Utah Here We Come

The Dolphin has been sold but that doesn't mean the adventures stop. Myself and my two friends Sarah and Maggie will be taking a week long road trip to Utah to explore some more national parks. We will be going to Zion national park, Bryce Canyon, and Arches National Park. The good news is we have AC in the car! The plan is to tent camp and to see as much as we can see in that week.

I have missed the Utah landscape and can't wait to get back there to explore some more. I will get to see the arches in Moab that I missed last summer due to road construction. I can't way to hike in Devil's Canyon at the back of the park.

Utah here we come!!

Desert Solitaire

Yesterday we were back at Arches Nat'l Park, this time we went out to the Windows Arches, Turret Arch and Double Arch. The Windows are two Arches, a north and a south one. The Double Arch, as in the name is two Arches joining each other. We hiked around the sandstone for the afternoon then made our way back into Moab. The other day we got coupons for a free piece of petrified dinosaur bone from Lin Ottinger's Rock Shop. So we stopped in on the rock shop to see what the store had to offer us. There are tons of rocks and gems that fill the inside and outside patio of the store. When we entered the store Lin was working there. He is an older man who goes around Utah and finds dinosaur bones. He found a full skeleton and donated it to BYU. He told us all about his findings and that because of his advances in paleontology there has been a dinosaur named after him.We looked around the shop for about an hour, collected our free dinosaur bones then went to dinner. We went to the Moab Brewery for dinner and drinks. The place had amazing service and the food and beer was delicious. After sneaking some showers at a RV camp we settled in for the night in some parking lot.



Double Arch

Natalie getting some shade at Arches

Today we woke early and went back to Arches, the rangers working the gate have come to recognize us. We took a 2 mile hike at Park Ave trail and saw Court House Towers and Sheep Rock (which actually looks like a sheep) We left Arches early and picked up some more groceries then drove to Canyonlands Nat'l Park. Our first stop outside the park was Newspaper Rock- which is covered in ancient petroglyphs. Once inside the park we made two short hikes at Roadside Ruins, which has a small structure that once held grains for the natives, and to Cave Springs a hike that runs under the alcoves of the canyons, the same alcoves that protected the cowboys that used to run cattle. Our hike led us up a couple wooden ladders to the top of the cliff and along the rim. When we were done hiking for the day we drove the motor home down a gravel road to Elephant Hill where we cooked dinner and talked to the passing hikers. A hiker came off the trail and asked if we could give him a ride. He had just hiked 10 miles through the canyons, and had been in desolation for 3 days. We had extra food and offered him dinner and refilled his water. We all ate and learned of each others adventures. When we were done with dinner we made our way to the camp with our new friend. At camp we said goodbye and we went to see a ranger talk about the plant life in Canyonlands. The talk was very interesting and we learned about how the plants had survived the harsh conditions of drought and monsoons.We drove back to Moab where we will be staying for the night, tomorrow we plan on heading towards Colorado.



Petroglyphs at Newspaper Rock



Natalie hanging out in a hole at Park Ave trail- Arches

Quote:
     "The most dangerous risk of all- the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself freedom to do it later."

Canyon Lands

Map Route

Finally some WiFi! What an adventure it has been so far. We left for our trip Friday the 13th for good luck. We planned to leave at 9am but pulled out around 4pm due to a series of wait I need this and we have to run this errand, and don't forget grocery shopping.  After following the Strawberry Moon to Lancaster, CA we settled in at Natalie's sister's house. The next day we woke with anticipation for the journey to come. With a short stop to get our stereo fixed so we could have tunes, we were on the road.

Our first pic with the Dolphin at Hoover Dam

We made a short drive to Las Vegas, NV to stay with some friends. Neither Natalie nor Nick had been before so we experienced a night on the town at the new strip. The next day we walked down the old Las Vegas strip then headed out to the Hoover Dam. It was crazy to see that such a large structure had been constructed in the 1930's. We were then on our way to Flagstaff, AZ. On the drive we decided to change our destination and to just drive straight through the night to the Grand Canyon. We planned to sleep in the Dolphin at some parking lot, then wake up to see the beautiful canyon.  (a side note: the only AC our motor home has is in the driving area, we are slowly adapting to the hot box. No AC-> more sweat:  awesomeness + limited showers =  we've officially become dirty hippies) On the drive out there we saw tons of elk lurking by the road in the dark. Luckily Natalie was driving, her safe driving and keen eye prevented us from killing an elk and stopping our trip early. About 2am we came upon a car that had hit an elk, the car and the animal were destroyed. Pieces of elk were strewn across the highway and the front end of the car was smashed in badly. We stopped to check on the passengers, turns out they were from Sacramento, they were ok, definitely shook up. No one had cell service so we told them we would drive into the town about 10 miles up the road and send someone out to help them. We got to the town and everything was closed, we stopped at a hotel, knowing someone would be working the front desk. The lady said it was very common and called the police to head out to the crash. We got to sleep around 3 am.

A desert flower over the Grand Canyon

After hours of running around the Grand Canyon we made our way north east through the Painted Desert. We couldn't see much because there was a huge sand storm. The wind was blowing our little motor home all over the road and creating a clouded view of the canyons. Our trip led us to the Dinosaur Tracks, where Leonna, a local native, showed us the prints all over the sandstone rocks. We left quickly to avoid the sand blasts that exfoliated our skin and continued north to the Navajo Nat'l Monument- where the Anasazi had built their homes into the walls of the canyons. We were able to see the structures from a view point and imagined life thousands of years ago. Our day wasn't over just yet, we drove to Monument Valley to see buttes, spires, and pinnacles that shaped the American ideal of the wild west. Monument Valley is where many John Wayne films were located. We stayed the night in Mexican Hat, UT at a boat ramp; a secluded area next to the San Juan river. (on our drive through Indian reservations we stopped at a market to get some food, outside the store a man was selling weed out of a box, probably the strangest thing we've seen so far.)



Navajo Nat'l Monument- Ancient ruins built into the canyon wall.                       Natalie checking out some Dino tracks

The next day we drove to Bluff, UT and checked out the Bluff Fort, a replicated community from the Mormon settlers. We played dress up in children's western clothes and rode on wooden horses, as well as dressed up in pioneer clothes and got to sit in an old wagon. We were in tears from laughing at how silly we are. Our next stop was Hovenweep Nat'l Monument, a short hike on canyon ridges to see some native ruins, and towers that were built on the canyon cliffs. We continued east to Four Corners. We stood where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona all meet in one place and you can have your body in 4 states at once. Leaving Four Corners we drove south back to Arizona to Canyon de Chelle. We camped in Chinle and planned a day of canyon dwelling.

Our feet at 4 corners- New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.





In the old wagon at Bluff Fort



In Canyon de Chelle we drove to various overlooks; canyon tops that plunge down to the lush green plains that are inhabited by natives. At White House overlook we hiked to the base and got an up close view of ruins built into a large crevice in the canyon wall. With our 2.5 mile hike out of the way we departed Arizona and made our way back into Utah. Our destination is Moab to see Arches Nat'l Park. We picked up provisions in Blanding, UT and had a picnic at the Edge of the Cedars State Park. We made it to Moab at night fall and were drawn into a campground by the hot tub and swimming pool. Some full pressured showers made us feel like we had made a great investment.



Hiking down to White House.

At White House

We woke today in Moab and spent the day at Arches Nat'l Park. We drove as deep into the park as we could and worked our way back to the entrance. Turns out they're doing construction this week so the Devil's Canyon is inaccessible. We're pretty bummed about missing some arches but made the most of it by hiking all of the other trails. We hiked to Broken Arch and Sand Dune Arch, these were short hikes with a lot of people running around. After a nap that was interrupted by children crying we drove to Delicate Arch, a 3 mile hike that was very steep and super hot. We finally made our way to the very top and after waiting for all of the other tourists, we were able to get some pictures. We enjoyed some snacks and the view then climbed back down. Before heading out we stopped at a couple overlooks then pulled off on a dirt road for dinner. We had finally found a secluded place where we could BBQ, relax, and enjoy the sunset over the valley and Balanced Rock. Tomorrow we will be back at Arches to see more that the park has to offer.





Tiny me and Nick in Delicate Arch

Sunset at Arches Nat'l Park







Quote:
      "I always wonder why birds stay in the same place when they can fly anywhere on earth, then I ask myself the same question." ~Harun Yahya