Experiences, not stuff. How many times have I uttered this phrase?! It even affects the way I approach aspects of travel like overlooks and photos.
Here’s what I wrote last year about limiting picture taking:
…a weight lifted when I decided to not take so many photos. I recalled another trip when I had to download, organize, edit and save 1,352 photos from just two weeks of travel. With this memory (nightmare) in mind, I suddenly looked forward to scaling back and enjoying the ride.
Roadtrip
If you’re new to Simply Enough, our family of three traveled the US in Spring 2017. We homeschooled my son, took time off of work, worked from the road and simply made it work. Life is too short to spend it buying a bunch of stuff. I’ll choose #experiencesnotstuff every time.
I know. You have 100 reasons why you could never do this. I beg of you to consider it. Don’t just write it off. Curious how we did it? Read more here.
Traveling from Utah to Sedona, Arizona, we stopped at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. After a 90 minute visit, we came to the following conclusion, “We are not an overlook family.”
As we departed and drove the last few hours into Sedona, my husband and I reminisced about our first visit to the Grand Canyon in 2001. How different it looked and how much more enjoyable and memorable that trip was. But why?
Was is the time of year?
Or the tour group we used?
Perhaps, the location we visited on the south rim?
In 2017, nothing seemed the same, most notably the number of people. The volume of tourists was staggering in late spring. On one hand, I am delighted to see so many people interested in our nation’s treasures, the National Parks. But I learned that most do not share my vision for this experience.
My perfect day in a National Park does NOT include endless picture taking from dangerous cliffs with a selfie stick. (Selfie sticks are actually banned from National Parks.) It also does not require a wireless speaker to blast rap music as I glance over the rim of the canyon. Sadly, activities like this were all around us.
Utah’s Mighty 5
To be fair, it’s hard for any National Park to compete with 10 days of hiking the Utah Mighty 5. I can still vividly picture Arches, Canyonlands, Capital Reef, Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park. Not just the views but the opportunity for quiet reflection along a river. Or the emptiness of an extended loop where hikers rarely venture. We are not an overlook family. We want to hear running water, birds, rustling leaves and if possible, stillness and quiet.
Normally, I don’t mind sharing these beauties with a crowd of people. But I do mind sharing with those who exhibit little interest in preserving them.
We found trash, pets, and people feeding wildlife. Our Junior Ranger noted each instance and their damaging effects on the environment. He follows the rules better than most adults.
The rap music was the last straw for the three of us. We looked at each other in disbelief. My husband said, “I think we’re done here.” We said goodbye and good luck to the Grand Canyon South Rim.
I hope that the National Park Service receives the resources needed to return this location to its glory and to maintain all our parks for future generations.
We learned that we are not “overlook people.” We like the road less traveled, long hikes and quiet you can only find in distant corners of the parks. If ever a return trip occurs, it will not include the south rim. Unless we hike away from it on a ranger-led trip to the bottom.
Did I mention we’re not an overlook kind of family?
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