Gros Morne National Park - Trout River Pond

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

Our next hike at Gros Morne National Park was Trout River Pond. We only did about the first half, which was quite muddy and very closed in by the forest. We did take a quick breather by the pond, where W thought she would see just how fast Lyle would run (answer, so fast she could hardly keep up.) I can’t remember if we even saw any other hikers on this trail, which made it a good spot to let W take over walking the dog, except when the mud was too slippery going up or downhill.

One good thing about the mud is that it is great for spotting tracks. Here she and Bri pulled out the activity booklet provided by the park and tried to figure out if we had found moose tracks.

Gros Morne National Park - Green Gardens

EASTERN CANADA ROAD TRIP 2019

One of our favorite hikes of the summer, though a tough one, was Green Gardens in Gros Morne National Park. The way out is pretty much downhill, and it was pretty muddy in places. That’s half the fun, though, right? It’s not long before you can see the ocean, and eventually you come upon a green, grassy ridge that overlooks the shore.

And then there are more stairs, just in case you had not had enough.

But look at the reward! A wide beach (at low tide, anyway) fans out into low rocks that we had fun climbing on.

Some of the rocks at the beach are cracks filled with calcite and quartz. They are quite striking. We sat on some as we ate our picnic lunch and enjoyed the view.

We were hardly the only ones there, though like everywhere else we went in Newfoundland, it was not crowded.

Redwood National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

Redwood National Park is so diverse.  We began our day there at the Kuchel Visitor's Center, which overlooks the coast.  From there we drove to Elk Meadow, where, believe it or not, we saw some elk (from afar).  We kept driving up through the park, looking for some RV-friendly parking but there was little to be found.  We pulled over on the side of the road at a trailhead to make lunch, and decided to make it easy on ourselves and just walk the trail that was right there.

At the beginning of the trail was a huge redwood that had been hollowed out by fire.  It was massive (and clearly it was ok to step inside).  

It was high noon, perhaps not the best for photos but sometimes I don't get to pick the time for our hikes when we are on a family trip.  It was, however, the prettiest hike of our entire 7-week trip, in my opinion.  The towering redwoods were easily visible because there is not a lot of tall underbrush.  The forest feels pretty open, really, though there are masses of ferns, sorrel and the like crowding the path.  There are huge fallen nurse logs, with lots of life sprouting from the rotting wood. I just thought it was gorgeous.

I wish we had more time at Redwood National Park.  There is so much we did not get to see, though if we went back I'd like to take the truck instead of the RV because I think we were limited by our vehicle size.  There were just so few places to park, in contrast to so many of the parks we had just been to where there are lots of designated RV areas.  

But all in all I am so glad we got to visit, even for a short time, because now I know a little more for planning our next trip there.  And grandpa really enjoyed our walk through the redwoods, if you can't tell.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

Bryce Canyon National Park is famous for its spire-like hoodoo rocks.  When I wondering just how there can be another unique type of rock formation, there was Bryce, with hoodoos as far as the eye can see.  We hiked the Navajo Loop Trail, where we descended among the hoodoos, walked among them, and threaded this slot canyon, and hiked back up switchbacks.  It was a truly beautiful hike.  

Arches National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

It was hot, hot, hot during our time at Arches National Park.  Those temps were breaking 100 degrees, so we kept our hiking to the mornings.  We did two hikes - the one to Delicate Arch being the most well-known.  I was very proud of our peanut for making it.  It was not an easy hike, and even in the morning it was still hot.  But it was so worth it.  It was magnificent to see in person, particularly because it was surrounded by a huge natural amphitheater.  Despite the dozens of people who were sharing the space, there was plenty of room to take a seat and soak it all in.  

Our other hike took us to Landscape, Navajo, and Double O arches.  I would highly recommend this hike - it was truly fun to scramble over boulders, walk on top of fin rock formations and clamber up and through some arches.

There are so many arches to see, you sort of have to pick and choose what you spend your time visiting.  I particularly enjoyed Double Arch.  You really have to walk down the path to appreciate how very cool it is.