Fall Honeymoon Road Trip Out West

The COVID pandemic forced my Fiancé and I to swap out our forever coveted exotic beach vacation for a road trip in the continental United States and let me tell ya, it was one of the best experiences of our lives! Out little mini-moon turned into a whole lot of honeymoon and I wouldn’t take back a second from this experience, even the fact that the passenger seat didn’t recline. Road tripping to National Parks or stopping to enjoy what our country has to offer was never something that was really on our agenda. We looked abroad for travel recommendations or hopped on a flight to the nearest beach. Taking a road trip out West really opened up our minds to a new kind of travel and has me itching to go back to see more. We traveled just shy of two weeks, our trip totaled 5 different hotels and we tried to limit our travel at a max of 3-4 hours between stops to limit ourselves from spending the entire vacation in a jeep, beep beep. Our trip started out in Colorado, we took a flight into Denver and from there drove to the Rockies. This is where our recommendations come into place.

Colorado

On our trip from Denver to Aspen we took the highly recommended Independence pass. This route will add some time to your travel but the scenic views of the mountains and the Aspens taking on the Fall color scheme ended up being a highlight of our trip. The first stop we pulled off at were Twin Lakes with a beautiful mountainous backdrop. We took a deep breath of fresh air, skipped some rocks and headed on our way. We stopped and grabbed some coffee and burritos to hold us over for the rest of the trip to Aspen at Perkolated Peaks. Neat VW van serving up the goods right through the window. We stopped and pulled off at random places one spot cooler than the last. One that was exceptionally notable was the swimming hole, close to the grottos. There were a few people daring enough to jump from the top of the rocks into the swimming hole, I kept my feet planted on the ground. You can see below I was in a pair of espadrilles, I changed those out for a pair of On Clouds to explore a little safer on these rocks. Keep in mind Independence Pass closes when it starts to snow and stays that way for the remainder of the winter season because the pass becomes undrivable. Be sure to find out if this pass is open before attempting to travel that way.

Once arriving in Aspen we checked into the W hotel who’s rooftop has the best views of the city. We grabbed lunch on both the terrace and the rooftop while we stayed there. Both areas have a peaceful ambiance and multiple firepits to keep your fingers warm once it starts to cool down. The rooftop is also equipped with a hot tub where you can sip a cocktail and take in the views.

Activities in Apsen we recommend:

1. Drive to the top of Aspen mountain (the entrance is right near the W hotel) where we stopped at the top for some fantastic views and a quick bite to eat. We then continued our journey down the backside of the mountain. We took this back trail to get to the Ashcroft ghost town . The town is also reachable from a main road, but again we wanted the scenic views. The trail was groomed and the views were STUNNING, if you are in a Jeep were you can remove the top, DO IT! No, Ashcroft is technically not an actual ghost town but it is an abandoned mining town from the 1880’s with a pretty interesting history
2. Spring Cafe for breakfast (Vegan and GF options) and you can order online for grab and go. This was super convenient because we could eat on the way to hiking or in the car when we left for our next destination.
3. J bar inside the hotel lobby for drinks. First come first serve. Dark romantic atmosphere, absolutely loved the vibe.
4. Hoochie bar for drinks. First come first serve. Another dark romantic atmosphere.
5. Jimmys for dinner

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Moab to Park City

On the way we took 70 to 191 to 189 and stopped at:

1. Bridal Veil Falls

2. Homestead Crater Mineral Dome Hot Spring

3. Tons of great restaurants to grab dinner at, be sure to makes reservations in advance

We only stayed in Park City for one night but definitely want to go back during the winter months for snowboarding.

Park City to Teton Village

We stayed at the Four Seasons Resort with a view of the mountain. They have a great spa, outdoor pool and multiple hot tubs. We spent two days at the National Parks, starting off at Yellowstone (*bring binoculars and food/snacks). They do have a place in the park to grab some food at but our snacks held us over for quite awhile before we needed real food.

1. While in Yellowstone we checked out:
   • Midway Guiser
   • Buiscut Basin
   • Mystic Falls – hike and take the lower pass for an easier hike, leave the same way you came in to avoid the upper hike. If you are wanting the extra hiking take the upper trail back, it pays off in beautiful views. *Recommend having water
   • Old Faithful
   • Kepler Cascade Waterfall (right off the road)
2. Grand Teton National Park
   • Oxbow Bend down to river access
   • Pacific Creek Road to Two Ocean Lake
   • Elk Ranch at dusk you can see Elk and Bison migrating across the road moving from the valley into the hills
   • Jackson Lake
   • Jenny Lake

Teton Village to Salt Lake City

Just a place to lay our heads before we flew out in the morning. To end our trip on a high note we grabbed a nice dinner at Ruth Chris’s steak house and got a full nights rest! Sight seeing can be exhausting! Please feel free to email me with any questions or if you are looking for any additional recommendations, I would be happy to help. Like I said, this road trip was unconventional to the type of vacations we typically take but it forever has me hooked on the beauty we have within our own continental Unites States. There is so much to see and do I can not wait to plan our next roadtrip!