By Kristina Woodard • Mid-Atlantic Deputy Regional Field Director
Note: Kristina Woodard is our Chapter staff liaison to Sierra Club National. She took a road trip with family recently to see national parks the Sierra Club has been instrumental in protecting since it was founded in 1892.
As it turns out, cheering loudly about the beauty of natural wonders while traversing America’s public lands is a surefire way to get your 10-year-old son rolling his eyes. All the same, it’s true! We live on a fantastic continent.
I recently returned from an Epic Spring Break Road Trip with my husband and son, covering nearly 2,000 miles across public lands in Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. What we found took my breath away on multiple occasions, left me slack-jawed in wonder numerous times, and sparked cheers of joy that I couldn’t help but shout out loud (much to my son’s embarrassment—though he had his own moments of being overwhelmed with joy).
We are so incredibly lucky to have experienced these lands, set aside in all their glory for all Americans to enjoy, and protected and preserved for future generations—at least for now. I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to explore and enjoy six national parks and two national monuments while they still exist. With Congress and our current federal administration repeatedly attempting to downsize federally protected areas, I don’t take for granted that these lands will always be there.
Our journey began in Denver, where we picked up our rental car and drove off into the Rocky Mountains, following the Colorado River as it meandered south and west. The snow-covered peaks gradually gave way to redder rocks and the forests became shrubs, and the air shifted from cold and wet to hot and dry as the miles passed.
Colorado National Monument was the first place we got to flash our America the Beautiful pass to gain entrance. Not far from the Utah border, its towering rock formations and panoramic views provided a wonderful welcome to the world of cliffs and canyons. We also got to see our first bighorn sheep up close!
Continuing to follow the Colorado River, we wound our way into Utah, enjoying the Bureau of Land Management public access areas that allowed us to get right down into the river canyon as we drove along the scenic byway toward Moab, Utah.
We spent three days in Moab, in the red-rock moonshadow of the La Sal Mountains, which proved a perfect launching point to explore the jaw-dropping, soul-lifting views of Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, and Dead Horse Point State Park. We also took some time to follow the Colorado River westward along the incredibly scenic Potash Road. Dinosaur tracks, ancient petroglyphs, and delicious ice cream rounded out three happy days in this sun-soaked desert oasis.
Next up was an instant family favorite, Goblin Valley State Park, with its strange and otherworldly features, followed by an exploration of the rugged cliffs, domes, petroglyphs, arches, gorges, and orchards of Capitol Reef National Park. From there we drove through Dixie National Forest and capped off our day with a ride through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, where my whoops of joy at the rugged beauty evoked intense eye rolls (but no disagreement) from the 10-year-old. We spent the night in Escalante, where we enjoyed some surprisingly delicious pizza, before heading on down the road.
Day six of our Epic Spring Break Road Trip brought the jaw-dropping, eye-popping canyon views of Bryce Canyon National Park, with its colorful hoodoos (tall, thin spires of rock) and natural bridges. The beautiful colors and wild, rugged, unique land features were so incredibly beautiful that I truly found myself with my mouth hanging open multiple times. Bryce Canyon topped our family’s “go back” list. Looking at photos, the grins we all had at Bryce Canyon were certainly unmatched.
Zion National Park did its best to unseat Bryce at the top of our list and certainly earned its reputation as a “must see” park, with truly magnificent scenery. In addition to the towering mountain peaks and flowing river views, we saw some very cool cacti, lots of strange flowers, butterflies, and birds, and even a bighorn sheep who gave me a long “bruuuhhhhh” when I took its photo. Our favorite experience was finding a slot canyon (narrow, deep gorge) to explore right at the peak of the afternoon heat.
From Zion, the last of the Utah “Mighty 5” national parks, we wound our way southward through Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, stopping to check out Lake Powell, Glen Canyon Dam, and the infamous Horseshoe Bend as we crossed into Arizona. In stark contrast to the great natural richness of the surrounding landscape, the poverty of the people living on Navajo Nation lands as we got closer to Grand Canyon National Park was as humbling as the immense canyon itself.
While it may not top our “go back” list, catching the sunset and sunrise over the Grand Canyon brought me to tears. I am so grateful that we got to explore the American Southwest, and our work at Sierra Club to protect and preserve more nature has never felt more purposeful. I encourage anyone with the opportunity to head out and explore these incredible public lands, which belong to all of us!