?). If anyone needs any recommendations about any of this, don’t hesitate to reach out!
I’m honestly pretty sad to leave Utah. It has been such an incredible month full of peace and adventure. It’s like a completely different world out there with all of the unique nature elements. I had a feeling I was going to love Utah, but it definitely exceeded my expectations. We will be making a trip back there for sure.
Good news is that our next stop is San Diego, our old college town! It’s obviously bigger than a college town, but we are really excited to go back, see friends, and visit all of our favorite spots. Even after graduation, Connor lived there for another three years, so visiting our old home is something we are really looking forward to. I cannot wait to see everyone! San Diego is a special place for us, and it made leaving Utah a little bit better.
We spent our last week in Utah working, cleaning, and packing, you know the drill by now. We fit in a couple last things like another trip to Helper Beer and a fire in the fire pit at our house, but I was definitely sad to go. Also, the whole packing up and driving Princess every single month is so taxing at this point. I love to drive still, thank goodness, but packing up your whole life gets old. The life we live is worth the constant packing though, even if it does grate on my nerves. I would do it, and have done it, over and over again for the traveling nomadic life style we have been absolutely loving.
Then, we hit the road on Sunday! See you next month for my San Diego blog!
Princess Update
I’m so happy to report that Princess didn’t have any vet visits this month! I don’t want to jinx it, but I’m so happy for her. Her anxiety was still pretty high this month and getting her to eat was difficult, but we made sure to spend as much quality time with her as we could, played with her to reduce stress, and we got a huge variety of food flavors to keep her interested in her food. She just has to hang in there for a few more months of travel because we are getting close to the end of our journey! But of course, Princess is our baby and we do everything possible to give her an amazing life no matter where we are.
