Our first freeform day was also our first day hiking with the kiddos. Thus far our trip had been planned childfree, as we were very concerned about safety at Angel’s Landing and in the Narrows.
We decided to start with an easy hike for the kids, 1.3 miles up The Watchman Trail. Although reviews stated this was an easier trail, the amount of incline made it challenging for our 4 year old, who was the only kid not in a backpack.
The uphill ended up proving too tough for the 4 year old, so he ended up carried most of the way.
The views from the top were worth it though.
The hike back down was more successful and everyone was in a better mood.
That was enough hiking for the kids for the day, so we took them to eat lunch and then headed back to the house for them to rest. We had a long day planned the next day to get out to Bryce Canyon.
Bryce is about 2 hours from where we were staying in Washington, and we expected a lot of snow once we got there. We weren’t disappointed.
Most of the park was closed, which we expected due to the time of year. However we were able to drive along the basin and hit multiple lookouts, which were just short treks from the car – perfect for the kids!
They also had some great exhibits in the visitor center that the kids enjoyed looking at.
After buying some cute gifts at the visitor center we headed out into the snow to the viewing points.
We decided to hike down Navajo Loop into the basin. It was under snow so we could only go a short way, but the kids enjoyed it.
A nice park ranger was set up at the top showing off some of the area geology. The kids were excited to see the “bug nest” and the fossilized snail.
After wandering back around to our car, we headed up to Inspiration and Bryce points.
The baby was so cozy in his new bunting that he fell asleep in the snow 🙂
And even Parker’s doggy was able to visit Bryce point.
After checking out the last overlook, we got packed back into the car for our 2 hour drive back to the house. After a quick stop for delicious coffee on the way back (Jewels got a Hogwarts Latte!) we let the kids sleep through the trip back.
Our final day in Utah was spent resting and cleaning up our Airbnb before we checked out the next morning. Since we had a really long drive back home we wanted to give the kids a break from car rides for the day.
It was also time to say good bye to Morgan, Jewels, and the grandparents, as they had to catch flights and head for home. We are so grateful to have family who are willing to travel with us and help out with the kids so that we can go on these incredible adventures.
Back soon with our final trip update as we trek out way back home!
jordanpluskate 