From Tuesday through Friday, Kate and I camped at the Big Bend Campground along the Colorado River just outside of Moab. We spent two days in Arches National Park and two days in the Island in the Sky area of Canyonlands.
Our first stop was a quick jaunt to Delicate Arch. Being one of the biggest attractions in Arches, it is not uncommon to have a few strangers in your photos. Miraculously, we arrived and had a few moments to take in the breathtaking sight, without humans!
After Delicate Arch, we walked around the Windows area taking in North and South Windows and Turret Arch.
When planning hikes, it was decided that Wednesday was the day for a big hike in Canyonlands. Kate and I debated on what hike to do and went back and forth between Gooseberry and Murphy Basin in the Island in the Sky mesa of Canyonlands. We finally decided on Murphy Basin since it was a loop and loops are always more enjoyable than out-and-backs.
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Kate, on the elevator down to Murphy Basin
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The trail guide we had was absolutely hysterical but 100% correct when it said something like, "When you get to the trail to make your descent, you'll feel as though you're about to jump off a cliff but keep going. The park service has done a wonderful job making this 1000 ft. drop in about a mile as pleasant and safe as possible."
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| Ummm, are we SURE we want to walk down this? And then walk back up later? Hmmmmmm. |
As the guide book promised, there was a nice trail and there was even a lovely wooden bridge installed over a particularly sketchy spot. Thank you, Canyonlands trail crew!
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| Nice lil wooden bridge, Murphy Basin |
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| Kate taking it all in |
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| Ideal yoga spot |
The Murphy Basin hike also allows you to walk a mile or so on the famous White Rim Road. It was on the road that we passed all other travelers, most were mountain bikers.
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| White Rim Road, about 100 miles long with stunning views of Island in the Sky. Very popular with mountain bikers. |
The next few miles of Murphy Basin involved hiking through the wash which felt slow as it was mostly sand and did me no favors in preparing to march up this thing:
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| Seriously, whose idea was this? |
Being the first time I've tackled 10 miles in the desert, I was not surprised as I basically panicked on the climb out as it felt as though there was no escape from the sun. After a short break in the shade, encouraging words from Kate, and a stern pep-talk to myself, I channeled the famous East Glacier P.M.A. (Positive Mental Attitude, thanks Natalee!) and determined that this hike was the ultimate test of Growth Mindset :)
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| Enjoying gorgeous Prickly Pear Cactus blooms as we walked to the car |
Many people commented on what a shame it was to visit the desert so late in the season because there would be no blooms. I am thankful they were all wrong!!! I felt the blooms were a sweet reward after a fabulous but trying day of learning exactly where my limits stand with hiking in the desert. It was recommended that one carries a gallon of water and I think I drank every last drop!
As a bonus, we ended our first Island in the Sky adventure with views of the iconic Mesa Arch.
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| Mesa Arch |
To mix things up a bit, Kate planned on alternating Island in the Sky and Arches so our next adventure would be the 7-mile Devil's Garden Trail including the stunning ribbon-like Landscape Arch.
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| Landscape Arch, Devils Garden, Arches |
The further we hiked on the Devils Garden trail, the fewer people we saw. The trail had signs posted that a primitive trail included cliffs, was difficult to follow and not recommended.
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| Nat and Kate along the Devils Garden Trail |
I don't know what was up with all of the warnings but I think a more helpful sign would be to explain why many of the geological features in Arches sound like the names of tracks off of a Death Metal album.
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| Dark Angel. Seriously Metal. |
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| Beautiful blooms to balance out the darkness |
Devils Garden was a really fun hike. Somewhere along the way, we overheard people talking about Montana. Low and behold they had just moved from the North Fork. I revel in moments like these, little coincidences, discussing huckleberry bear claws and Glacier's trails and remembering that even though the views of Utah are vast, it is still a small world after all.
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| More views from Devils Garden |
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| Devils Garden Trail |
After Devils Garden, we took a short walk to Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch, two of my favorites.
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| Pine Tree Arch |
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| Tunnel Arch |
We decided on doing a series of smaller hikes for our last day of Island in the Sky. Although we were still curious about the Gooseberry Trail (very similar to Murphy but with a bad rap) but decided to skip it as all of the rangers said even they have not hiked it! Yikes.
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| Lathrop Trail |
The ranger did suggest we check out the Lathrop Trail. Promising both wildflowers AND views, it was a win-win.
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| Lathrop Trail |
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| Lathrop Trail |
High winds convinced us to stop at the rim and turn around making it about a pleasant 5-mile roundtrip. Next, we headed over to the Upheaval Dome overlooks.
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| Upheaval Dome |
Upheaval Dome is considered a geological mystery. Two theories are out there concerning the creation of this feature: The Salt Dome Theory and the Impact Crater Theory.
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| I have a third theory: Aliens. |
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| Quick stop at Buck Canyon Overlook |
To wrap up our time in Canyonlands, we sauntered along the mile-long famous Grand View Trail to receive the most expansive panoramas I have ever seen.
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| Grand View Trail |
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| Paintbrush on the Grand View Trail |
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| Another look at the Murphy Basin Hike |
This easy mile-long hike along the canyon rim takes you to the southernmost point of Island in the Sky with a great view of the White Rim.
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| Grand View Trail |
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| Grand View Trail |
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| Pink sisters, Grand View Trail |
Our last day in Moab just happened to be the full moon Friday the 13th! We joined some Jedi Mountain Bikers for a moonlight adventure up to Moab's Slickrock Trail and wandered about the dotted lines while our friends biked away.
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| Moon rising over campsite |
We wrapped up our trip with a couple more days in Durango. We stuffed ourselves silly with Huevos Rancheros from the classic
Durango Diner and rafted the Animas River.
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| Misty morning Missoula hike with Lola, my favorite hiking buddy |
Our adventure led us back to a rainy and cold Missoula. June in Montana is always an adventure. The past couple of days have dumped fresh snow in the mountains!
I welcome the rainy weather as a sign to check things off of my to-do list. Now that the glorious desert adventure has come to an end, it's time to plan the next one:
See ya soon, Ohio.
Natalie
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