Great Basin, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands National Parks

On July 25th, we checked out of our hotel in Ely, Nevada & made our way to Great Basin National Park.

{windmill farm right outside Great Basin National Park}

After visiting Great Basin, we made our way to Richfield, Utah for the night. There was actually a wildfire that started near there, and the smoke was crazy! Our cell phones were going off with warnings, but we were thankful it didn't get too close to us nor did we have to adjust our route. The next morning we hit the road for Capitol Reef National Park...this was one of my very favorite parts of the whole trip! This particular park was an unexpected delight, and it wasn't even on our original itinerary! We had the best picnic location, and while we drove through the park in awe of the most beautiful scenery Hadley and I were listening to what ended up being my favorite audiobook of the whole trip (The Day the World Came to Town). It was the best day!!

{There was a little/creek right behind our picnic spot, and we spent the longest time here!}

After our visit to Capitol Reef, we headed to Moab, Utah...it was soooo hot there! Moab is a quirky, fun little town with almost no chain stores or restaurants. We ate dinner at The Trailhead Public House & Eatery (so yummy & quick!) then headed over to see Arches National Park in the hopes that it might not be so hot and crowded. It was a successful first visit! As we were driving through the park, we just kept saying it felt like we were in the middle of the Radiator Springs Racers ride in Disneyland--it didn't even feel real! 

The next day was a rest/non-travel day for us in Moab, but very little rest happened! We knocked out some laundry and visited both Canyonlands & Arches National Parks. The parks are super close together & easy to visit from Moab. We started our morning at Canyonlands...

{a little morning journaling to start the day}

And then we made our way to Arches again! 

On our way back to our hotel, we picked up some pizza to eat in the lobby of our hotel before calling it a night. It was the perfect way to wind down after our fun & full day in the heat!