What a weekend trip! We went camping with all of Tim's immediate family, and we had a really enjoyable time. It was nice weather for the most part, Theodore loved every minute (except maybe the last hour or two of the drive home, but I definitely can't blame him, we were all exhausted), and I left feeling renewed and refreshed. We left early Friday morning and drove down to Bryce Canyon.... it was a LONG drive but we made it and hiked the afternoon away. It was pleasant, and Theodore loved being in the great outdoors. He still enjoys the baby backpack and viewing the world from atop Dad's back. After hiking for a few hours there, we drove to where we were originally supposed to spend the night, and it was far from ideal. It was a gravel RV park right off a main highway, and our spot was right beside the road and the bathrooms, with no place to pitch the tent. I was super nervous because cars were zipping past at 60 miles per hour, so I voiced my concerns and was sent to go scout out a new spot. Since it was the first nice weekend plus no more school plus Easter weekend, Zion's was crowded and all the campsites were taken, but we found an amazing little spot out near Coral Pink Sand Dunes. It was off the main roads, there was plenty of space for the camper and tents, there was a nice grill and fire pit and benches, and it was only $5 for the night, one of the cheapest camping rates I've seen!
We set up camp, roasted hot dogs and S'mores, Theodore played forever with Grandma and Grandpa in the camper until way past his bedtime, then we hunkered down for a very cold night. Everyone slept in the camper but we opted to sleep in our tent because there wasn't really enough room for us and I didn't want Theodore to keep everyone else up all night. We were freezing at the start but had tons of blankets and actually slept decently for the second half of the night. On top of being in a tent and being cold, Theodore was also a little bit on the sick side so he wanted to nurse a lot and we had to keep repositioning him to help him breathe. But, it wasn't terrible and I'm looking forward to camping again sometime in the near future.
The next day we were up well before everyone else and played in the van until we heard stirrings from the camper. We ate pancakes and eggs and bacon for breakfast, then the kids headed to Zion's for the day. We drove through some striking canyons -- the scenery was breath-taking. We did a fairly rigorous hike with some pretty steep drop-offs, but Theodore wanted to walk a lot of the way so we held his hands and somehow made it (well, not to the top because we were going very slow, but a good way up). We found a sandy spot near the river and played for a good long while before hopping on the shuttle bus and checking out an Earth Day celebration in town. I took advantage of a free massage booth while Tim and the guy ran around. We were picked up by Tim's siblings and started out on our long journey to the next campsite up north. On the way there, we checked the weather report and it was going to be even colder, and potentially snowy, so we opted to just head all the way home rather than stop for the night. I was bummed since we had already made a long drive, but I think it was a good decision since Theodore was still sounding pretty awful. We made it home safely, and after a long bath, all three of us collapsed into our beds.
Since it was only our second time camping, and only our first time for-real camping not in someone's backyard, I would gauge it a huge success. I know the weather will only continue to get warmer, and we'll only continue to enjoy the outdoors more and more. We're even thinking of taking a multi-day backpacking trip sometime this summer... anyone want to come with us?
PS. There are like a billion pictures c/o Tim's photographer sister but I have no access to them yet. Will post sometime.
We set up camp, roasted hot dogs and S'mores, Theodore played forever with Grandma and Grandpa in the camper until way past his bedtime, then we hunkered down for a very cold night. Everyone slept in the camper but we opted to sleep in our tent because there wasn't really enough room for us and I didn't want Theodore to keep everyone else up all night. We were freezing at the start but had tons of blankets and actually slept decently for the second half of the night. On top of being in a tent and being cold, Theodore was also a little bit on the sick side so he wanted to nurse a lot and we had to keep repositioning him to help him breathe. But, it wasn't terrible and I'm looking forward to camping again sometime in the near future.
The next day we were up well before everyone else and played in the van until we heard stirrings from the camper. We ate pancakes and eggs and bacon for breakfast, then the kids headed to Zion's for the day. We drove through some striking canyons -- the scenery was breath-taking. We did a fairly rigorous hike with some pretty steep drop-offs, but Theodore wanted to walk a lot of the way so we held his hands and somehow made it (well, not to the top because we were going very slow, but a good way up). We found a sandy spot near the river and played for a good long while before hopping on the shuttle bus and checking out an Earth Day celebration in town. I took advantage of a free massage booth while Tim and the guy ran around. We were picked up by Tim's siblings and started out on our long journey to the next campsite up north. On the way there, we checked the weather report and it was going to be even colder, and potentially snowy, so we opted to just head all the way home rather than stop for the night. I was bummed since we had already made a long drive, but I think it was a good decision since Theodore was still sounding pretty awful. We made it home safely, and after a long bath, all three of us collapsed into our beds.
Since it was only our second time camping, and only our first time for-real camping not in someone's backyard, I would gauge it a huge success. I know the weather will only continue to get warmer, and we'll only continue to enjoy the outdoors more and more. We're even thinking of taking a multi-day backpacking trip sometime this summer... anyone want to come with us?
PS. There are like a billion pictures c/o Tim's photographer sister but I have no access to them yet. Will post sometime.
Sounds like a fun trip. Zions is so pretty. We would absolutly love to go camping and/or backpacking with you sometime this summer. We are down near you almost every month visiting Ben's family. I always think we should hang out sometime.
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