At the end of each year, Teddy and I sit down and reflect on our travels over the year prior. We bring out our Chatbooks album from each month and those from our bigger road trips and think about all the incredible adventures we’ve had over the year. You can read our 2021 Recap where we explored 22 states together. In 2022, we were able to explore 11 more new states together and have our first RV camping experience. We were able to take 3 trips together this year and 4 weekend camping trips. Our road trips included a Southwest roadtrip in February, a weekend to Ocean City, Maryland for a weekend over the summer, and a road trip through the Northwest in August. All of our camping trips were within Pennsylvania. Teddy also got to go on a trip with to see family in the Seattle area over the summer.
While we got to see an incredible amount this year, it wasn’t with out disappointments on trips we ended up canceling. We had booked a hotel in the Poconos in the spring before we knew we were getting a puppy that we cancelled so we could be home with Remington. In the summer, Remington had a bit of a cold so I stayed home with him instead of going to the beach. In the fall, I was to go on a trip with a friend to Utah but with things coming up for both of us, we decided it best to reschedule that trip for the future. And then later in the fall, Teddy and I were to do a weekend at another National Park but since we purchased our camper, we decided to cancel and camp locally instead.
What you will find below are our reflections on the places we did get to travel. We talk about favorite experiences, places, towns, parks, food, as well as places we found surprising, and even those that didn’t live up to the hype. I hope you enjoy reading our reflections and if you want to share any of your own reflections from traveling this year, please leave those in the comments!
Top 5 Experiences from the Year
Teddy
- Getting engaged in the Tetons
- Going to the Sun Road
- Antelope Canyon tour
- Horseshoe Bend
- Camping
Steph
- Getting engaged in the Tetons
- Antelope Canyon Tour
- First time camping in an RV
- Driving the going to the Sun Road
- Watching mules descend on the Bright Angel Trail in the Grand Canyon
Top 3 Destinations
For this one, we tried to pick places that weren’t a National Park or Monument. Each of the below spots are a place we talked about spending a weekend in the future for fun because we loved them so much.
Teddy
Steph
- Sawtooth Mountains
- Sedona
- Black Hills of South Dakota
Top 3 Overnight Stays
We each had a hard time picking these. We really got to stay in some beautiful spots this year including our RV so I snuck in a 4th choice.
Teddy
- Zion Lodge
- Cabin in Apgar inside Glacier National Park
- Radcliff Moab
Steph
- Cabin in Glacier National Park
- Cabin at the Grand Canyon Rim
- Radcliffe Moab
- Our RV
Top 3 National Parks
These are our top National Parks we visited this year. We both had a very similar top two parks with our third one being different.
Teddy
Steph
Top 3 Hikes
You can read about all our hikes from 2022 here, but of them all, these were our favorites.
Teddy
- Navajo + Queens Garden in Bryce Canyon National Park
- Hidden Lake in Glacier National Park
- Delicate Arch in Arches National Park
Steph
- Avalanche Falls in Glacier National Park
- Leigh Lake in Teton National Park
- James T Saban Lookout in Bighorn National Forest
Top 3 Waterfalls
We did get to see a good amount of waterfalls on our trips this year, but our Northeast and Southeast Trips last year, we saw far more. These were our favorites from the year.
Teddy
- Perrinee Coullee Falls in Twin Falls, Idaho
- Yellowstone Lower Falls
- Baring Falls in Glacier National Park
Steph
- Perrinne Coulee Falls in Twin Falls, Idaho
- Waterfalls behind Avalanche Lake in Glacier
- Unnamed waterfall on the side of Going to the Sun Road in Glacier
Top 3 State Parks
Often, State Parks are just as beautiful as National parks, just with a lot less visitors. These were both of our three favorites of our trips. Our runner up for both of us was Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.
Teddy
- Custer State Park in South Dakota
- Goblin Valley State Park in Utah
- Deadhorse Point State Park in Utah
Steph
- Custer State Park in South Dakota
- Goblin Valley State Park in Utah
- Deadhorse Point State Park in Utah
Favorite Campsite
We only stayed at 3 campsites this year but we stayed at one twice. So we didn’t have a lot to choose from but did truly enjoy where we stayed.
- Teddy – Bellefonte KOA near State College, PA
- Steph – Hershey Road Campground in PA
Favorite Breakfast
- Teddy – Donuts from a donut truck on a camping trip in Elizabethtown, PA
- Steph – Camping breakfast sandwiches over the grill
Favorite Lunch
Favorite Dinner
- Teddy – Mezcal Ribeye at the Beginning Burro in Custer, South Dakota
- Steph – Engagement dinner at the Mural Room in the Tetons
Favorite Dessert
- Teddy – Ice Cream from Clover Leaf Farm in Twin Falls, Idaho
- Steph – S’mores by the campfire
Favorite Drink
Teddy doesn’t like any hot drinks, and just discovered he likes Chai this year. I however tried quite a few huckleberry margaritas on our trip and this was by far the best one.
- Teddy – Golden Eagle Chai from Dutch Bros in Idaho
- Steph – Huckleberry Margarita at the Buffalo Bar in West Yellowstone
Favorite Snack
The drive to get this snack was one of the worst in my life. But I’d do it again if I needed to because these were so good.
- Teddy – Bearclaw from Polebridge
- Steph – Bearclaw from Polebridge
Favorite Spot for Sunrise
This is one where we couldn’t pick one. We saw some incredible sunrises this year.
- Teddy – Joshua Tree, Grand Canyon, Mesa Arch
- Steph – Grand Canyon, Mesa Arch
Favorite Sunset
We also saw some incredible sunsets this year where we also couldn’t just pick one.
- Teddy – Deadhorse Point State Park, Horseshoe Bend
- Steph – Deadhorse Point State Park, Random road in California, Saguaro National Park
Favorite National Forest
We drove through and hiked in quite a few this year but we both ended up with the same favorite in Wyoming.
- Teddy – Big Horn National Forest
- Steph – Big Horn National Forest
Favorite Town
There’s something about those desert towns that Teddy likes and for me, I’ll take a mountain town.
- Teddy – Sedona or Moab
- Steph – Jackson Hole
Favorite City
We realized while doing this that we didn’t really venture much into cities on our trips. We really just are not city folk. One city we did visit you’ll see below is on our overhyped list of places. So here’s what we came up with –
- Teddy – Twin Falls, Idaho
- Steph – Twin Falls, Idaho
Favorite Roadtrip
This was a hard one as we went on two major trips this year but both were very different. The southwest was full of desert, red rocks, flat land, cacti, and brush. The Northwest had waterfalls, evergreens, canyons, mountain views for mile, and steep roads.
- Teddy – Southwest Roadtrip
- Steph – Northwest Roadtrip
Favorite Weekend Trip
We only had a few weekend trips to choose from – either a camping trip or the weekend at the beach. Here’s what we chose-
- Teddy – First time camping with Bailey at the Elizabethtown/Hershey KOA
- Steph – First camping trip with Teddy
Favorite State
Teddy’s pick on this one surprised me a little. Mine didn’t surprise him at all. It’s been one of my favorite states since my first visit in 2008ish.
- Teddy – Arizona
- Steph – Wyoming
Biggest Disappointment
On our Northwest Road trip, we initially were given a very very small SUV that our luggage didn’t even fit in. I asked if we could pay for an upgrade and the agent did it for free. We ended up with a Jeep Cherokee SUV that was perfect for this 2 week trip. Only 2-3 days in, we were driving down a mountain and the whole car started to shake when the brakes were applied. And the more you applied them, the harder it was to apply them as you descended down the mountain. It was a terrifying experience. So we found a spot in South Dakota that had our rental car company and tried to find another car that was safe to drive. They didn’t have any options other than a yellow Jeep Wrangler. It didn’t have any way to connect your phone GPS to the car, and no way to play music since the Bluetooth didn’t work and the cords didn’t work. So for the rest of the trip we cruised in this very bright Jeep. We called it the Bumblebee which explains Teddy’s answer below.
- Teddy – The Bumblebee
- Steph – Not having enough time to do more in Capital Reef. There were two hikes that we absolutely plan to do next time we visit.
Most Overhyped Places
Teddy was so stoked to visit Vegas. I told him I wasn’t sure if it would be what he hoped it would be. Turns out, that was true. We spent a night and morning there and left right away because it’s just not our scene. Teddy didn’t like the Badlands, but the day we visited was so stinking hot it just made the visit not that enjoyable. Monument Valley is pretty, but there’s not a lot to do there unless you can drive the scenic road, which would only let a few cars through during the day, so we just go to look at the overlook and then keep going. Teddy doesn’t like manmade waterfalls which is why this waterfall appears on his list.
- Teddy – Las Vegas, Badlands National Park, Shoshone Falls
- Steph – Monument Valley
Most Surprising
We both have a spot in common for this one. It was so surprising as it was one of the most magical and enchanting places I’ve ever visited. It just felt mystical and peaceful at the same time and we loved the few hours we had there.
- Teddy – Joshua Tree National Park and Devils Tower in Wyoming
- Steph – Devil’s Tower in Wyoming
Favorite Memory
We can’t think of anything that would top getting engaged in the Tetons. So I (Steph) will share a few favorite memories surrounding our engagement.
Let’s start with funny. When Teddy and I were on our hike, I knew this is where we’d get engaged. He did a great job trying to be secretive, but I’m observant. I kept stopping at beautiful views along this hike at Leigh Lake trying to help him out since I knew he was nervous. We found this perfect spot, and he looked at me and I could tell was about to propose, and then didn’t. In my head, I was thinking – you missed your chance for this epic view. I don’t know why, but I’m sure I’ll. find out later. So we kept on hiking. And Teddy did his thing, had a beautiful proposal and then I got to ask – why didn’t you propose back at that spot? And he said, as soon as he was about to do it, he saw a pile of – let’s call it human waste – along the trail. So he said he couldn’t propose right beside that even if it was a beautiful view. I lost it. This made our engagement story even better.
A few minutes after we got engaged, we met this couple who were volunteers who helped out the park rangers just to make sure everyone was respecting the area well. We got to talking to them for. awhile and they told us some crazy stories about what people have done in the parks just that summer that blew our mind. We so enjoyed talking to them and again, made the engagement even more special.
And then the next day, we were taking a selfie in front of the antler arches in Jackson Hole and a couple came up to us and asked if they could take the picture for us since it was very bright out and we couldn’t see the screen well. We said yes and I gave her husband my phone. While he was taking our picture, the woman asked if we were on our honeymoon. We said no, but we did just get engaged the day prior. Her husband was so genuine in his congratulations as was his wife. The best part is, he didn’t ever turn the phone off selfie mode, so we have a live photo of him sharing his excitement for us on my phone. He then took a normal photo for us, but we love the one of him saying “Congratulations!” so much more.
The Stats
- Miles Driving – Around 7300 miles while traveling
- New States – 10 (Total of 32/50 together)
- New National Parks – 16 (Total of 21/63 together)
- Road Trips – 3
- Nights in a Hotel – 23
- Camping Trips – 4
- Nights in the Camper – 8
Overall, we had an incredible year and had so many new experiences together while traveling. We got outside of our comfort zones and were able to do it side by side. Thanks for following along!
Go on and make your own adventure!
