Summer Camping Trip - Day 5 - Silverton to Montrose

Day 5 - Silverton to Montrose

Today, the skies were clear and we packed up the tent. Steve would have liked to spend another night here, but we had plans to meet my parents and brother in Montrose.

For much of the drive, we took forest roads and avoided the main highways. 

We saw lots of deer along the way

It was a beautiful scenic drive.

We then had a break from camping and spent the night in a motel in Montrose. 

Summer Camping Trip - Day 6 - Montrose to Grand Junction

Day 6 - Montose to Grand Junction

Today, we met up with my parents and my brother's family who were also traveling to the area and headed towards Grand Junction. 

We arrived in Grand Junction mid-afternoon and checked into a motel (same one as the rest of my family). We then took the afternoon off from driving/sightseeing and the girls had fun playing in the motel's swimming pool. Everyone went out to dinner together, and my dad ordered Rocky Mountain Oysters for everyone to try. We didn't tell any of the kids what they were until they tried a bite!

Summer Camping Trip - Day 7 - Grand Junction to Moab

Day 7 - Grand Junction to Moab

Today, all of us headed to Moab to visit Arches National Park.

The weather was overcast with scattered showers most of the morning

Once we got to Arches, we walked along many of the trails to see the different arch formations.

At the end of the day, we parted ways with my family as they headed back to Colorado and we set up camp in Moab at Pack Creek Campsite. When we first pulled in, we were the first campers there, and it was next to a sketchy mobile home park, that we didn't feel super safe. We debated leaving, but then set up our tent, down by the creek. 

As more campers arrived, we felt better about the location and decided to stay for both nights we reserved. It turned out it was a really nice location.

Summer Camping Trip - Day 8 - Moab

Day 8 - Moab

Today we explored the jeep trails of Moab.

Steve let his daughter drive up this hill (and we all thought we were going to die!!)

Various sites while out jeeping.

As evening approached we returned to the campsite for the night.

Summer Camping Trip - Day 9 - Return Home

Day 9 - Moab to Phoenix

We woke up and packed up the campsite, then started the drive back to Phoenix, enjoying the scenic drive through southern Utah and into Monument Valley

The girls were happy to be back home in Arizona

Camping at Knoll Lake

 We decided that we would like to take a camping trip later this summer. To do a trial run, we decided to head up to Knoll Lake for one night as a trial run and to make sure all our camping our equipment worked.

After arriving at the campsite, the girls found a horned lizard to play with.

The campsite was nice and there was a large areas to set up the big family sized tent.

We got a nice fire going to start cooking dinner.

The campsite was also large enough for us to park the jeep and trailer so it wasn't right next to the tent.

Also, even though the campsite had pit toilets, they were super clean and smelled like cinnamon!

Before packing up the next morning, we headed down to the lake for a swim.

And then it was time to pack up and head home. 

The one night trial was overall a success (some of the air mattresses need patching) but this confirms that we can try a longer trip later this summer.