Zion National Park (Utah)

Zion National Park:

Our two months in Maui went by way too fast, but the time spent was a perfect, much-needed respite from our nonstop Southeast Asian travels.  Maui is just an incredibly beautiful and serene place, and we completely sank into that relaxed, laid-back island lifestyle.  It was board shorts and flip-flops every single day—the ultimate uniform for true paradise.

Barbie and I are proud to report that we maintained a flawless record on Maui: we never missed a single beach day during our entire stay.  Now, that might sound like a pretty impressive feat for the common folk, but for a couple of dedicated beach bums like us, it’s just standard operational procedure.  We were genuinely sad to pack up, but we will absolutely be back.  Even though we’ve spent plenty of time on both Kauai and the Big Island in the past, we’ll probably slot in a repeat visit to one of those next time around just for a change of tropical scenery.

From the island, we made a lightning-fast pit stop in Las Vegas—our old home base—to drop some warm-weather gear into our storage unit and pull out a fresh batch of clothes for our next year of chasing the sun around the world.  We then hopped straight into a rental car and knocked out the easy three-hour drive to Zion National Park in Southern Utah.

View of Zion

Zion is easily one of our absolute favorite parks on the planet.  Because it sits right in Vegas’s backyard, Barbie and I have actually visited Zion probably over 40 times during our 19 years of living in Nevada.

Let me tell you, the place is spectacular.  It is pure heaven on earth, a phenomenal spot to get back in touch with nature, and the hiking infrastructure is world-class.  If you’re heading into the canyon, these are the absolute heavy hitters you need to tackle:

• Angels Landing: A thrilling, white-knuckle ridge hike with insane drop-offs and panoramic views.

• The Narrows: Wading straight through the Virgin River between towering thousand-foot canyon walls.

• Observation Point: A grueling climb that rewards you with a view that looks straight down onto Angels Landing itself.

[The Evolution of Springdale]
Then ──> Quiet, uncrowded, hidden desert retreat.
Now  ──> Developed hotel boom (clean architecture), massive crowds.

The gateway town of Springdale, which sits right outside the park entrance, is a seriously cool spot, but it has grown like crazy over the years.  It used to be a quiet, uncrowded retreat.  But as with all good things, it eventually got discovered and developed.  They keep throwing up more and more hotels, but fortunately, the architects are smart enough to make these new structures blend into the natural desert landscape.

As a result of this building boom, I have never seen the park as packed as it is right now.  Actually, it is absurdly jam packed which is quite unfortunate.  Interestingly, the European tourists out here seem to vastly outnumber the Americans.  I actually know a ton of Americans who have never set foot in Zion or any of the other parks in Southern Utah, and honestly, that is a cryin’ shame.  The red-rock scenery in this region ranks right up there with the most spectacular landscapes in the entire world.  If you’ve never driven through this part of the country, get your ass down here ASAP and see it for yourself.

The Ultimate Southern Utah Circuit

The Southern Utah loop makes for an absolute legendary road trip, and it is a bucket-list must-visit at least once in your lifetime.  It’s also a phenomenal area to travel with kids—they would completely lose their minds over the endless outdoor activities in this giant natural playground.

To do this region justice, you need to string together a driving circuit across an out-of-this-world landscape.  Here is the official Big Doug checklist of the parks you need to hit:

┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│             THE SOUTHERN UTAH ROAD TRIP CHECKLIST      │
├───────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────┤
│ NATIONAL PARKS            │ STATE PARKS & AREAS        │
├───────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────┤
│ • Zion National Park      │ • Calf Creek Falls         │
│ • Bryce Canyon            │ • Monument Valley          │
│ • Capitol Reef            │ • Goblin Valley State Park │
│ • Canyonlands             │ • Dead Horse Point         │
│ • Arches National Park    │                            │
│ • Grand Canyon (North Rim)│                            │
└───────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────┘

If you are fortunate enough to slice out a full three weeks to cover that entire circuit, I will personally pat you on the back for living life the right way.  And when you get back, you can pat me on the back for steering you toward a completely life-changing experience.

The absolute prime time to visit is late spring going into summer.  Just be warned: it gets hot as shit out here during the peak summer months.  But oddly enough, that extreme, baking desert heat somehow adds to the trippy, surreal nature of the travel experience.

You just need to make sure you come loaded with the right tunes for the long stretches of highway. If you want the ultimate audio pairing, I highly suggest loading up the following artists, because their tracks inexplicably blend perfectly with the canyon landscape:

• The Doors (For that dusty, psychedelic desert vibe)

• Pink Floyd (To match the scale of the massive stone walls)

• Grateful Dead (For the long, winding highway cruising)

• Neil Young (To keep it raw and acoustic)

Throw those on shuffle, roll the windows down, crank the AC, and you will be completely good to go.

Thru the Binocs: Trading the Canyons for the Track

Our brief nature retreat is officially coming to a close.  It’s time for a major vibe shift.  We are going from peaceful red-rock canyons to a six-week stint hanging out with our favorite gang of degenerates at the Saratoga Racetrack in beautiful Saratoga Springs, New York.  Get the bankrolls ready, because track season is officially here!