Moab, Utah Day 9

Our final day in the Moab area took Lee and I back to Canyonlands National Park.  On our way we stopped in at Dead Horse State Park.  This park has a terrific overlook onto the Colorado River snaking its way downstream.  Seeing this one can imagine how this river has carved the landscape out in the way it has.  After the confluence with the Green River it is able to do a lot more carving.  This is the same river that created the Grand Canyon in Arizona.

We stopped at many viewpoints on the drive through Canyonlands, each offering a more spectacular vista than the last.  This is not a park for those afraid of heights!  Island in the Sky is the top of a large butte accessible by driving over a very narrow connection to the rest of the world.  The land drops steeply hundreds of feet on each side of the road.  You feel as though you are on an island because the drop all around the butte is over 300 meters.

One of the things I watch for when in the desert are the lizards.  They're only about 15 cm long but come in many different colour variations.  I found this one on a hike to the False Kiva.



My main interest in this portion of the trip, and one of the items on my personal bucket list is visiting False Kiva.  This archaeological site is not on the official maps. The trail is treacherous and not easy and the site is not protected from vandalism. Hiking along the canyon top is not for the faint of heart, but the destination is well worth the effort.  Thanks to Lee for guiding me to this fantastic place!

The original purpose of the stone circle is unknown and the name False Kiva is because it resembles a Kiva though it is unlikely that given the location of this site it was ever used as a Kiva.  It sits at the edge of a cliff in a natural cave at the top of a steep slope that drops about 350 meters.  The view out of the cave is spectacular and during a period with no wind it was absolutely quiet in there.  As far as the eye could see there would probably not be another living person.  This is truly one of this country's most amazing sites.



Moab, Utah Day 8

Yesterday was a windy, cloudy day so we spent the day browsing in town and generally taking it easy.

Today on the other hand, was beautiful with the perfect clouds and light that photographers dream about.  We went out Potash Road to see petroglyphs and indeed found some really nice ones.  We also shot Jughandle Arch which resembles an upside down jug.

We then went into the park and hiked up to the iconic Delicate Arch.  This is the arch that is featured on the Utah state vehicle license plates. It is an uphill hike of about 2.5 kilometers to get there but well worth the effort. 
We even managed a rain shower in the distance!

After walking down that trail we stopped at the petroglyphs at the Wolfe Ranch, an old homestead and shot those as well as the old log cabin and root cellar.  Both are remarkably well preserved- probably the dry climate helps there.

On our way out of the park there was another rain shower over the Lasal Mountains and Panorama Viewpoint gave us the perfect vantage point to watch it.

Just past this viewpoint is another classic Arches National Park icon known as Balanced Rock.  It's not really the most spectacular balancing rock we've seen but is probably the most photographed.

It was difficult to get out of the park because of the play of light and weather but we had to get back a bit early today as Laura is cooking a belated Christmas dinner turkey for Gaye and Lee.  Our RV never smelled so good and I'm sure we're the envy of the park right now as the smell wafts across.

After dinner we decided to 'Head for the Hills' and drove the Lasal Mountain loop road.  We went from the desert floor all the way up into the snow belt.  Some amazing views from up there and will definitely re-do this on our next visit although Laura may decide to stay at the RV...

The road comes out in the Castle Rock valley and we stopped for this silhouette shot as we went past.

Moab, Utah Day 6

Today we went out to the south end of Canyonlands National Park.  Our first stop was at  Newspaper Rock where there are some pictographs that date back over 2000 years.  Despite some vandalism they are remarkably well preserved and numerous details can be made out.  It is not known whether the figures represent story telling, doodling, hunting magic, clan symbols, ancient graffiti or something else.

We were treated to some periods of blue sky so we didn't waste the opportunity to get some shots with interesting clouds.

As always I'm interested in the flora.  This is a Narrowleaf Yucca (Yucca angustissima).

On our drive back to Moab we stopped at Wilson's Arch.  This is an arch that is right on the side of the highway and we were fortunate to find it without any people.

Moab, Utah Day 5

A very cloudy day so we decided to spend the afternoon in Arches National Park.  There are photo oportunities that do not require good skies so we focused (no pun intended but hey!  If it works why not?) on these.  While parked near the formation known as The Tower of Babel I noticed this road sign indicating Hula Hoopers in 1000 feet.  We never did find them though...

We headed out to a place known as The Fins-so named because they are very narrow outcroppings of rock seemingly stacked side by side.  In some places you could barely put your hand between them but in others you could walk between them.  These narrow walls rise about 100 meters above the sand.

The ground is covered in a fine red sand which the wind easily picks up.  There are many surprises awaiting any explorers.  Some passages opened up into courtyards where the vivid greens of Junipers and Piñon Pines contrasted beautifully against the red rocks and sand.

The biggest and best surprise is a hidden arch appropriately known as Sand Dune Arch found in another passage.

Everywhere one looks evidence is found that shows just how arrid this area is.  Junipers only 3 meters tall are probably hundreds of years old and once dead may stand for another hundred years.  Their wood, dry and cracked, displays another kind of beauty all its own.

Like reading cloud formations the rock outcrops in this park take on many shapes.  Many well known ones- some already shown in this blog- have names like the Three Gossips, Courthouse Towers, and Balanced Rock.  Other, less well known ones may be found if one looks.  This tiny one appears to be a Cheshire-like Cat holding up a much larger rock.  Use your imagination- Can you see the eyes and big smile?

Another area we stopped at was the Fiery Furnace.   The Fiery Furnace is a mazelike labyrinth of narrow sandstone canyons.  Here is a view from the overlook.