Hey Everyone! This week is about trip planning!  I am currently in quarantine due to Covid symptoms so I have plenty of time to plan.  Don't worry I'm feeling fine just have to take a test today and I should be cleared.  But while I was at home I had plenty of time to plan for an epic photography trip ( to me anyway) out west to Utah.  There are a lot of decisions to make when planning your trip.  First when are you going?  What is the main objective for the trip?  How will you get there?  Where will you stay?  Transportation? Permits?  So many questions.  My first suggestion is to start early!  We are 4 months out of our trip and I think this is almost too late.  The earlier the better. I am making an itinerary that I know we will not be able to follow to the letter but it is a good guide line to our trip.  I know that we must be flexible when we are on our trip and some of the best photographs will come from this.   But I like to know things especially where I'm sleeping.

When are you going?  This is a big decision.  We had to make plans that would not interfere with work or family things.  All of our other decisions will depend on these dates.  Weather is another decision to consider will it be too cold or hot when you go.  Will school be in session?  The crowds will be less if school is in session. So after this time frame has been set then you can start all of the other planning.

What is the main objective of this trip?  Is it photography like ours is.  We are taking a road trip of sorts in the west where photography and hiking is the main purpose. Getting to see something that I have never seen before and a pre curser to when I retire I would like to travel and see the west more being from the east coast.

How will you get there?  If its not too far a way a car might be your best bet.  Or even a train oh how I like a train to travel.  But for us going to Utah a plane is our choice.  Its cheap (especially with the price of gas) and  its quick.  Quick is really a big deal.  The less time you take traveling the more time you'll have on your adventures.  For our trip we will be flying into Las Vegas NV. and leaving from Albuquerque NM.

Where will you stay?  Another hard choice.  Can you stay in one spot and take day trips to everywhere?  Thats a great choice.  This won't work for us as we are taking over a 1000 mile road trip.  We will be staying at 4 strategic locations.  Being that these places are such a popular places booking in advance is a must! Share a room if you can to cut cost!  A 200 dollar a night room sounds expensive but if you have two paying its not as bad.  Remember that you will be just sleeping and showering there if you're like us.  We will be exploring all day so you don't have to get a lavish place to stay.  Simple and Clean is what you want.  These can be Air B&B type places or hotels.  We went the hotel route just for simplicity and location.  For where we were going it was the right choice but in other situations Air B&B might be right one.

Transportation?  How will you get from point A to B?  Some trips I have use public transportation like the subway or trains.  For this trip its a car .  We will be traveling over 1000 miles in remote places so we will need transportation to get there.  So we have to rent a car.  What type?  Economy car will be small and not as comfortable as a larger one but it will be less expensive and take less gas to operate.  Terrain also makes a difference if you are going off road you might need something with clearance that a small car wouldn't do. Then there is where you pick it up from and drop it off at.  We will be doing the Airports that we use.

Permits?  If you are traveling to National Parks as we are you might need permits for things you do.  Don't wait till the last minute or you might be too late. One of the hikes that we want to do you have to have a permit to do it with and to get one you have to enter a lottery.  If you wait too long you might miss the time to get permits.  We will also need a car permit for a small National Park to keep it from over crowding.  These are things that you must think of in advance.

As you can see there is a lot that goes into planning a trip whether it is a short over the weekend trip or a long trip that can last a week or more.  I used apps like Expedia and Hotels.com to help me with reservations. I used Recreation.gov to secure permits.  Plan ahead and be flexible when you get there and you are assured to have a great time on your trip.  Explore and plan for your next Adventure!