June 2018 Hikes

Indian Trail – Ogden

In early June we headed up to Ogden to hike the Indian Trail. The trail is just shy of 8.5 miles and has 2,700 feet of gain. It follows an old Shoshoni Indian trail through the mountain pass, climbing up to Ogden Canyon and descending into Cold Water Canyon. It’s a steep climb and goes through various terrain – rocky and exposed at the bottom, winding through shady pines, and descending into a lush forest on the backside. The second half of the trail winds along a creek, which our (sometimes) water-loving dog thoroughly enjoyed. Once we got to the bottom, we turned around and did the whole thing in reverse.

Escalante Natural Bridge – Grand Staircase Escalante

Escalante Natural Bridge is a 4 mile out and back trail in the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. There will be a more detailed post about our trip to the National Monuments/Parks in Southern Utah later, but suffice to say, Grand Staircase Escalante is amazing. We detoured here on our way to Bryce Canyon for the simple fact that National Parks don’t allow dogs and we wanted to hike with Snickers. The trail itself is flat and easy, though it is very sandy and there are about 4 stream crossings. We’d recommend wearing sandals or shoes you don’t mind getting wet. The trail goes through a canyon surrounded by sheer, red rock faces. There are supposedly petroglyphs on the walls, though we didn’t see any. It makes its way through desert landscape until it ends at a gorgeous natural bridge. We went in the afternoon and the trail was completely empty despite the parking lot being full. It was a perfect place to stretch our legs after a long drive.

Navajo Loop Trail – Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. It’s spotted with hoodoos, which are tall, thin spires of rock that formed when a thick layer of soft rock (mudstone, sandstone) is covered by a thin layer of hard rock (limestone, basalt) that protects the softer layer from erosion. Our initial plan was to just go to some of the lookouts and walk the Sunrise-Sunset trail since that’s the only place dogs are allowed, but Beth and Casey offered to hang out with Snickers on the rim so Matt and I could do a quick hike of the Navajo Loop Trail. The trail is short (1.3 miles) and not too difficult. It winds down via switchbacks into an amphitheater and loops around through fir trees before climbing back up to Sunset Point. The views were amazing throughout and the rock formations were incredible. The trail meets up with other trails at the bottom, so you could easily log some miles in the canyon if you have time (and don’t have a dog).

The Narrows – Zion National Park

The Narrows is the last stop along the Zion Canyon bus ride. This place is aptly named, as you drive up this curvy road the walls becoming closer and higher until you arrive at the bus stop where you are in the flat washout from a hard cut river with tower rocks on both sides. There is a 1 mile walk from the bus stop to the Narrows proper where you will see hundreds (thousands!) of people wearing goofy rental water hiking shoes in the mid-morning going for a COLD! walk in the shallow, rocky water. We walked maybe a half mile up the river where it never gets above waist deep; however, the more adventurous will want to start at the end and do the 14 mile water hike descent.

Zion Narrows, walking with a thousand of your closest friends

Zion Narrows, cubby hole in the canyon wall

My parents had this as their must-see item on the trip into Zion and it doesn’t disappoint. No dogs allowed on this section, so it was just the three of us here while Beth did the Pa’rus trail.

Pa’rus trail – Zion National Park

While Matt, Beth, and Casey were off enjoying the Narrows, Snickers and I explored Zion a different way. Unfortunately dogs aren’t allowed (which we knew going in) so we walked along the Pa’rus trail and up the Scenic Road for a total of 10 miles. The Pa’rus trail is a nice, paved path that winds along the Virgin River and into the canyon. You can see all of the incredible rock formations that Zion is known for with very little disruption from other people. Snickers loved getting to play in the river to cool off and I enjoyed a leisurely walk. Since we knew it would be a while before the gang got back, we also walked along the road to Zion Lodge so we could experience a taste of what goes on in the park. Cars aren’t allowed on the road during the summer – only shuttle buses – so we didn’t have to worry too much about traffic. The pink and red sandstone cliffs are a sight to behold and we enjoyed just being outside and exploring.

Holbrook Canyon Trail – Bountiful

We hiked this trail back in May, but came back for an easy weekend hike/jog in June. Check out our May Hikes post if you want to see this trail again 🙂

Everything Bagels

Not to turn this into a baking blog, but here’s another recipe we tried and loved.

I’m typically a sweet > savory person when it comes to breakfast foods, but Matt may have changed my mind when it comes to lox bagels. We like having bagel sandwiches for breakfast or lunch, and since we don’t have many food options close by in SLC we decided to make our own.

Yeasted dough is a bit of a time commitment because it needs to rise twice, but it could be made the night before and allowed to do the second rise in the fridge; just make sure to let it come to room temperature before baking for an even bake. You could easily make this recipe sweet with the addition of blueberries or cinnamon and raisin, or even just make them plain. We actually made a few with jalapeño and cheddar, which were fantastic with a little cream cheese, egg, and bacon. The possibilities for combinations are endless!

For the everything bagel seasoning, you can make your own, but we use Everything But the Bagel seasoning from Trader Joe’s. It’s convenient and has all the goodies pre-mixed. We loaded these bagels with smoked salmon, cream cheese, capers, and red onions. Yum!

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Bagels

Makes 5 medium-sized bagels

2C all-purpose flour
2 1/4 t (1 package) active dry yeast
3/4 C warm water
1 1/2 T sugar
1/2 T salt
1 egg
Everything but the bagel seasoning

Mix water, sugar, and yeast together in a small bowl or measuring cup and allow to sit for ~10 minutes until yeast has bloomed and is bubbly.

In a large bowl or bowl of stand mixer combine 1 C of flour and salt. Mix in activated yeast mixture and work with hands or bread attachment until a sticky dough has formed. Continue to add in remaining flour until dough is stiff. Knead with hands on a lightly floured surface or in mixer with bread attachment for 8-10 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic.

Lightly oil a large bowl and place dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 15-20 minutes. Punch down dough and divide into 5 even portions. To form the dough, either roll dough into a ball, poke a hole in the middle with your finger, and stretch until it is about 1-2 in diameter, or roll into a rope and pinch the ends together. Let rise for 20-30 minutes.

While dough is rising, preheat oven to 350°F and fill a large pot with water and boil on the stove. When dough has risen, drop into boiling water and boil for 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side (1-2 minutes total per bagel). Pat dry with a paper towel and place on baking sheet.

Beat egg in a small bowl and brush over the top of the boiled bagels. Sprinkle liberally with seasoning mix. Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown.

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Utah Progress Report: Month 1

We’ve been in Utah for a month now! Since neither of us had been to Utah before, we didn’t know what to expect and we’ve been pleasantly surprised by how much we’re enjoying it here.

The thing we love the most is the outdoors and how accessible the mountains are. Our biggest gripe with Denver was that we had to drive a good 30-45 minutes to get to any trails in the foothills, but here they’re basically our “backyard.” We can’t help but be awestruck when we’re walking down the street and see the snow-capped peaks looming in the distance. And we’re only 2 miles away from the closest trail! Another thing that we can’t get over is how many rose bushes there are. We thought Portland had a lot, but SLC is giving them a run for their money. It seems like every yard is littered with giant bushes in a myriad of colors from yellow to red to coral and lavender. The city sure is beautiful in the spring.

The weather has been nothing short of amazing. Sure, there have been some cool, rainy days, but for the most part we’ve had sunny skies and warm temperatures. It’s been great for getting out on hikes or just lounging around the pool after work. When the storm clouds do roll in, the skies get all moody and some really neat cloud formations hang over the mountain tops.

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20180508_114528 — Afternoon work from the pool

We spend a lot of time just walking around and getting to know the neighborhood. A typical evening for us usually involves walking up to the Capitol and letting Snickers play in the grass or just checking out all of the interesting houses in the Marmalade District. We found out that many of the homes were built before the housing laws were enacted, so there are vastly different styles (we’re talking log cabin, Victorian, 50s style ranch) nestled next to each other. It’s been fun learning some of the history of the area.

Our apartment is just north of downtown right at the base of Capitol Hill. The views of the city from the rooftop are pretty spectacular. We chose this particular building because it has great amenities – we have a state of the art gym and a fantastic rooftop pool – but the drawback is there aren’t many food options around. We’re about a mile from the nearest coffee shop and restaurant, so grabbing a quick lunch or latte while we’re working isn’t much of an option. On the plus side we’re cooking a lot more at home than we have in a while!

Speaking of restaurants, we’ve hit up our fair share in the time we’ve been here. We’ve found a plethora of Mexican food and some really delicious Asian fare. Some places we’ve tried and liked:

Mexican food: Red Iguana 2
Asian: All Chay (Vietnamese), Hong Kong Tea House (Chinese and Dim Sum), Laan Na Thai, Korea House
Lunch fare: Spitz (Mediterranean style)
Sweets: Banbury Cross Donuts, Normal (soft serve ice cream), Fresh Donut and Deli
Pizza: The Pie (greasy and loaded – perfect after a hike)
Dinner fare: Pallet (good cocktails and charcuterie board)

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While there are some crazy liquor laws in this state (have you ever heard of brandy in a margarita??) there’s no shortage of breweries serving up tasty brews. The downside is that they can only serve 4% beer in the breweries, but the plus side is they’re pretty cheap. All of the breweries do make high gravity beers, you just have to buy them in bottles or cans and take them home – can’t drink them in house. Epic is the exception to this rule because of a loophole they use: it’s a “tapless” tap house (i.e. they pour from the bottles). They only have 6 seats, you have to be seated to taste, and also have to order food, but it’s a really cool space and concept.

Kiito’s: nestled in an old, industrial area of town it’s serving up tasty sours and ales. The row of pinball machines and a pizza food truck outside made it so we could’ve stayed for hours.
Fisher: great outdoor patio, and very dog-friendly. Decent beers on tap.
Mountain West: this is actually a cider house! We’re not the biggest cider fans, but they have some crisp brews that are nice on a hot summer day. They also have a large patio and serve beer from Red Rock if you’re not into cider.
Red Rock: not a tasting room, but right down the street and good place to get bottles to go.
Proper: huge area with a tasting room and restaurant. We just picked up a couple of bottles here, but would love to go back and stay a while.
Epic: It’s a very small tasting room, but worth it if you can snag a seat. The tasters are super cheap – ranging from 50 cents to $1 for a 2oz pour. We tried just about everything on the menu and it was all superb.

All-in-all we’re thoroughly enjoying ourselves here and can’t wait to see what we get into the next few months!

20180504_154809 — Utah is Snickers approved

May 2018 Hikes

Bonneville Shoreline Trail

The Bonneville Shoreline Trail (BST) is part of a system that runs along the Wasatch foothills along the shoreline of ancient Bonneville Lake. Right now there are roughly 100 miles of completed trail, but the hope is to have a trail that stretches from the Idaho border to Nephi, UT – closet to 280 miles of trail! Luckily for us, it runs right through downtown Salt Lake City, and is a mere 2-3 miles from our apartment. We love doing small portions for an easy, accessible weekday run. The trail is on the easy side of moderate and doesn’t gain much elevation, so it’s been a great way to get in some trail time without killing ourselves. We like to start either at City Creek near the Capitol or at the Terrace Hills Trailhead.

Emigration Canyon Miner’s Trail

We hiked the 6 mile Miner’s Trail in Emigration Canyon our first weekend in Utah. The road into the canyon is packed with bikers going up and coming down – it made us a little sad we didn’t bring our bikes along. There isn’t much parking at the trailhead, so best to get there early, but it also makes for a relatively undisturbed hike. The first portion of the trail was rocky and exposed with a slight grade. The wildflowers were in full bloom which made for a gorgeous backdrop across the canyon. There is a small creek about halfway up, and most people stop there. We continued on along the backside of the hill towards Red Butte Canyon. The trail climbed quickly, was muddy, and still covered in snow in places which made for a slippery climb. The effort was worth it for the views at the top across the Salt Lake Valley.

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Holbrook Canyon

Holbrook Canyon trail is a 5 mile trail near Bountiful, UT, just north of Salt Lake City. The trail runs along a creek and there are numerous creek crossings. It gains a bit of elevation, but it’s gradual and doesn’t feel too taxing. Some of the crossings have bridges, but once you get about a mile in, there are just logs and rocks. If the water is high, be prepared to get your feet wet. We went after a rain and had soggy shoes by the end. The trail is nicely shaded and lightly trafficked. While you don’t get much for views in the canyon that you do on some of the other trails, its secluded nature made it one of the most enjoyable hikes we’ve been on in a while.

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Grandeur Peak – West Side

Grandeur Peak West Side trail is a 5 mile out and back trail located 13 miles south of downtown Salt Lake City. There are two trails leading to the peak – the east side is more accessible with less elevation and a moderate climb while the west side is rated difficult and climbs over 3,000 ft. in 2.5 miles. The trail starts steep and climbs steadily all the way to the top. We took it slow and steady, but it’s a leg burner for sure. The views were spectacular all along the trail; you get amazing views of the Valley on the way up and even better ones of Parley’s Canyon to the north and east once you reach the summit. It’s best to do this route on a cool or overcast day as there’s little shade, though the summit – at 8,200 ft. – can be quite cool. The hike down is equally difficult and killed our quads; definitely a great way to get in a workout.

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Rob’s Trail

Murdock Peak - Rob's Trail Park City, UT

We combined Rob’s Trail to Mid Mountain Trail to Ridge Connector for a hike/run just shy of 9 miles. The trail is in Park City, UT and is used for both hiking and mountain biking. The trail is an out-and-back and gains about 1,800 feet over the course of 4.5 miles. It starts at around 7,100 ft. elevation and climbs to just shy of 9,000 – while SLC is at about 4,500 ft. we still found ourselves gasping for air on more than one occasion. It’s a gradual climb with plenty of switchbacks and is well shaded. There are quite a few intersections with other trails, but all are very well marked with signs and maps. It’s a beautiful location, and a great spot to do as much or little trail as you desire. Park City is a ski town, so you can see plenty of runs down the mountain and the trail crosses them a few times. There was still a bit of snow in the upper, shaded portions of the trail, which Snickers loved and seemed to gain energy from :). We turned around when we got to the ridge line, but there were trails in either direction leading up to double black diamond ski slopes. We did a combo hike/jog – mostly hiking on the uphills and running on the way down.

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Strawberry Chocolate Scones

Here’s another tasty recipe we tried and loved! (What is this, a food blog??)

We’ve been making savory scones for a while now, and they turn out fantastic every time. This time, we decided to tweak the base recipe for the savory scones and turn them into a sweet treat. We used freeze dried strawberries, which we picked up at Trader Joe’s but you can get them on Amazon. You could certainly use fresh berries, but they will add a lot of moisture to the dough; to combat this you may consider draining the juice after chopping, using frozen berries (don’t thaw first), or coating the chopped berries in flour or powdered sugar prior to mixing in. As always, we love our sweets with a side of coffee! This time we paired it with a Columbian from La Barba Roasters here in Salt Lake, which has notes of honey, caramel, and chocolate. Yum!

Strawberry chocolate scones

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup buttermilk, very cold — splash of vinegar in milk
1 egg, plus 1 egg for egg wash
6 tbsp unsalted butter – cut into
1 T honey or brown sugar
1/4 C freeze dried strawberries, roughly chopped
1/4 C dark chocolate chips, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into the dry mixture until resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in the buttermilk/soured milk and honey into the mixture and mix until it forms a dough. Mix in strawberries and chocolate until well incorporated.

Pour the mixture out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead once or twice to make sure everything comes together. The mixture should still be very shaggy.

Form the mixture into an 8-inch circle. Cut the circle into 6 even wedges. Place on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Beat one egg and brush the top of each wedge thoroughly. Sprinkle tops with a little sugar.

Bake for 17-20 minutes, until puffed and golden.

The recipe inspiration came from The Hungry Genealogist(??)

Cream cheese glaze

2oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 C powdered sugar
1/4 t vanilla extract
2 T milk

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla together until creamy. Add milk to your desired consistency and drizzle over scones.

Enjoy!

Check out Matt’s personal site matt.guide for more coffee insights!

Phoenix Hikes

We unfortunately didn’t get to do a ton of hiking while we were in Phoenix. We had a few days of glorious weather, but most days the sun got so hot by 10am that we couldn’t be out as much or as long as we would have liked. Regardless, we managed to find plenty of trails in the area to get our legs moving and blood pumping.

Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified Forest National Park – painted desert

Petrified Forest National Park – painted desert/badlands

Petrified Forest National Park

We didn’t actually hike through here, but there are plenty of trails winding through the park. We ended up doing a detour on our way from Albuquerque to Phoenix to drive through the Petrified Forest. Pets are allowed on all trails – a rarity for National Parks and a huge plus for us! The park is filled with petrified wood and colorful badlands providing a very unique and beautiful backdrop. The trees are hundreds of millions of years old and have become fossils from silica deposits. The painted desert area is amazing with it’s stratified layers of different rock – siltstone, shale, and mudstone.

Papago Park

Papago Park – Hole in the Rock

Papago Park

Papago Park is located between Tempe and Scottsdale and has plenty of biking and hiking trails. While none of them are very strenuous, it can’t be beat for a quick outing inside the city. We went to this park a couple of times – once for a short walk and another for a trail run. There’s a short trail to the “Hole in the Rock” (pictured above) that provides a nice vista of Tempe and downtown Phoenix. The park is also scattered with some ponds and backs up to the botanical gardens. For a trail run or a longer walk, there are numerous trails up to and around the buttes that’s an easy way to log a few miles.

Phoenix Mountain Preserve

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This park is just north of Phoenix. A popular hike is to Piestewa Peak, but it’s very crowded and dogs aren’t allowed so we bypassed that in favor of the circumference trail. The first time I went with Snickers with the hopes of circumventing the peak, but at 9am the sun was blazing and I barely had enough water for Snickers so we just did a quick 3 miles out and back. The second time, I left the dog at home and did the full 4.5 miles solo. While not an impossible trail, it’s not for the faint of heart. In 4.5 miles, the trail climbs about 1,300 feet, but the views at the top are well worth the effort and the backside is deserted providing a fun, mostly downhill jog.

Lake Pleasant

Lake Pleasant is about 40 miles directly north of Phoenix. We ventured up one weekend with the hopes of doing a 6 mile run, but cut it to a 3 mile walk so we could enjoy the new scenery and conserve water. We walked along a burro trail near a wash surrounded by plenty of cacti and some decent views of the lake. It was a really lightly trafficked trail – we only saw two people! This trail in the Sonoran Desert is littered with saguaro cacti. Fun fact: saguaros only start growing arms when they reach 15ft. in height, which takes about 75 years!!

McDowell Mountain Regional Park

About 40 miles northwest of Phoenix lies McDowell Mountain Regional Park, which is a veritable playground for mountain bikers. We did the Scenic Trail, a relatively mild 4.5 mile trail through quintessential dessert landscape. Just a short climb and we had some great views for miles across the Valley. If we had a little more time, we would’ve loved to go back and log some serious miles on our feet.

Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies

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This is a bit of a detraction from our usual style, but I came across these cookies and had to share. This is a Nordstrom recipe that a friend sent me and I altered slightly. The cookies have a light, cake-like texture that is brightened by the lemon zest. The frosting adds a sharp, citrusy zing that elevates the cookies to another level. We recommend pairing them with a nice cup of coffee :).

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Lemon cream cheese cookies

Note: dough needs to made 1 day ahead of time so it can be frozen prior to baking

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup (1 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 – 8oz package of cream cheese
Grated zest of 2 lemons
Juice from 1/2 lemon

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl and set aside.
Cream butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy (~2-3 minutes). Add in the egg and mix until incorporated. On low speed, add in the cream cheese until well mixed. Mix in lemon zest and juice.
Gradually add in the flour mixture and mix until incorporated. Dough will be very soft – almost like a muffin batter.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat and portion out ~12 balls of dough. Freeze until solid, at least 12 hours.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 325, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat. Place dough on prepared sheets spaced roughly 2 inches apart. Let stand at room temperature while oven is preheating (~20-30 mins).
Bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned; rotate pans halfway through baking.
Let cool completely before icing.

Lemon buttercream frosting

1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Grated zest of 1 lemon

Cream butter until light. Add powdered sugar and mix until blended. Add lemon juice and mix until smooth.

Once cookies have cooled, spread icing over the top and sprinkle with lemon zest.

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Original recipe for Nordstrom Lemon Ricotta Cookies

Utah!

We’ve only been in Salt Lake City for a week and a half, but are quickly realizing why so many people love it here. For starters, it is completely surrounded by mountains with no shortage of trails in just a 3 mile radius. Snickers and I snapped this photo on our run this past week, and let’s just say we can’t wait to put some more miles on our paws.

We’re here through the end of August, so if anyone wants to come visit let us know! We got a two bedroom apartment this time so we’re well equipped to host. Did I mention the rooftop pool with 360° mountain views??

And, for kicks, here is a photo from our drive up from Arizona. We took the eastern route around the Grand Canyon and stopped at Horseshoe Bend in Page, AZ for a quick stretch of the legs. The views did not disappoint 😊.

Phoenix Eats

A little rundown of places we enjoyed.

Coffee

Matt here – Added my own Phoenix Coffee post with a bit more detail on my professional blog – https://matt.guide

Cartel – coffee roaster in downtown Phoenix. Multiple pour over options to choose from, all with a smooth finish.

Press – local roaster right on Central Ave. They have a handful of pour over options from single-origin growers to fit any flavor profile preferences, and you can choose your brew method (Chemex, Kalita, etc.).

Giant Coffee – dog friendly coffee bar in a large, open space. They roast their own beans and do a pretty solid cup of joe.

Breakfast

Matt’s Big Breakfast – good breakfast spot downtown. Ample portion sizes and fresh-made food. They make their bread and jam in-house and have fresh-ground coffee brewed locally just for them. Go hungry and early because it can get busy for the brunch crowd.

Rainbow Donuts – we only tried one donut shop, but we didn’t need to try any more! Rainbow has a seemingly endless menu, and they do them all extremely well. We went with our classic order: jelly filled, custard filled, glazed, and apple fritter and they were all perfect.

Lunch

Kaleidoscope – located downtown next to Cartel, this place is serving up fresh and healthy options. Choose from smoothies, juices, protein bowls, and sandwiches. They don’t skimp on the veggies and protein in the bowls and it’s always nice to have a healthy option when you’re out and about.

Poke Catcher – fast lunch spot in Central Phoenix. Fresh poke and all the toppings make for a quick and healthy lunch option.

Carolina’s – don’t be deterred by the location, Carolina’s is serving up authentic Mexican on the cheap! They make the tortillas in house and the food is a slam-dunk. You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu and the burros and chimis hit the spot. Don’t forget to get a bag of chips!

Dinner

Drinks at The Yard

Little Cleo’s happy hour

Presidio Cocina hibiscus margarita

Taco Guild

St. Francis – a great happy hour option located in Central Phoenix. $5 drink specials and sharable small plates.

Little Cleo’s – located at The Yard, a veritable outdoor adult playground with multiple restaurants and games (cornhole, shuffleboard, etc.). We went for the happy hour special of $1 oysters on the half shell and $2 champagne.

O.H.S.O. Brewing – dog friendly brewery serving up plenty of house-brewed beers. Snickers gives the spent-grain treats four enthusiastic paws up, and we thoroughly enjoyed the brewer’s cheese and charcuterie board with an added smoked sausage made next door. They’ve also got a great happy hour special on beer – $7 for a pitcher (normally $6 for a pint).

Taco Guild – tacos in an old Methodist church. They’ve maintained a lot of the original pieces – including a number of stained glass windows – which makes for a great juxtaposition of old and new. You can’t go wrong with the unique taco offerings on the menu, but be sure to check out the daily taco (it was fried chicken with mashed potatoes and a green chili gravy when we went) and don’t forget to get a margarita to wash it down.

Presidio Cocina – upscale Latin food with good happy hour specials. Food is very fresh and flavorful and you can’t beat a $5 real margarita!

Forno 301 – Italian and pizza. They make the pasta in-house, and serve up wood-fired pizzas. We tried the caprese salad, which included half a plate of prosciutto along with the mozzarella and tomato, arugula salad, and the Forno 301 pizza. Everything was fresh and delicious and paired well with the Italian Moretti beer.

Dessert

Creamistry – very cool concept! The ice cream is made to order using liquid nitrogen to freeze the milk. Incredibly creamy with lots of unique flavor options and mix-ins.

Nami – vegan soft serve with plenty of fun mix-in options.

Grand Canyon and Sedona

We’re rounding out our third week in Phoenix and have been loving the sun and warm weather. The nights are cool and the days are hot and sunny and we have the tans to prove it 🙂 – not to rub it in for everyone in the Midwest who is still dealing with snow.

We decided to take advantage of a free weekend and headed north to the Grand Canyon and Sedona. Since we are both working remotely, we went up on a Sunday afternoon and worked from the hotel Monday – this is where working Eastern time while on Pacific time comes in handy since we log off at 2pm and can use our entire afternoon for fun. We left a little later in the day, which worked out to our advantage because we got to the Grand Canyon in the late afternoon when crowds were mostly non-existent.

We took a slight detour to Prescott on the drive to grab some lunch and stretch our legs. We stopped at Watson Lake for a quick walk – the scenery was gorgeous! At 5,000 ft. elevation, the scenery was a bit different from the desert we get in the Phoenix valley with lots of scrub bushes, juniper trees, and an absence of cacti. Snickers especially enjoyed chasing birds through the mud.

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Since we had the dog with us, we were limited in the hiking we could do at the Grand Canyon (National Parks are notoriously dog-unfriendly). We parked at the Bright Angel trailhead and walked about 3 miles out and back along the Rim Trail. The great thing about this location was that no cars are allowed beyond that point and most people ride the shuttle rather than walking. We had the trail mostly to ourselves, and even though it was paved we had a very enjoyable time. It’s amazing to see all of the striations along the canyon walls and think about how the Colorado River cut it out over millions of years. It’s impossible to capture the grandeur in pictures, but suffice to say we were constantly uttering “wow, this is amazing!” even though we’d both visited before. We definitely recommend a visit at least once in your lifetime.

Sunday night we drove down to Flagstaff to stay for the night. Our time was mostly spend in the hotel since it was a Monday and we had to work, but we did end up grabbing beer at Dark Sky Brewing (highly recommend!), some lunch at Macy’s Coffee House (delicious lattes and healthy food), and walking the trail that runs through town (such a great use of space!).

Once we were finished with work, we headed to Sedona for a hike. The drive down was on mountain roads that cut through the rocks and provided amazing views. The weather was cloudy and cool – 70s – which was actually perfect for the hike since the desert sun can be brutal. We did 6 miles on the Chuckwagon Trail to Devil’s Arch. Very few people were on the Chuckwagon Trail, but the last 0.8 miles up to the arch we ran into quite a few hikers. I can’t blame them because the view was spectacular! The hike itself wasn’t too strenuous and we ended up running about 3 miles of it. Snickers, our resident mountain goat, had a blast running up the rocks at the end and nearly gave Matt a heart attack when she ran to the edge to survey the land. The red rock landscape is something that you just can’t see anywhere and even though they weren’t lit up by the sun we were amazed by their beauty. Matt didn’t brave walking on the bridge, but Snickers and I ran out there to snag a quick photo before our descent.