We had planned to stay in San Antonio overnight to be ready for our 5:45 a.m. flight but not get to town as early as we did. Amanda got a last-minute appointment with her endocrinologist for some new symptoms that started while we were in Pagosa. I’ll update on the medical side when we know more about that. It was good to have a little time after the appointment, though. We got pedicures and had an early dinner.
I was able to catch up with a couple of friends that I borrowed out with to Iowa after dinner. Amanda was doing her own manicure in the room, and she wanted to get to bed early, so I slipped away. We’d only planned to meet up for a bit but ended up closing the place down, leaving a little after 11. It was so good to see the 2 of them and hang out for a while though. We became close stuck in Iowa together. We still talk frequently with a running group text.
We left the car at the hotel and took the shuttle just after 4 in the morning. I strolled through security without an issue, even keeping my hat and boots on. Del Rio airport was notorious for making me take my jacket, boots, and hat off, all of which I’m allowed to keep on with TSA precheck. Amanda wasn’t as lucky; they almost had to take her to the back for a more thorough check! She ended up without shoes, jewelry, and all. Turns out the new knee makes metal detectors go off.
We had a layover in Denver, and on both flights, we had the exit row to ourselves—another perk from the borrowout. United matched my Marriott status, which affords us free economy plus seats, free checked bags, and priority boarding.
Our first stop in Denver was to pick up cookies I ordered for Amanda’s heativersary. We celebrate three years on Sunday. However, we’ll celebrate every day on this trip with a cookie or two now!
After that, it was on to grab a small cooler and some groceries from Whole Foods. We also sat down for a quick lunch there. The first planned stop after that was the northwest side of Zion National. Of course, there was an unplanned coffee stop in there somewhere! Nephi was the town’s name, and their coffee was excellent.
It was pretty on the north side of Zion, but the scenic road had been washed out in March and was still being repaired, so we had to turn around short of the scenic overlook.
It was a quick run to a state park about 45 minutes away to beat the setting sun. There was a slot canyon I wanted to see badly. All other slot canyons, narrow cuts through canyons with towering rock walls on both sides, would be too far to hike in for Amanda. This one was touted as the easiest one to access in the state. Our only chance to make one was here since we wouldn’t be doubling back. We had ample time in the canyon before the sun went down, most of it without anyone around. Amanda wasn’t too fond of it the farther inside we went, with the towering walls making it dark. It was amazing, though, and we hung out for a while.
It was busy in St George this Friday night, so we abandoned our first dinner pick, a Japanese steakhouse for a Chinese place. It was a quick and good dinner. After dinner, we needed gas and also grabbed a few more snacks. It was about 30 minutes to get to our hotel, just a few miles from Zion.
The hotel manager was a super nice older gentleman. He said he’d been at this property for two years, and I was only the 3rd Ambassador status guest he’d ever checked in. I guess it’s not that common. We chatted for a while about his time in Texas, running hotels.
We were tired as we sunk into bed. 4 hours of flying and 4 hours of driving with a 4 a.m. departure makes for an exhausting calculation! Tomorrow is an early rise to get a jump on things and maybe watch the sunrise on top of the hill with 360 views that’s not far away. The morning spent in Zion and the afternoon in Bryce Canyon National Park.