A few weeks ago the kids went to stay with my mom in Francis, so Beau and I took a drive out around Kanab. We were talking about doing a little getaway with the kids and thought it would be really fun to take them to Bryce Canyon for a few days! That weekend we booked it! It was a quick trip, but we went nonstop! The Neibaurs came with us, so the kids were even more excited to hang out with their cousins! We got a pretty good deal at Ruby's Inn, like $110 a night, so we decided two nights would be fun!
We left friday and stopped in Kanab at the sand caves (I'll post about that in another post) and then made it up to Panguitch by dinner. We ate at the Big Fish, and it was AMAZING. Blake loved it just because it had to do with fishing, but we all loved the food! After we ate, we drove up to Bryce, and checked into our hotel room. We did a little browsing before buying a box of ice cream sandwiches and settling in on the grassy area to wait for the Neibaurs.
The next morning we woke up EARLY to beat the crowds and the heat. We started at Sunrise point and did the Navajo loop (I think thats what it was called? Really I have no idea) it was a 3+ mile hike, I was actually really surprised at how amazing all the kids did! They were troopers! The end was tough, it was HOT and we took the path that went straight up a bunch of switchbacks out of the canyon.
After our hike, we went back, cleaned up, and drove to Tropic for lunch. We decided on a pizza joint, but they were closed for cleaning (on a Saturday??) so we ordered our food 'to-go' and sat out on their patio. About an hour later we were starting to get impatient, so I went inside and asked about our food. Turns out, the food had been ready for awhile! It was just sitting out! they couldn't open the door to tell us it was ready? Good thing it was KILLER pizza!
After lunch we went back to the hotel and the kids swam for a bit. It was an inside pool and it was packed, but they had fun! After they all got showered and dressed, we went over and let the kids pick out a souvenir. That actually took forever. Blake got some magnet ball things, and some stone animals. Quinn took the longest to decide, but finally chose a wallet with some persuading. Beck picked a bag of polished rocks, which he then distributed most of to his siblings, because, in his words he wanted to be a "really good brother" So sweet!
We met up with Kade and Tere at the White Pines restaurant for dinner. As soon as we got seated Quinn started complaining that she didn't feel well. So I took her out to the car for some air. After a few mints and laying down for a bit, she felt better and we went back inside. The food was absolutely delicious! We will definitely go back!
We ended up going back to the hotel and sat outside on the patio area for about an hour chatting. Cadence and Maddie ended up talking me into buying a sweatshirt to match them!
Sunday morning we woke up and packed our stuff into the car. We stopped at the gas station to buy doughnuts and chocolate milk for breakfast and then went back into the park to see all of the overlook areas. By the time we were done, I think we were all a little sick of getting in and out of the car. We made one last stop in Red Canyon and did a small hike there, before heading down to Duck Creek for lunch. It was packed there too. I don't know why that always surprises me. Since covid, Utah has been overrun with tourists. But we got our food (after waiting FOREVER) and then headed home. It was a GREAT little getaway! The kids had a blast!
Things I want to remember:
Quinn was GLUED to Cadence! She never left her side!
Beck and Maddie were buddies! They were leading the group most of the time!
The kids loved seeing the chipmunks and Beck would run around yelling "ALLLVIIN!!!" at them!
I told Blake that the more he smiled for pictures, the more money he could spend on souvenirs, so he was BEGGING to be in every photo!
Quinn drank most of Beau's water out of his Camelback.
I wish I could say these photos were in any sort of order, but they aren't ;)
