My spontaneous national park road trip itinerary
This summer I had the incredible opportunity to give van life a test run, and drive from Lake Tahoe, CA to Denver, CO. Van life is something I have always been intrigued by, and have considered as a post-grad lifestyle. This was a great way for me to try it out, and see if I could live in a shoebox for long periods of time!
My boyfriend and I started our journey in Lake Tahoe, which is one of the most stunning places I have ever been. It was here we picked up the van before heading down to Yosemite for the night.
📍Yosemite National Park: We only spent a few hours here in the morning, before a long day of driving. We entered the park just before 5 a.m. because we did not have a reservation, but it gave us the opportunity to park at Valley Point to watch sunrise over El Capitan!
📍Mt. Charleston, NV: We found this spot just outside of Vegas to park for the night and it was great for camping because of the cooler temps at the higher elevation!
📍Valley of Fire State Park: We added this detour last minute on our way to Utah, and SO thankful we did! This is such a fun and quick park, with lots of cool wildlife (there were horned sheep everywhere!) and Insta-worthy views. Be prepared for blistering heat, the name speaks for itself!
📍St George, UT: Located about an hour outside Zion, this little city provides everything you’d need before a long day in Zion! We enjoyed dinner downtown, and although we didn’t have time to stop, there seemed to be plenty of good shopping for an afternoon stroll too! (Pro tip: stop at the Walmart for 12$ water shoes if you are headed to Zion so you don’t have to pay a huge fee for rentals!) Due to the stifling heat, we decided to pay for a campsite at Quail Creek State Park so we could plug in and access our AC.
📍Zion National Park: We headed to the park bright and early to beat the crowds and heat for the Narrows hike. The Narrows were SO cool! It had always been on the top of my bucket list, and I must say, it didn’t disappoint!
📍Bryce Canyon National Park: After starting the day in Zion, we only had a few hours left of daylight and decided to do the picturesque Navajo Loop Trail. I think it was my favorite part of the whole trip! From the bright orange rock to the pink and blue sunset, Bryce Canyon is a dream and I would recommend everyone to visit! We camped outside the park for free and the stars were absolutely INSANE!
📍Capital Reef National Park: We didn’t spend much time here, mostly just sightseeing from the car since we had a long drive. I think I would have appreciated it more had we not just spent the previous day at Zion and Bryce, but still very cool to see and check off the list!
📍Canyonlands National Park: This park was really cool! I never thought much about it until we were on our way to Moab, but it exceeding any and all expectations I had! While I’ve never been to the Grand Canyon, I imagine this park being similar but x5 as big. We only had about 2 hours to spend, but I would definitely return and spend a few days.
📍Moab, UT: Bury me in this town! We spent the night of July 4th here at a campground (it was hotter than heck and we were desperate to sleep in AC) and got to watch fireworks from our site after having nachos and margs. I originally wasn’t impressed with Moab when we first drove through, but the western vibe and kind locals made it a place to remember!
📍Arches National Park: If you are going to visit Arches, I think you really only need a few hours, preferrably in the morning since it gets hot around 10am. We left our campsite at 4:30am to get to Delicate Arch around 5:15. It took about 45 minutes to hike from the trailhead to the arch, just in time to watch the sunrise!
📍Mesa Verde National Park: This was somewhere we didn’t know existed until we were driving past. While some people would find it very interesting, it wasn’t so much our cup of tea!
