The Beehive State.

ok then.. Utah!

Utah was amazing and i would recommend this state to anyone and everyone who likes to be amazed. that should be everyone.

Our trip down to this great state was as the same as all of our trips.. we got lost and we got in late however our lovely couchsurfer Sky told us where his spare key was and we settled in before he got home from work.

Once home he makes us dinner ( this was around midnight so we really appreciated Sky's hospitality), we go through the motions of telling him what we have been up to the last few days and all the rest of it before we make plans to head out to a vegan place for lunch tomorrow.

Jaymee, Skylar, Justin and I head out for a buffet indian lunch in Downtown Salt Lake- which was amazing and then to a vegan Bakery called City Cakes. Boring name, delicious food, we grab some snacks for the road, make another pitt stop at a grocery story before leaving Sky with our intention to catch up with him and his girlfriend Danielle in Southern Utah where he will take us for a 'local' tour the next day.

Next we go against all opinions and head to the Salt Flats. They told us it would be boring. they told us not too bother but it was already in the plan and we had big dreams for this place…. we get there and because the weather has been so shit the last week the 'dry' salts flats and now a mini lake and the highway you use to get across it will not allow you to turn around so we are stuck on this stretch of land, not allowed to get out and with a really disappointing view.. the first one for the trip.

We re-route the trip so we don't have to drive back along the same boring highway and go through Nevada instead. Nothing much there, long highways and bad weather, 2 things that we are already accustomed too.

We get to Cedar City and crash for the night.

We try to wake up early but it doesn't happen, we get out of the Motel about an hour later than we had wanted but push through to Zion National Park.

There is absolutely nothing i could write that would make you comprehend just how amazing this place was. Chris from Dallas was the one who recommended it to us so we had no idea what to expect and that is the best way to see a place in my eyes. We had no Expectation and it blew us away and it was such a shame we were running late for Skylar because we only got to drive through but it was worth it.

The drive to Escalate was just as beautiful… Utah, who would have thought.

anyway we meet with Skylar, Danielle and his other friend Pete and start our local hike through the desert.

it was this time that i realised how much of a city girl i am. walking through waist high rivers in cut off denim shorts was horrible. irritating. extremely uncomfortable. but we got to the destination, a tiny spring that put bottled water to shame and the walk back wasn't so bad, we finally got the hang of the rivers and managed not to get so wet.

We thank Skylar when we return and give our best wishes before he sends us to a tiny town called Torrey.

Again, this drive was spectacular. When we are out of the desert in Escalante we get to rolling hills and pine tress to be topped off with making our way up to the top of the world. An unexpected view made us stop for 10 minutes to admire and take proof that such a place would exist.

We pull into Torrey  and as it is Memorial day the next day all of the hotels are booked. fuck.  20 minutes later and Jaymee's sweet smile managed to get us a disabled room as the hotel manager said they wouldn't need it for that night, we settle in.

 Today was Monument Valley. I have been looking forward to this day for a very long time and expected greatness.

We make our way through The Valley of Gods, a drive recommended by Skylar and it was just as he said, a beautiful drive. Standing on these cliffs you could feel that they might crumble under your feet at any given moment, they showed us the monument valley before we reached it and the Colorado river way before expected.

I loved Monument Valley, it was how i pictured it however it also made me sad.

You can see these huge mountains eroding, you can picture what they were and see now, ever so slightly and probably taking a fair few years that they are falling/ breaking/ blowing away and it wont happen in my life time but somewhere down the line they will be something people will only be able to experience in photos and that is a huge shame.

I guess it makes me appreciate it more that i haven't seen it.

Just after the monuments we cross into the Grand Canyon State.