Arches and Canyons, Moab

Cathy and I are spending a few days in Moab, Utah to see the arches and canyons in Arches and Canyonlands National Parks.  Here it is a truism that a picture says a thousand words, so here are lots of pictures and not a lot of narrative.  You can check out other parts of our 6 week trip at Coast to Coast USA

Arches National Park

 Delicate Arch

The hike to Delicate Arch is about 1 1/2 miles and all up-hill.  We took a picnic lunch and took our time taking in the great mesa and canyon views.  The arch itself is usually picture-postcard until I crashed the scene.  That’s me under the arch.  You may have seen  the picture of Delicate Arch on the Utah license plate.

 

Landscape Arch

It’s an easy 1 mile hike to see our new favorite arch.  Landscape Arch spans over 300 feet and as recently as 1991 a large part broke off.  Go past Landscape to see some other great arches.

 

 

Other Arches

 

Awesome vistas and other curiosities

 

Canyonlands National Park

Cathy and I made a last minute decision to drive over to Canyonlands, and we were well rewarded.  We drove across the mesa and had breath-taking views into the enormous canyons carved by the Green and Colorado Rivers.

Dead Horse Point State Park and the Colorado River

Check out Dead Horse Point State Park for a look at the 2000 feet deep canyon and the Colorado River.  The Park is a few miles north of Moab.

Some observations and recommendations

The Spoke on Center has great build-your-own burgers  – beef, chicken, veggie, salmon – and other excellent menu items in an upscale setting, and was our go-to place for dinner in Moab.

The line-up to enter Arches at 9:30 a.m. is about a half hour wait, and the parking lots at the trail heads are jammed.  At 8:45 a.m. it is a 5 minute wait, and lots of parking.  So believe the hype to arrive early.

We brought our e-bikes and find that the trails in the park and in Moab prohibit their use.  So the bikes will get dusted off at our next stop in St. George, Utah.