Visiting Three National Parks and Two National Monuments

Well it is safe to say that I am back home in good ol’ Minnesota from my Spring Break trip! I figured today would be a good time to reflect on the vacation and all the amazing things I saw in Arizona.

My family has been visiting National Parks on trips for the past 6 years, trying to see them all! Interestingly enough, my mom and I tried to count all the parks we have been to and we have visiting 29 out of the 58 National Parks in the United States! Not too shabby!

Anyways, we began our trip by visiting Saguaro National Park. I already blogged about this park so you can view that post by clicking here.

The next day we slowly made our way to Grand Canyon National Park, but on our way there made a few stops at some national monuments.

The first National Monument was Montezuma Castle which is a structure built by the Puebloan people around 1000 years ago! What amazes me the most about this is not the sheer height of the castle, but the fact that these people lived in such an arid area with little water. 

I am a sucker for candid pictures!

Our next stop was another ancient pueblo ruin, Tuzigoot National Monument. This area was also equally impressive as it was designed with multiple rooms and could hold a large number of natives. 

I find the ancient ruins to be so interesting, I love learning about past cultures and heritages.

We then continued our drive through Sedona, Arizona which is known as being a energy vortex area. According to the locals, the energy in this location is very good which makes it a prime location for meditation and other spiritual activities.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time to explore but we did take the time to do a small hike in order to get a better view of the area. Let me just say that I fell in love with the surroundings and I swear that the energy did feel different there than Phoenix.

My brother, sister and I in Sedona.

 

The color of the rock was just beautiful.

Sometimes it is nice to lie down on the earth and feel your heart beat against the rock.

Finally, by the end of the day we made our way to our hotel outside of Grand Canyon National Park. The next morning we got our first glimpse of the awe-inspiring canyon.
Man was it worth the drive to the middle of nowhere:

It is easy to understand once you see it why it’s one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World. 

We did a few really awesome hikes down the canyon (not getting to the bottom though, we went about 3 miles each time round trip) and watched the sunset and sunrise back to back on our last day.

There is something so peaceful about being able to take the time to just sit and watch the sun as it leaves the earth (not literally!) or when it returns the next morning over the canyon. Not to mention that the variance in light brings out the vivid colors of the canyon.

If you haven’t visited the grand canyon yet, I truly believe that it is something that you must experience. There is nothing else in the world that can compare to it. 

After spending a few days at the Canyon, we packed up our stuff and made our way to our final park, Petrified Forrest National Park.

Route 66 used to run right through the park, this is one of the sites that marks where the infamous road used to be.

Candid picture of mom and I in front of the Painted Desert.

I really loved examining the petroglyphs from the Puebloans of this area. They are very advanced drawings and makes me wonder what the purpose was behind them.

The petrified wood was beautiful and colorful especially as the sun was setting and the light was soft.

We ended our last park by watching the sunset once again, this time over a desert filled with petrified wood.

I have nothing but words of praise for National Parks. If you have the ability to travel to them do it! There are few places in the world that are so well preserved in beauty and historical value. 

Worry less and smile more.