Sometimes You Just Need A Vacation!

Taking my parents on a Road Trip...

So you might have noticed that I've been pretty quiet along the social media front over the past few weeks. That's because my lovely Mum and Dad came over from Scotland to visit us here in the States. They were over for 4 weeks, and 2 of them consisted of a ridiculously fun road trip over Southern Utah and Arizona. You guys, it was JUST what I needed. Don't get me wrong, I love living in California, but I'm IN LOVE with Utah. I love that you can drive for an hour and be enveloped in a completely different landscape. I love that there's no limit to the amount of outdoor activities you can do. I love that there are hikes available for all ages. I love the people, the food and the LIGHT. Yes, I'm a photographer, so I am allowed to nerd out over natural lighting every once in a while! It's so warm and soft and beautiful.

I am also especially thankful that we finally got to show my parents all these amazing places that we've been telling them about for years. We took separate cars, but sometimes I wish we could have been in the same car so I could hear their excited chit-chat every time we drove over a hill and saw the breathtaking landscape ahead, or every time we drove through a huge canyon or passed lakes or passed signs that said we were at 10,000ft above sea level. I remember the first time I did a road trip in Utah with my friend Sarah. We were so in awe of how HUGE everything was that we frequently had to just stop the car at the side of the road, get out and shout loudly to see if there was an echo. We just don't have that sort of vastness in Scotland! It makes the world feel so huge and it makes us feel so tiny.

I wanted to share with you some images from the trip. In case you are wondering, the beautiful house you see is a vacation rental called Coyote Run in Moab, Utah. It was one of the most beautiful and photogenic places I have ever stayed in - check out our backyard! The other photographs are from various hikes from our road trip, including my favorite hike called the Cassidy Arch Trail which is in Capitol Reef National Park. We just did the last part, which consists of a 1000ft elevation gain in just over a mile before it levels out and you hike about another 3/4 mile to the arch itself.

Hope you are all having a fun week - I've got a few exciting shoots coming up that I can't wait to tell you about!