Girls Trip in Zion National Park
Every girl needs and loves some quality time with her gal pals. What better way to pass the time on a vacation than to spend time hiking and exploring a new park? Absolutely nothing! Over Labor Day of 2017, I headed to Arizona with two girlfriends and spent time hiking and exploring Zion and Sedona.
Day 1: Arrive in Phoenix
7:30PM: Arrive in Phoenix, grabbed sushi and stayed at friend's house before heading out early the next AM
Day 2: Phoenix -> Flagstaff -> Zion
Early AM: Leave Phoenix, grabbed breakfast on our way out of town and hit the road!
Afternoon: Stopped in Flagstaff at Mother Road Brewing Company to play cards, eat pizza and drink beer
Sunset: On our way to Zion we happened to stumble across Horseshoe Bend RIGHT at sunset and caught some pretty spectacular views! This is one of the coolest natural phenomenons I've had the chance to see, would suggest making a pit stop here on your way to/ from Zion.
Night: Spent the night at Ponderosa Ranch Resort. We stayed in one of their glamping tents. HIGHLY recco this place! Had some fantastic amenities (including free breakfast) and had a pick-up to the Observation Point trailhead which was super convenient.
Day 3: Observation Point
Early AM: Grabbed breakfast at the resort
Mid-AM: Hiked Observation Point. We started at what would be considered the "top" of the trail since we took the trailhead entrance at the top of our resort -- it's called the East Mesa trailhead. This made for a much more enjoyable hike (we didn't face steep elevation gains you get when you don't hike it backwards) but we were in it for the views, not the workout (sorry mom) so we loved this choice.
Early Afternoon: Got post-hike beers at Zion Lodge. Played cards outside on the lawn, taking in the views around us, enjoying the beer and one another's company
Evening: Headed back to the resort and grabbed dinner, hung out and met some people around the campfire that were staying in other glamping tents near ours.
Day 4: The Narrows & Emerald Pools-> Page
Early AM: Grabbed breakfast at the resort
Mid-AM: Hiked The Narrows! HUGE note to self for the future -- definitely take a walking stick! I hiked in Chacos which wasn't bad; but, I wish I'd have had a hiking stick because the ground is very uneven (you're literally hiking through water on rocks) and it wouldn't helped with balancing and saved me losing my sunglasses and a scratched knee (or two). We also made it a point to head here early in the AM -- we'd gotten advice from friends that the later in the day you go, the crazier packed it gets which is 100% accurate. By the end of our hike when we were leaving the Narrows, I'm not kidding when I say it seemed almost as packed as Disneyland! GO EARLY. GET A HIKING STICK.
Post-Narrows: We hiked the Upper & Lower Emerald Pools
Evening: Headed to Page, AZ for the night and stayed at a Comfort Inn. We ate dinner at a local/ nearby Mexican restaurant and drank wine and played card games in our hotel room.
Day 4: Antelope Canyon -> Sedona -> Phoenix
AM: Ate breakfast at our hotel.
Afternoon: Headed to Antelope Canyon to go kayaking on Lake Powell. We went with a company called Antelope Point Lake Powell. This was one of my favorite days of our trip! Antelope Canyon is so beautiful, you'll never see anything like the orange slot canyons.. it's truly spectacular! Prepare to get muddy (I wore Chacos + shorts) as you get out of your kayak and are hiking around the canyons.
Post-kayaking: Headed to Sedona to walk around, browse the shops and eat dinner.
Overnight: We were planning to stay at this AirBnB in Sedona... *BUT* let's just
say AirBnB did NOT equal reality in this case. The posting online made it seem like we'd be staying in this beautiful star dome in Sedona, stargazing all night in a peaceful environment. Reality: it's a see through plastic tent in the backyard of a suburban neighborhood. We decided to just bite the bullet and headed back to Phoenix and crash at our friend's place for the night.
Day 5: Headed Home to Texas
Worked remote & headed back home to Texas in the early evening!
