“You shouldn't be afraid to fail. Most people take the easy way and they take things they know they can do because they're afraid to fail. If you fail, you try again. If you fail at the same thing 3 or 4 times, then you say maybe I'm not going to do that, but at least you tried and you know.” — David Kleinman

I’ve been thinking of the move to Utah a lot recently – how I went from really struggling, to finding peace – and how that experience has helped me during this last year of the “new normal” and all the things we weren’t expecting in 2020.

At first, it was at least an adventure, something different. Soon though, I began to feel confused, purposeless, and, despite being newly married and with some friends around, ultimately very alone.

As you may know, if you’ve been here before, Matt and I got married June 24, 2017 in Nashville, TN. What you may not know is how it started.

Matt and I met at a transition point in both of our lives…

Fun fact: my grandparents lived in Indianapolis for a period of time while my dad was growing up. That’s part of the reason I heard of Brown County State Park – it’s been an Indiana gem for at least the last 50 years! We know we have a lot to explore here in Indiana, and southern Indiana felt like a good place to go.

A huge benefit of living in Utah is access to incredible hikes and scenery all over the state. It’s something I loved continuing to discover when visiting and eventually living there. I’ve compiled my favorite hikes near(ish) to Provo.

Primarily the Spiral Jetty is just a really cool place to check out and see another part of the Great Salt Lake as well as an interesting artwork. Plus, on the way there was an unexpected surprise – the Golden Spike National Monument!

An original Dutch operating windmill (the only in the United States!), Lake Michigan feels like an ocean, there is actually an overlook (we miss climbing up to a view!), B&Bs that really feel like you’re in Europe, and an iconic red lighthouse – what more could you want?

I went on a girls trip to Escalante National Monument for a couple days and did a lot of hiking. For those ready to get outside and explore this area, here’s what we did, what I would have changed, and recommendations for being as cautious as possible.