Explore the journey — one trail, museum, meal, and memory at a time.
Page, AZ to Escalante, UT
A quiet Walmart night in Page turns into a long, winding drive through Kanab, Bryce Canyon country, Henrieville, and Grand Staircase–Escalante. Familiar places, unexpected history, small-town pauses, exposed roads, and a calm evening at Deer Creek Campground bring the day to a thoughtful close.
Salt Lake Museums
I spent a full day moving between the Utah Museum of Fine Arts and the Natural History Museum of Utah, drifting from modern abstraction to deep time. From Sol LeWitt wall drawings and recycled-tire sculpture to human evolution, dinosaurs, and the rock cycle, the day unfolded as a quiet conversation between art, science, and place—ending downtown over dinner with a friend visiting Salt Lake City on business.
Great Salt Lake State Park
Avoiding I-15, I drove through empty stretches of rural Utah, followed signs for the Creekstone Energy project, and spent hours at Great Salt Lake State Park confronting the reality of a lake that was once hundreds of feet deep and now survives on the edge. Wind, industry, and shifting shorelines shaped the day—and changed my plans for the night.
Capitol Reef National Park and Butch Cassidy
A slow morning in Capitol Reef National Park turned into a day shaped by history. From the working orchards of Fruita and the massive Fremont cottonwoods known as the Silent Sentinels, to roadside petroglyphs and a humble stop at Butch Cassidy’s childhood home, the drive west became a reminder that this landscape has been lived in, marked, and worked for centuries.
Goosenecks to Capitol Reef
What should have been a short drive from Goosenecks State Park to Capitol Reef National Park became a slow, deliberate journey across southern Utah. By skipping the Moki Dugway and following Utah State Route 95 through Fry Canyon and Hite Crossing, the road stretched into a day defined by quiet highways, towering rock walls, and long moments of stillness that made the destination feel earned.
Hurricane, Utah to Lone Rock
I left Hurricane after Christmas, trading uncertain ski conditions for a drive across southern Utah and northern Arizona. The route climbed onto the Kaibab Plateau, dropped into Lee’s Ferry, crossed the Colorado River, passed the Vermilion Cliffs, and ended at Lone Rock, where the exposed shoreline made the absence of Lake Powell impossible to ignore.
Blackwater Falls & Dolly Sods
I woke at the overlook above Elkins with fog filling the valleys and drove the rough mountain road down toward town. After restocking supplies, I followed the storm north to Blackwater Falls, where rain poured and the campground was closed. By afternoon, I was on the rocky road to Dolly Sods, climbing into wind, fog, and the high country of West Virginia.
Agate Fossil Beds
Agate Fossil Beds preserves Miocene mammals, while Toadstool Geologic Park offers strange hoodoos and badlands trails. I explored both before camping lakeside in Nebraska.