We had come to Moab for Arches National Park. Arches is a very popular park and they instituted a timed entry system to manage the crowds. I forgot to get a slot month out and when I went online the earliest slot available was 11AM. Luckily there is a second chance for people like me that forget to get a slot. They only give out about 60% of the slots initially and the night before they open up the rest. We were able to update our reservation to 9 AM.
The park also allows open entry between 4 PM and 7 AM. We took advantage last night and went in at sunset. Our hotel is only a mile from the park so it is an easy drive. The colors of the sunset were well worth the drive and after a drive we stopped at balanced rock. We made the short hike at twilight and then sat out and chatted with other travelers as the skies darkened and the stars emerged.
We started our official park day in the morning. I was a bit skeptical of the entry slot program and was worried that the park would be too crowded but the program works. Parking is limited throughout the park but we were able to stop everywhere we wanted and always found a space. We entered at 9:15 to avoid the punctual people and took only about 2 minutes to get through the gate. Then we went sightseeing. Park Avenue is an amazing canyon with views of Courthouse Towers. We stopped at both for the views.
We skipped balanced rock and headed out to Double Arch, Window Arches and Turret Arch. These were great, for less than 2 miles of hiking you get 5 arches plus lots of scenic views. Our timing was lucky again. The people around the arches ebbs and flows and we happened to get to them with few other people around.
We also picked up the Garden of Eden. Not sure why it is so named but it was very picturesque and we made an easy climb through some nice rock formations. Moab was supposed to be hot, upper 80s but the temps were much cooler in the morning so it was quite refreshing.
We then headed to the back of the park to see some more arches. The hikes here were a bit harder and we opted for the easier Tunnel Arch and Pine tree Arch. This area was more crowded but was not mobbed, maybe the system works. Also without crazy mobs, it seemed the people were more relaxed. We met and chatted with several people along the way.
On the park's back side we took two more short hikes to Skyline Arch and Sand Dune Arch. Sand Dune Arch requires you to walk through a narrow passage and then trudge through fine silty sand to the arch. It was much harder to hike on the sand but the arch was nice and the shade was refreshing.
It was afternoon by now and it was getting hotter. We were working through our water so when we got to the Delicate Arches we chose to take the short observation walk rather than the multi mile climb to see them up close. We had hit all the trails we had planned and a bit more so after about 5 hours we headed out to get some tall sodas and food.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, the temperatures dropped and we headed back to let the skies darken. We were not done yet though, Arches has good dark skies, so we headed back in one last time and parked by Park Avenue. After a few minutes our eyes adjusted and we were rewarded with the stars. Not the few bright ones we see at home, billions upon billions of them. We could even see the milky way.
We made a great decision and slept in the next day. Our goal was Canyonlands National park. The park was just 30 minutes down the road and we made it to the gate around 9 AM. Once again the park was not too crowded and while spaces were not always plentiful, we did not have to spend much time finding one. This park has some nice short hikes and many brutal long ones. Yesterday we walked around 8 miles. Today we were less ambitious.
Ironically our first stop was Mesa Arch. Yes, yesterday was Arches, today is canyons, yet we went to an arch. Mesa Arch is small in comparison to the others but it frames a view of the canyons that takes your breath away. Pictures were hard when we arrived because there were quite a few visitors but as we were hanging out, they headed off and we had some great quiet time with the views.
The rest of the park is all about the Canyons and a bit about Buttes. I've said it before, I like big buttes. We went from stop to stop enjoying overlooks and making a few short hikes. We spent about 4 hours in the park. The temperatures were initially cool but the high was 88 and as the afternoon progressed we could feel the heat.
In the shade and with a breeze it was actually quite nice but in the sun it was warm. Canyonlands is a great park but since it is right by Arches, it seems to get less love. I must admit, even though I don’t have an Instagram account or use the App, we did some very Instagramy pictures. If I was only a lot cooler, I could be an influencer. I am guessing I am in the wrong demographic for that line of work though.
Our last sightseeing day on our trip, we planned to take it easy. More driving, less hiking. There is an iconic loop road we planned to take but the loop was interrupted. This was the third loop road that was closed on our trip. Once again we had to drive in and out but it was a spectacular drive. We started by following the Colorado river and then headed up into the mountains.
The views were astonishing. Tall canyon walls, flowing water, blue skies. We then turned off the river and headed through a canyon. The greenery surrounding the river melted away to expose the red soil and striated canyon walls. As we progressed further and climbed higher into the mountains the terrain suddenly changed to a more forested mountain landscape.
We arrive at a small pullout, Bull Canyon Overlook. The literature said we had a short trail, so we booted up but it was much shorter than I thought. A few feet from the parking lot we came upon our first prize. Locked in the rock were dinosaur footprints. A three toed beast.
After admiring the talon prints, we received our second prize. There was an amazing view of the canyon. The drop offs were sheer and terrifying so we stayed back from the edge. We followed a short path along the edge, for more spectacular sights. We also had great views of the beginnings of fall. The colors were starting to change on the mountain. We were over 8,000 in elevation and had a close view of the mountain peak.
On the way down we stopped along the way to snap pictures of cool rock formations and enjoy the scenery. We eventually came back to where we started just a mile from the hotel and headed South through Moab. We had one last arch to see. Wilson Arch was 28 miles South and can be seen from the roadside pull out.
The trail up is a bit rough and the boots came in handy here. I did not go all the way but did ascend to just before the arch. The views were striking and it capped off our Utah adventure. The temperature was rising again so we decided to take it easy. I did want to make sure the plane was ready for our flights home so we dropped by the airport to clean the windows, check the fuel and oil and get everything set up. We also loaded all the junk we no longer needed so we had less to do in the morning.
We had one more hike in us and as the sun was starting to set, we headed onto the Moab Canyon Pathway to walk over the Colorado river. The flow seemed anemic and I thought that all those people down in Southern California are getting mighty thirsty. Regardless, it was a nice stroll and the bridge over the river was nice. Time to pack up and file some flight plans, we need to be in the air early in the morning. The Hurricane that we were watching, became a major and is slamming into the bend of Florida but should be out of our way by the time we arrive.
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