Arches National Park- Moab, Utah

We climbed the hill from the visitor center at Arches National Park just outside Moab, Utah to claim our site, number 21,  at the Devils Garden Campground.  The dry campground is 18 miles from the visitor center, but the view from the site is unbeatable!

We came here to see arches and have seen everything from the Double Arch to the Double O arch to the Delicate Arch to the Sand Dune Arch to the Navajo Arch to the Partition Arch…(gasp)…We’ve seen so many arches of all shapes and sizes!

We were in awe of Landscape Arch which spans more than a football field in length according to the park newspaper.  In the past two days, we’ve hiked and hiked, more than 10 miles total!

Of course, there was some rest time available for making drawings in the deep sand!

Also the weather was perfect for Caleb to set up his tent for a night sleeping under the full moon, shadowing the distant arches.

We hiked to the upper viewpoint to see Utah’s iconic Delicate Arch.  (Notice the people on the ridge to the left!)  But our longest hike was from the campground out past Landscape Arch to Double O Arch!

We scrambled up slick rock and followed the cairns up along the trail, traversing a fin to get to our destination.  The camera seems to hide well the steep ledges on both sides!

Fall is an ideal time to visit.  The temperatures are in the low 70’s during the day, making hikes very comfortable and lows are in the 40’s, making sleeping after a long day a welcome respite.

Fall Break 2011- Utah

We hooked up the 5er and made our way north through Arizona’s Monument Valley on our way to Utah for Fall Break!  We have a week off of school at a perfect time, when the weather turns cool enough to go for hikes.

We stopped for a few nights in Blanding, Utah while we wait for our reservation date at Arches National Park near Moab.  We originally tried to secure a spot at the Sand Island BLM campground near Bluff, but with the weekend in full swing, it seems lots of people are taking advantage of the cooler weather.   So then we tried for an RV Park in Bluff but they were full at 2 in the afternoon on Saturday.  We continued into Blanding, fueled up at the Shell and paid for a night at the Kampark located next door.  Nice wide, level gravel sites with trees and full hook-ups.  That works!

Blanding is very close to Natural Bridges National Monument.  So we loaded up the dogs, packed a lunch and took a Sunday drive.  We were greeted with magnificent views of 3 natural bridges.

We hiked down the trail to stand near the Owachomo bridge.  Amazing how massive this natural wonder is!  It stands 106 feet high, spans 180 feet, is 27 feet wide and only 9 feet thick!  A stream no longer runs under this bridge as is does under the Sipapu and Kachina bridges.    

The bridges are formed from moving water eroding the sandstone, whereas the arches we will soon be seeing are formed from erosion due to frost and seeping moisture.

Looking forward to more exploring!

57 Days & 5,733 Miles

We made our way through New Mexico and across Arizona to arrive at our sticks and stucco in the Verde Valley.  We’ve been on the road 57 days and logged 5,733 miles!  We’ve experienced wonderful adventures, seen beautiful places, spent valuable time with family, and were blessed with safe travels!  We’ve paid as much as $4.39 a gallon for diesel in Torrey but the average seemed to be about $3.85 a gallon.  We visited 2 national parks, 3 national monuments, 5 state parks.  We visited Northwestern Ontario as well! 

As we prepare for the upcoming school year, which starts the first of August in Arizona, we look forward to weekends in the forest camping with friends, traveling a week in October, two weeks at Christmas, and a week in March. 

Life is good!