stef makes.art creative projects by stephanie paulantis

Road Trip p2: Four Corners & Glen Canyon

July 2, 2013

We had a very nice drive back up to Washington. Not only did we get to check out Glen Canyon and Capitol Reef National parks (both astonishingly beautiful) but we also got to hang out with some pugs! Which those of you who follow me on instagram know very well by now.

We decided to bypass the main part of the grand canyon to save some driving time and instead took the 95 scenic route through Glen Canyon. On the way we had to stop by four corners, which I had never been to before.

four-corners

I am so happy we went through Glen Canyon. I have never been to the grand canyon before, and I am sure it is beautiful, but I am also sure it is overrun with people this time of year. We saw probably less than a dozen cars driving through Glen Canyon, and no one in the places we stopped. It was just breathtaking. All I could picture the whole time was dinsosaurs running around, probably due to the fact that most of my dinosaur associations are based in the dioramas at Denver Natural History Museum (where I’d go with my grandparents at least once a year as a kid) and many of those have the canyon lands as their backdrops.

My amateur photography skills really don’t do the place justice, but if you ever find yourself roadtripping through the southwest I would very highly recommend taking this scenic route. My only complaint is that we happened to be road tripping during the week that seemingly the whole western US was experiencing a heat wave, and it was well into the 100s which made stopping and enjoying the scenery a little less than pleasant.

glen-canyon04 glen-canyon03 glen-canyon02 glen-canyon01

We also couldn’t spend too much time in the heat because the poor little pugs just couldn’t handle it. I guess their little snouts don’t allow them to cool off as quickly as some other dogs, so poor Bella would go into piggy panting fits and needed to get back into the AC’d car. Oliver also got pretty warm, but he was happy to be feeling a little like every pug’s hero, Otis, on his little canyon land adventures.

oliver-adventures-canyon

Maybe not quite as handsome as Otis…

pug-canyon-adventures

We also drove through Capitol Reef National park at Sunset (I was driving that time, and didn’t stop for pictures) and oh man that was something I’ll never forget. Such beautiful skies over amazing cliffs and rock formations, totally awesome.

All in all a great trip, and now I’m happy to be back in green wet Bellingham where even a heat wave only means weather in the upper 80s.

Hope you all are having a wonderful summer! I am super freaking stoked because next weekend is OREGON COUNTRY FAIR! I’ve got some ideas for outrageous costuming, lets see if I can pull any it off.