We started early, watching the sun rise above the desert on the way over to Canyonlands. It was a nice park with lots of huge canyon views. Most of the canyons had multiple layers where thousands and thousands of years of erosion had taken their toll. The terrain looked like a fresh construction site after a thunderstorm when the water has washed small ditches in the dirt...except here it was on a much bigger scale. Maybe this is what an ant sees every day. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking for this blog. Again, I apologize for the dust stuck inside my camera lens. It ruined many great pictures on this trip.
It's funny the things you take a picture of when you first see a new landscape. This was nothing compared to what we saw later, but we were amazed at the time we first saw this.
A beautiful Saturday morning sunrise in the desert
Rock formations on the way to Canyonlands
Now in Canyonlands, this is the road that crosses the narrow neck that leads to the Island in the Sky, which is a huge plateau standing tall above the eroded desert canyons.
Shaffer Canyon
A twisty road going into Shaffer Canyon
I was wanting my bike so bad...especially when I saw people descending this twisty canyon road. There's a rider visible in this shot.
Another rider heading down into the canyon
Plenty of bike riders enjoying the free entry day
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands
View of some rock structures from the Mesa Arch Overlook
It was interesting to me how many foreign people there were visiting the park. There were more Germans and French people there than Americans. I missed my bike. There were some sweet gravel roads winding down into the canyons that looked like fun descents and even more fun twisty climbs. I saw several people riding which made me miss riding that much more. We encountered quite a few grumpy photographers as well. They were always posted up at the best angle for that overlook and would stand there for hours without letting anyone else get in a shot from the spot. It was rude.
Shannon crouching in this rock den along the trail to Upheaval Dome
Desert lizard
The Upheaval Dome. It's a massive dome of salt sticking up from the middle of a canyon. There's two theories on its creation: 1) created by meteorite impact 2) erosion of rock that was covering a salt deposit left over from an ancient lake.
Rocks marking the path to the second Upheaval Dome Overlook
Rock piles lead the way
Trees and shrubs growing in this dip in the rock formation
Looking through a hole formed in a rock outcropping along the hiking trail
Another view of Upheaval Dome
A group of German tourists hiking toward Upheaval Dome
Green River Overlook
Buck Canyon
Me and Shannon at Buck Canyon
Grand View Overlook
Pothole on the rock at Grand View Overlook
The Orange Cliffs
Us at Orange Cliffs
Orange Cliffs
The trail to Orange Cliffs involved some rock climbing
Candlestick Overlook
The rock formation known as Candlestick
After hitting Canyonlands in the morning, we drove into Moab to explore town and grab some lunch. Again, I was not super impressed with Moab. It's just a touristy desert town. Nothing more. We wanted to eat at the Love Muffin Cafe just because of its name, but it closed at 1 pm. I guess they do early lunch only. Next option was the Slickrock Cafe. They were open and we were able to fill up on some tasty burgers and fries before heading over to Arches National Park.
See, I wasn't kidding about having a tiny campsite
The Moab shopping strip
There were way more people visiting Arches than what we saw at Canyonlands. And we quickly found out why. Arches was beautiful. The Arches were amazing works of nature and the rocks featured all sorts of colors. We saw every shade of brown and red on the rocks, and also the occasional black, yellow, green and blue. Again, I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.
Looking down on the Moab Fault Line. It's visible just off to the left side of the road, sort of a small line in the rocks that is just a few feet from the highway. The big crack higher up the hill is a road.
Looking down on the Visitor's Center and entrance to the park from the top of the first ridge.
Petrified sand dunes with the La Sal Mountains in the background
The North and South Windows are visible as you drive into the park on the main road
Balance Rock
Passing by Fiery Furnace on our way to Devil's Garden
Some of the hikes were difficult over crazy rock ledges and narrow passes, but they were all worth it. Our favorite area was the Garden of Eden, which is an area that includes the Windows, Double Arch and Elephant Rock.
The hiking trail into Devil's Garden
Tunnel Arch with a smaller arch forming off to the left
Pine Tree Arch
Landscape Arch was one of the coolest features in the park. It is narrow in places and spans 290 feet. Yeah, that's almost a football field.
Sun peaking through Landscape Arch.
The trail got more advanced as we got deeper into Devil's Garden. This is where a lot of people, including Shannon, ended their exploration of this trail.
The trail back to Partition Arch
Looking through one side of Partition Arch
Partition Arch
The sun shining through the holes in Partition Arch
I snapped this picture with my phone just as a raven flew through the arch.
Interesting rock formations near Navajo Arch
Looking out from inside Navajo Arch
Black Arch from across the canyon
Double O Arch
Closer look at Double O.
The Devil's Garden followed a tall rock ridge called a "fin."
Driving up to the Fiery Furnace
Stacks of rocks at the Fiery Furnace Overlook
Fiery Furnace has high iron concentrations which produce the distinct darker color
Shannon and I at Fiery Furnace
Shades of blue and green deposited on a hillside
Delicate Arch is by far the most famous and popular feature in the park. We hiked up to the viewpoint where you could see it, but never went all the way. There were just too many photo-crazed people up there. The view spot had a better look at the old river basin next to Delicate Arch anyway. It's still amazing to think that an arch of rock is standing out on a ledge with nothing else standing around.
View from the trail to the Delicate Arch viewpoint
Delicate Arch and lots of crazy people looking at it
The dry river basin near Delicate Arch
Too many people standing on that ridge for me.
Our feet were very sore by the end of the day, but it was more than worth it. We saw two of America's greatest landmarks. I will probably never go back to Canyonlands without a bike, but I would definitely go back to Arches anytime. It is unbelievable and you have to see it if you are ever in the area.
Sunset on the red rock cliffs inside Arches National Park
The glowing sun just after it disappeared below the desert horizon.
Elephant Rock
My favorite arch of all, Double Arch
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