When last I left you, we had decided to depart Bryce a day early for our ride to Moab and had reached our destination, dined on some italian food, and bedded on down.  Waking up in Moab the day we expected to arrive afforded us lots of opportunities to do things we might not have otherwise done.  After a pleasant breakfast at our band-aid hotel (where we all slept wonderfully) we drove up to Canyonlands National Park.  It took us a solid 45 minutes to get there from Moab, but the drive up was pleasant and the temperature at 8:30 in the morning was still slightly below 100 degrees.

Canyonlands is a vast park and it is impossible to see all of it in any one trip.  The best you can do is to pick a section of the park and check it out.  We decided that the Islands in the Sky section was best for us.  We drove to the end of the road and took in the vast expanse of the park.  You could see another section, The Needles, off in the distance.  After a walk out to Mesa Arch we headed out.  Mesa Arch was cool though.  A short .25 mile-ish walk out to the arch provided cool views and an arch that was neater than any of us expected.  I was glad that we had come in to Moab the day before and then drove here.  I think that if we had stuck to our original plan and driven in from Bryce, Canyonlands would have been almost an afterthought, and that would have been too bad.

Heading back to Moab, we swung by Dead Horse Point State Park.  This park is meant to have some of the best views of Southern Utah.  The park fee of $15 was bit steep, but it’s doubtful I’m ever back here so we went.  The legend is a group of cowboys rounded up some wild horses, drove them out to a point with a narrow neck, and sealed them there.  Once they decided which ones to take, they left the rest to die.  The views from here were more or less the same as Canyonlands.

Driving in reverse from the way we went, we decided that it was past time to get some food.  The boss had done some looking and we all agreed that Sweet Cravings Bakery and Bistro was the place to go.  Lucy loves sandwiches and it seemed to be a good option.  It was.  The sandwiches were amazing and they took great care in preparation.  They had a wide selection of paninis, cold sandwiches, wraps, and salads.  We all had different main courses, but the kicker was the lemon spritzer.  I never knew that lemonade combined with sprite would be so darn tasty.  But, boy was it!

After a good amount of time in Utah, seeing parks, and walking lots, the boss had the inspired idea to try something different.  She thought something involving water might be fun.  Well, just across the street from our lunch spot was Adrift Adventures.  She and I walked in and asked if there was any availability for anything in the next day or so.  Well, wouldn’t you know it?  They had room on the very next day in the morning for a float down the Colorado River.  Booked and paid for right then.  We drove to our hotel, The Gonzo Inn, let them know we were there and then waited a few minutes for our room to be ready by the pool.

After resting in the room for a time, we made our first trip into Arches National Park.  Confetti!  Horns!  Party time!!!  We had completed our adventure of hitting all 5 parks in Utah.  A stop by Balanced Rock and a loop around it was cool.  We then drove to the Double Arch and Windows section of the park.  By now it was evening, approaching 7pm with a temperature right at 100.  The walk to Double Arch was easy and when we got there, you could climb up into it and see how it was possible for it to form.  The walk to the Windows was equally as easy.  There are three arches here to see; Turret Arch, South Window, and North Window.  We started with Turret and worked our way to North Window.  It is hard to convey the sheer size of the arches.  They’re big.  I mean, like really big.  Thinking about the forces and the time required to create them is mind-blowing.  Time had slipped away and the sun was starting to set.  On one side of the arch was the sunset, on the on the other side, moonrise.  Pretty spectacular.  Around 9 we left the park heading back to the hotel.

After a stop at a Wendy’s that might go down as the worst Wendy’s in America we got back and called it a night.  Deciding to leave Bryce early and come on in was a great idea.  It gave us time to not be rushed in Canyonlands and to have the energy to head into Arches at dusk.  Had I driven in the same day, I’m not sure that would’ve been possible.  As it was, we were rested, saw all of these things, and were in our room past dark (a first for this trip).  All that’s left now is to make the most of our final two days.

All photos in Arches are by Ethel…not bad.