Places to See, Again

We are an adventuresome little clan, us Bangbows. It’s amazing how much we can pack into a weekend. As I go through our photos from last summer, there are single days that have over 200 photos. There are a handful of albums where the photos go from sunrise runs, to mid-morning hikes, to afternoon swims,to evening bike rides. To be honest, I don’t know how to sit still.

Utah in the winter is hard for me. The earth is caked in snow that has frozen and melted so many times that we’re left with a hard white shell over the ground – one that is nearly impossible to walk across let alone hike or bike through. I have felt trapped at home on the cold, grey days – far colder and greyer than any Washington day I’d ever complained about before.

However, that cold that makes Utah so rough over winter, turns around and offers a spring, summer and fall that are a match made in heaven for an outdoor lover. Having sunshine from morning til late into the night, there’s so much time to play outside and there’s never a shortage of new places to go exploring.

Now that the sun has started to shine, the snow begun to recede a bit, all I can think about is getting back on the road, back on the trails and back to our adventures.

One of the things that is so hard about living somewhere this beautiful is that you can hardly decide where you want to go next. Bear Lake, Devil’s Backbone, Dead Horse, they’re all on my list of places “I must see.” But here’s the tricky part, the more places we go, the longer our list for places “we must see, again.” So while I have a long list of places I’ve never been and would like to go, today I’m sharing my list for places we’ve been and that I’m determined to make it back to this year. Also, since this list spans as far as New York to Key West, to Orcas Island to La Bufadora, I’m limiting today’s selection to just Utah (well, nearly).

*There’s a ridiculous number of photos in this post, sorry but I couldn’t decide what to cut!

1. Zion National Park

2. Bryce Canyon

3. Spiral Jetty – can’t find the photos. Nick, if you’re reading, help me out! And I’ll be the first to admit that the drive out to the spiral is a bit hectic and that we thought it was kind of stupid. But I also remember how beautiful the mountains were reflecting in the so-still lake. That’s something I want to go back for.

4. Jackson Hole (see, that’s not Utah but it’s kind of close… as far away as Southern Utah)

5. Causey Reservoir

6. Gooseberry Mesa

7. Moab (specifically, Red Cliffs Lodge and surroundings)

Now, it’s your turn! What’s on your list for must see places this summer – have you been there before?

** After posting this, I saw some good deals for hotels and guided adventures. Check out the post on Facebook for the links and info.