Moab, Utah

Yesterday was a goof-off day! We didn't get up early, we didn't rush to go anywhere and then we played golf in the hottest part of the day and enjoyed it! It is so dry here that 96 degrees feels like 85. We even went out to eat dinner at the Sunset Grill located on the side of a canyon wall over looking Moab and the setting sun.

We  have been real hesitant to take any of the off-road trails around here as they are all listed as difficult - black diamonds! We tried to find a guide to go with us, but they were too busy. We visited with some neighboring campers but they stuck to the easy stuff so we picked an easier difficult trail and took off on our own.

We crawled along on Fins and Things Trail. Fins are long stretches of slickrock boulders that one can drive along the top but getting up and down can be a real trick. This trail was only about 10 miles long but it took us over 3 hours to drive it and we saw no other Jeeps until the very end. We went up some rocks that were so vertical that it felt like we were going to tip over backward. And then we had to go down! It took about 6 steep declines before we figured out how to stop scraping the bottom of the Jeep. And the harder the trail the more John LOVED it! He kept picking the hardest route up and down. WOO-HOO! What a day!

Canyonlands National Park

We got up early this morning and took a sunrise hike on a path around the campgrounds. We saw more arches! Broken Arch (not really, just a crack), Sand Dune and Skyline Arch. It was cool, no wind and no people.  

We packed and left the RV at the visitor's center parking lot and then drove the Jeep to Canyonlands National Park which is just across the road from Arches. This park is so large that it has been divided into 3 distinct sections. We visit the Island in the Sky District. The Needles and The Mazes Districts are quite a drive from Moab and The Mazes Dist. has very few roads thru it, mostly for 4WD.

The scenery is indescribable! Upheaval Dome is a green mountain of salt, Green River Overlook shows the Green River going thru great canyons carved into a flat mesa, and Grand View Point shows the Colorado River carving it's route thru the canyons. I hope our pictures tell the story better than I can.

We drove an easy trail back with the exception of one stretch that was moderately difficult because it took us under a boulder! The canyon we drove thru was fabulous! Such tall walls on both sides.

We are staying in a full-service RV park ! Yeah, a real shower!

Arches National Park, Utah

We arrived in Arches National Park on Thursday afternoon and since we had reservations we easily found our camping spot. It is a good thing too as the area is very busy. We sometimes feel we are in Europe instead of the US as there are so many of them in our National Parks. August is their holiday time and they rent RV's to explore our great country.

We were on the trails at 8 AM both Fri. and Sat. and got a lot of sightseeing accomplished. We hiked out thru the Devil's Garden Area where we saw the largest arch called Landscape Arch. Part of it broke off last year so this is a popular place. 2 miles down the path is the Double O Arch and another 1/2 mile took us to the monolith called Dark Angel. On this 6-1/  2 mile round trip hike with side trips to see the Navaho and Partition Arches. Later in the day we hiked up to the Windows Arches and the Turret Arch. The day was very windy and dusty so we were happy to take showers in the RV.

Saturday we hiked up to the most famous arch in the park -- Delicate Arch (3 mile round trip). This is the arch most often seen on license plates and in literature. Enough hiking, we took the Jeep out to Klondike Bluffs to see Tower Arch. Part of the drive was moderately difficult but most is thru sand.

The Joys of Vail

On Monday we drove to Gypsum in the Vail area to camp. It is the closest place we can find to Edwards where our friends John & Susanna and Jack & Mary are staying. The next days were busy with golfing, biking, shopping, jeeping and eating! We biked along Glenwood Canyon where the trail runs along I-70 and the Colorado River. One day the girls went shopping and the guys went 'bouldering' in the Jeep. We really enjoyed being with our friends, enjoying the mountains, and the 'vails'.

Marble CO

Yesterday, we left Ouray not knowing exactly where we were going to stay although we had 4 places chosen. Unfortunately it is Saturday and everyone is full. In desperation, we asked a campground host if they could help us find a place (our cell phones didn't work). We ended up in Marble, CO at a place called Meri Daes Campground on Crystal Creek. Marble is a very small town but it is where the best marble in the US was mined. The Tomb of the Unknowns and Lincoln Memorial are made from this marble. The mines recently reopened but there are only ruins left where the original plant was located.

Today we took the Devil's Punchbowl Pass road over to Crested Butte. We met a group of 3 Jeeps coming down who told us there was a report of a rock slide and the road was closed. Then another Jeep of locals told us the same thing. We're disappointed but drove on anyway. Just across the bridge is the really hard, steep part of the road so we walked it to check it out when along come some folks on ATVs who had come across the pass and saw NO rock slide. Hmmm?? Wonder why they told us it was closed?? Didn't want us on 'their' road?? It was an exciting ride up the hill and the rest of the trip was very nice and very easy.

Then some excitement as we are coming down. Pam spo ts a pickup truck stuck in the river, nose down, so she talked John into using his wench to pull them out of the water. The 3 couples from Atlanta were very appreciative of our help. They thought it would be a snap to cross the river and never checked to see how deep it was.