US Southwest Recommendations

 Since I’m about to leave the Southwest, I figured it’s about time I put all of my Southwest recommendations in one place (not in any particular order):


  • Mt. Baldy/the White Mountains in northeast AZ
  • The entire Mogollon Rim area (tons of good backpacking trails, viewpoints, towns, etc.) and Tonto Natural Bridge State Park
  • Vermillion Cliffs/Marble Canyon area - Cathedral Wash and Buckskin Gulch trails (free BLM camping at 36.753087, -111.71866)
  • One of my favorite experiences was a 2 day, 1 night kayaking trip down the Colorado River starting at Glen Canyon Dam (requires $90 water taxi backhaul), going thru Horseshoe Bend, and ending at Lee’s Ferry
  • Monument Valley ($8 entry per person) 
  • Valley of the Gods (free)
  • Goosenecks State Park (camping for $10)
  • Amazing free campground in the Navajo land area at Navajo National Monument = Sunset View Campground
  • Backpacking to Manning Camp at Saguaro National Park
  • Backpacking in the Gila Wilderness
  • A quirky California road trip including Joshua Tree NP, Transmission Sculpture, the Bombay Beach Ruins, Salvation Mountain, hot spring near Slab City, and Buttercup Sand Dunes
  • Petrified Forest National Park backcountry trail 
  • Canyonlands and Capitol Reef National Parks in Utah, Death Valley NP in California


*you do not see the Superstitions on here because we have a hate-hate relationship 🙃

**Sedona is pretty but I really don’t like it bc of the crowds so I never recommend it to ppl, esp bc there are much cooler places to visit in my opinion 

























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