Now that we’re a couple of months removed from Nomad Summer, it’s been a lot of fun to look back at it, see what we did, what we learned, and what we’re hoping next year’s Nomad Summer looks like! For those who might be new here, Nomad Summer is our 3+ week trip that we take as a family. This is our second one and we have no intention of not doing it each year we can, especially while we have kids at home.
Nomad Summer Weeks One and Two in Kanab. Nope, Hurricane, Utah
Okay, So Why Not Kanab?
Our first two weeks were planned for Kanab, Utah. We had a lot of things planned for this beautiful area in Utah that we hadn’t really explored before. We had a list of things to do and see and explore. However, we had a bit of a fiasco with our campsite. It’s a long story, but to put it quickly, we booked a campsite in November (seven months in advance) and they gave the one we asked for away. The one they moved us too was a lot smaller – which we had accepted, and it turned out the septic tank was broken. So, we asked to move again and they let us choose another site, and when we moved, that site had no water. So, basically, we were done moving and setting up again and again in one campground. But, by that point, everything in Kanab for that much time was booked. So, we had to very quickly come up with what to do and where to go for the next two weeks. The closest we could find was in Hurricane, Utah. So, we moved about an hour and a half away, and had to start researching new things to do for these two weeks of our trip.
Highlights of Our Time in Hurricane, Utah
During our time in Hurricane, Matt worked the vast majority of it, just taking a few days off here and there that we took advantage of, along with our evenings and the weekend.
Our Day Trip to Great Basin National Park, Nevada – We initially had intended to go to Death Valley to get a new national park to us in, but the drive was longer than we wanted to take. Then, Matt discovered that Great Basin National Park was actually relatively close to us now in Hurricane! While most people are most excited about the cave here, the mountain lover in the both of us was all about the Alpine Lakes Trail. I loved that we were going to get some pretty epic mountain views and alpine lakes with a lot less effort because the trail started at 10k feet in elevation. We also got an added bonus on this trip of happening upon Parawon Gap Petroglyphs. We saw that there was a parking area and the second I read petroglyphs on the sign, and Matt just pulled right it. They were a truly exceptional series of petroglyphs. It was a bit like a scavenger hunt to keep finding more and more tucked away up on the rocks. It was just a really special day of seeing new things.
Finally Hiking in Bryce Canyon National Park
I was the only one of the four of us who had been to Bryce Canyon, but when I was there in 2008, the park was covered in feet of snow, so I didn’t get to hike. The Navajo Loop/Queens Loop trail had been on my trail bucket list for quite some time. So, it was really amazing to get to do that! The kids started out rough, but then it got so much better. We got to go down the famous switchbacks of Wall Street and see all these incredible hoodoos that make the park so unique. We also met a female park ranger who was so good with the kids. She answered CJ’s questions, told us about the little special challenges and then she got to be the one to swear the kids in for their Junior Ranger badges. We had a really nice lunch at the lodge here and ended the afternoon at on the Bristlecone Trial, and it was just a really solid day of exploring this beautiful national park.
Off-Roading to Hike to Peek-A-Boo Slot Canyon
We did go back to Kanab for one of the top things on our list: Peek-A-Boo Slot Canyon. This was an adventure. The sandy road that leads down to the trailhead requires 4WD vehicles – AWD doesn’t cut it – but we were nervous that our truck might be too heavy. We aired down our tires and the four of us bounced our way over dunes and rocks covered by sand down to the trailhead. The trail is just a short 1 mile total out and back, but it backed a big punch in that half mile. It’s so beautiful and I will always remember Liam gasping and saying Wow! as he walked into the entrance of the canyon. It was the perfect intro to slot canyons for the kids, and I can tell you, they’re hooked on a slot canyon.
Glitter Mountain with the Kids
Matt found this really cool active selenite mine that you could visit. It’s very appropriately called Glitter Mountain because everywhere you look the mountain sparkled with bits of selenite all over the red-rock mountain. The kids and I found so many chunks of crystal to bring home with us as souvenirs. They had a sign with venmo/paypal options to pay for what you collect. The kids and I just had so much fun on this little adventure.
Lots of Little Experiences in Zion National Park
All of us but Liam had been to Zion National Park before, but this was our first time as a family of four. I was a little disillusioned by it on our visit in 2021, and while that feeling is still there, I found a lot of little joys in this visit to Zion. We biked into the canyon for the first time – it was so much harder than we were expecting, we did a couple of trails we had never done before – Pa’rus Trail and The Watchman Trail, Charleigh was actually reading her Junior Ranger Book for the first time, and that we fell in love with the amazing, free materials and activities they had for the kids. I also built up a lot of confidence in my ability to explore with my kiddos on my own while Matt was working.
What Would We Do Differently?
I don’t know that I would spend 2 weeks in this area again, personally, unless the kids were old enough to do bigger trails within Zion. Also, it was hot there already in late May and early June, so I would go a bit earlier. Also, I feel like the Kanab area would’ve been the better option as far as the ability to see and do more. We were looking forward to doing more in Kanab and Page.
Nomad Summer Week Three in Montrose, Colorado
Truthfully, we chose Montrose because it was the far more affordable option for exploring the San Juans. We love these mountains, and really love Ouray, but it was the most expensive place we’ve ever camped. So, we found this and it felt like a good in-between spot for three of the places we really enjoyed: Telluride, Ouray and Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It also had larger grocery stores with more affordable prices for us that helped us stay in budget.
Highlights of Our Time in Montrose, Colorado
Finally Hiking the Ouray Perimeter Trail – And Getting to Do it As a Family!
I had been wanting to hike the Ouray Perimeter Trail for a couple of years by this point. I wanted to do it last year, but it just didn’t work out, so Matt told me that he’d make sure I could do it this year. And as an added bonus/surprise, we did it as a family. That’s right, my 3-year-old and 5-year-old children nailed it. They did the entire thing, up and down mountains, through tunnels, over bridges, by waterfalls and more! The trail was everything I wanted it to be and more! It took at least twice as long with the kiddos, but so worth it to get to do it with my family.
Taking the Last Dollar Highway to Telluride and Doing Our Favorite Things There
We initially wanted to do the Imogene Pass road from Ouray to Telluride. We got to the start of it and we realized that our truck was simply too long to do that trail. Also, though, we found out later that the whole road wasn’t actually open, so I’m glad we didn’t do it. Instead, we found a much simpler, but still truly beautiful dirt road route to Telluride called the Last Dollar Highway. It was absolutely beautiful. I loved every single second of it. And, of course, once in Telluride we went to our favorite pizza place: Brown Dog Pizza, and rode the free gondola that our kids have talked about at least once a week since the last time we road it in the summer of 2025. It was just a really beautiful day.
Adventures in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
I took the kids into Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park on my own, Matt gave me a solo morning to explore in Black Canyon, and then we all went in to do our favorite hike in the park: Warner Point, and also drive down to the Gunnison River for the first time, which was so much fun! I had no idea you could do that, and I’m so glad that I happened to see it. There were some hairpin turns and our truck was just small enough to get to go down there. I would recommend this every time.
What Would We Do Differently?
After visiting the San Juans back to back years, I do want to visit somewhere new. But the biggest thing I’d do differently is stay somewhere more scenic. There was absolutely magic in waking up in Ouray and having the perfect spots to enjoy the outdoors immediately. If we did this area again next year, I’d just make sure I had the money to stay somewhere a bit more scenic. It felt a bit more limiting to know the things we truly wanted to do were a 30 minutes to an hour away.
Nomad Summer Weeks Four and Five in Estes Park, Colorado
Last year, we fell hard for Rocky Mountain National Park. We didn’t realize just how much was in the park to fall in love with because before last year we’d only done one hike in the park. So, we got home Estes from last year and immediately wanted to take both of our families there. So, that’s what we did. We invited my parents out for a week and Matt’s parents out for a week. My parents’ week turned into a bigger family trip with my brother’s family and my uncle and his fiancée coming as well.
Highlights of Our Time in Estes Park, Colorado
Matt’s and My Ten Year Anniversary Hike to Sky Pond
My parents kept our kids overnight the night before our 10th wedding anniversary so we could get up early and do a bigger hike together, just us two. So, I found a really challenging one that I knew we couldn’t do with the kids and we settled on Sky Pond. This hike took us by waterfalls, scrambling up rocks beside a waterfall, and past a few stunning alpine lakes we’d never seen before. It was so wonderful to hike at our pace, not have to watch our kids and just spend uninterrupted time together doing the thing we’ve always loved doing together: exploring.
Getting to Show My Dad and Other Family Members Mills Lake
Last summer, when I got to Mills Lake, all I wanted to do was FaceTime my dad – something we have always done when we see something beautiful that we know the other would absolutely love. So, I knew that I wanted to take him here, and I was right, he absolutely loved it! It sweetened the deal that Matt, my brother, sister-in-law, oldest nephew, uncle and Natalie were all there too! On our way back down, my dad said, “I could’ve sat there staring at the view for another hour.” and that made my heart happy because it meant he loved it just as much as I knew he would.
Hiking to Lake Haiyaha with My In-Laws
This was the most scenic hike we did with my in-laws and it was beautiful! I hadn’t been back to Nymph and Dream lakes in about a decade, so they wowed me all over again, and then Lake Haiyaha was a whole new experience! It was such a beautiful lake and because we didn’t do a lot of research, it was also a bit more of an adventure – we had no idea there was a boulder scramble at the end. Haha!
Seeing One of the Most Incredible Sunsets of My Life at Bear Lake
On Father’s Day, Matt wanted to go to Bear Lake around sunset to try to take a timelapse. We were there for about an hour and didn’t think the sky was going to do much of anything, but then, all of a sudden, it just exploded with color. The kids and I just also had a really special time out there exploring, making “nature documentaries” and sitting on this massive rock that kind-of jutted over the lake, just being together taking it all in. We’d walk back over to Matt every so often too, and the timelapse he took was absolutely incredible. This was one of those sunsets that feels like it couldn’t have possibly been as gorgeous as it was… but it was.
I Got to See Stacey and Her Family in Estes Park!
I try to see my best friend at least twice a year. Sometimes we manage more sometimes it’s only less. We both have families and we live three hours apart, so it can be hard to find schedules that align. But something I loved about this summer is it aligned for us to be in Estes Park at the same time. Initially, I wanted to spend a whole morning or afternoon (hopefully hiking) together, but with my family there, we didn’t get to spend that much time together, but we all got together for a couple of hours at Coffee on the Rocks and the Rock Shop over there. It was a fun little teaser before I get to spend 9 days with her in Ecuador in September!
What Would We Do Differently?
I think we set too high of expectations for the amount of time we’d get to spend hiking with our families. We forget that not everyone wants to hike all day every day like we do. So if we’re in a place that we want to really get outside, we need to plan a few days for just us before meeting up with them, which is totally fair and valid – it’s their trip too!
Also, Matt saved the majority of his vacation days for this part of the trip, which he wished he had done differently. Taken some more time in the middle.
Musings on Nomad Summer 2026
We took a really successful trip that we had last year and built upon it. We were gone for just over 5 weeks, and we all got along shockingly well. The kids grew in confidence, gained experiences they’re still talking about and we made so many memories. I love watching them learn and grow through experiences, but I also love seeing how these experiences fuse the four of us together in new and unexpected ways. We depend on each other so much in our everyday lives, but having us all together, experiencing so much together just bonds you in a totally different way. We all have that childlike wonder on the road.
I learned a lot about myself too. I had someone ask me a year or so ago, what have you accomplished? It was meant in a way that the answer was implied to be nothing. What what they meant was financial accomplishments, and it wired my brain to think that I needed to focus on that. However, something I’ve realized in 2026 is, obviously money is important and I need to make money to exist and do the things I’m passionate about, but that isn’t my purpose in life. I’m not here to make money. I’m here to do something bigger and more meaningful (bigger to me and more meaningful to me), and I think I’m slowly finding that thing. But, obviously, my greatest accomplishment will always be my children. They alone are accomplishment enough, and a really simple moment on a trail of this trip really opened my eyes to that realization.
I think we also have realized that our Nomad Summers feel so precious to us. They’re our escape, our independence, our life of adventure as a family of four. We frequently take trips with our families and love them, but this was the first blending of the two and I think we’ve realized that Nomad Summer is meant to be just ours, with an occasional meetup if we happen to be near people along the way.
This summer, we also did this trip on a barebones budget – I mean, as barebones as a 5-week trip can be. We cooked a lot, which meant that we cleaned a lot, and meant that we spent a lot of time in our camper. While it was worth it because it meant that we got to take the trip, we realized that we’d rather do three weeks with a bigger budget than 5 weeks barebones. And that’s okay! Dream scenario, we get to have a bigger budget over 5 weeks, but we learned more isn’t always better.
I think Matt and I also learned a lot about communication on this trip. Something I think everyone can work on and build upon, it felt really good that we were able to have that on this trip. I am grateful to have him as my partner on this whole journey.
No Comments