We know that every year, once January hits, we want to get out of Iowa as soon as humanly possible.
As the new year started we began getting more snow, colder temps, and started feeling trapped as parents to a one year old with nowhere to go in the middle of the pandemic so we got curious about a road trip.
We knew we wanted a trip that would allow us to go at our own pace, stopping in different cities on the way just in case Penelope wasn’t handling the road trip well. We also wanted to go somewhere new, preferably warm and with lots of outdoor options.
We settled on Sante Fe.
The trip down had us stopping in KC (3 hour drive), heading to OKC (5 hours), and then to Sante Fe (8 hours). Penelope was a champ. There were only a few moments where she was like “GET ME OUT OF THIS CAR SEAT,” but we happen to be highly entertaining parents so we kept her happy, and she napped great!
Here we are at the Texas border.
Palo Duro Canyon State Park
The best part about a road trip is the stops along the way. We made Palo Duro Canyon State Park one of those. It’s a massive hole, located just outside of Amarillo (cue the George Strait) and it’s actually the second biggest canyon outside of the Grand Canyon.
Our Ergobaby Omni 360 has been one of our favorite ways to hike with P, however this trip she haaaated it. We had a minor internal freak out moment because this trip was going to primarily be about being outside… hiking. Maybe it wasn’t the carrier, maybe it was the long day in the car, but next thing we knew we were looking up more sophisticated hiking carriers.
Despite P not totally digging Palo Duro, we absolutely loved it and wished we had a couple days there to explore all the trails. There are 13 options with a variety of length, and mix of easy, moderate, and challenging levels. Highly advise a day or two here if you enjoy hiking and beautiful sights.
And four hours later, we made it to Sante Fe. 😁
The Airbnb Route
We chose to stay in an Airbnb so we could cook some of our own meals and be mindful of social distancing, which is a little more challenging in a hotel. It took us *forever* to find the perfect one because I really wanted adobe vibes, close to downtown, and child-friendly.
This is our preferred way to travel (until we get our Happier Camper that is…) and now that we have a kid, we’ll definitely keep going this route until we find a hotel with a water park. 🤩
The Child Carrier Upgrade
One of our first ventures out, besides finding good coffee, was to get our hands on a child carrier. We were about a 10-minute walk to a REI which had a few options, so we snagged this and immediate popped her inside. She. Loved. It. As you’ll see below in pics. 🥰
I think she particularly enjoyed being up so high, and she instantly started making little sounds that we’ve learned to interpret as joy. The other carrier we have is skin to skin versus her own little seat! We are sooooo glad we found this as it made all of our hiking adventures super fun for everyone.
Our Hiking Adventures in Sante Fe
We went on several different hikes while we were in Sante Fe. Some were lengthier than others, some were quick little hikes to break up the day and be outside. There wasn’t one specific hike we thought wasn’t worth it, we recommend all of them for different reasons! Here are a handful of them.
Tsankawi
This was our first outing with the new carrier so we chose a pretty easy 1.5 mile hike. We managed to get a little lost, but thankfully it was light enough outside for us to navigate back to the path. 😅 We loved the ladders we got to climb, the little caves, and the views were amazing.
Bandelier National Monument
This was our longest hiking day and we both got to carry P down and up a big mountain. From ancient Pueblo ruins to cave dwellings, this was one of the coolest parks to visit. I *think* this would be the one I would recommend over everything else for the most adventurous type of day.
Petroglyph National Monument: The Black Volcanoes
While Zach was working, we decided to take a girls trip to Albuquerque. It was about an hour away, so I packed up all the goods P would need and off we went. It was one of the most challenging experiences as a solo parent as P didn’t care for the long-ish drive, had a blow out (and hates diaper changes), and wasn’t into the carrier for the first time. But we prevailed and made the most of it!
Sun Mountain
We took a little lunch outing to Sun Mountain as a family when Z had a little break in the day. We snagged some tacos at a taco truck & ate out of the trunk, which was interesting. Our hike was about 1.4 miles so we knew it was doable in a short timeframe. It was one of the more intense hikes up towards the top, but Zach is a champ and got P up in her carrier yet again!
Petroglyph National Monument: The Petroglyphs
Our final adventure on the trip was in Albuquerque. We packed up the family and headed back to check out some petroglyphs. Right as we started this walk we got a call from our house cleaner saying it was “very cold” inside and upon checking further, it was only 45 degrees inside!
We called my parents right away to see if it could be fixed so our pipes wouldn’t freeze and our cats wouldn’t be too chilly. Thankfully everything worked out fine, but it definitely freaked us out.
The Petroglyphs were amazing! We wrapped up the day with Korean food & beer on a patio. Solid day!
Road Trip Home
We left around 4 a.m. on Thursday and decided we would “see how it goes.” If Penelope was getting really upset in her carseat, we would find a place to stay overnight. We took lots of little breaks, entertained her with the weirdest games, and ultimately drove the entire way back to Des Moines from Sante Fe! It was a 15-hour day and everyone handled it well.
We stopped in KC for some sushi, but otherwise it was a day of great music, podcasts, reading books to P, and making the most of the day! We were of course coming back to lots of snow and a very, very cold state.
Overall, this trip was incredible. We had so many questions and unknowns with Penelope, but my mindset is “if you never try you’ll never know.” So we tried and loved it. There is sooo much more we wanted to see and do; we’ll have to go back post-Covid and get more acquainted.