You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘Utah’ tag.
Wow, it’s been way too long (again) since I posted. We’ve been a bit busy, what with driving across the country, moving into a condo for a few months, many doctors appointments, and implementing major changes in our lifestyle. That latter item is a subject for a later post. Patience, grasshopper.
Our next stop was Bryce Canyon National Park. Beautiful Bryce. This place is awesome and the pics you’ll see below don’t come close to actually capturing the natural wonders that make it up. It needs to be seen to be appreciated. So we went, spent a week, saw beautiful things, and left wanting more. As it should be.
We also took a couple of side trips while there, specifically to Red Canyon just outside the park, and Kodachrome Basin State Park just a short drive away. Both were well worth the time, particularly Red Canyon. It is literally directly on the way to Bryce from the west and has insane (and easy) walks straight from the parking lot. It’s a “must not miss” stop for anyone in the area. (Note from the editor: The hike at Red Canyon is one of my top five fave hikes so far.)
On an “RV’ing isn’t for sissies” note: when I was setting up at the campground, the water intake attachment on the RV blew up when I turned on the hose. This is a one way hose attachment and is, obviously, critical to our getting fresh water. I took two quick actions. One was to order the part and to have it delivered to our next stop. The second was to drive to the thriving metropolis of Tropic, UT, population 530, where there was an Ace hardware store. I bought four (4!) adapters to convert the H2O input piping to directly connect a hose. There was a small amount of dripping even with the use of plumbers tape, but it would do. The lows overnight were forecast to be about 36 degrees, so no danger of freezing. No problem.
At 3AM I got up to answer the call of nature and checked the outside temperature from my weather station. It was reporting 28 degrees. Crap. So at 3AM, this Florida boy found himself outside disconnecting an already partially frozen hose and capping the icicle-encrusted half-assed connection. Good times. Fortunately I got to it before any of our interior pipes were affected. Two lessons were learned: 1) always keep your eye on the actual temp vs. the forecast one and 2) the furnaces on our RV were able to easily keep our basement storage area (where our tanks and water lines live) nice and warm. Both of these are good to know.
Enjoy the photos and stay tuned. I hope to resume posting more regularly over the coming month to catch up with actual real-time events. Stay safe y’all.
Bryce Canyon NP 10/6/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/6/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/6/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/6/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/6/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/7/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/7/20
Bryce Canyon NP 10/7/20
Kodachrome Basin SP 10/8/20
Red Canyon UT 10/9/20
Red Canyon UT 10/9/20
Red Canyon UT 10/9/20
Red Canyon UT 10/9/20
We didn’t spend all of our time in Arches, just most of it. We took several nice drives including a couple of trips on Rt 128 as well as the La Sal Loop Rd. which was literally right outside our RV Park. Officially the La Sal Mountain Loop State Scenic Backway, it is a beautiful drive into the mountains SE of Moab that takes you down Castle Valley and spits you back out onto Rt 128. Think windy mountain roads with nice drop offs (and views!) with a bit of cattle in the road every now and then. Keeps you on your toes.
We did a quick drive through Canyonlands, but that place is so vast it really needs more time than we were willing to give it this time. Shockingly, we didn’t make it to Dead Horse State Park. Next time, for sure.
And after this, it just keeps on getting better.
View from the La Sal Loop Rd, 9/23/20
Mesa Arch, Canyonlands NP, 9/16/20
Canyonlands NP, 9/16/20
Trucks navigating White Rim Rd., Canyonlands NP, 9/16/20
Sculpture on the Colorado River pedestrian bridge in Moab. 9/22/20
The view into Arches NP across the Colorado River from just off RT 128. 9/23/20
Back in 2012, I had a bit of a health issue (see here for those posts). Following my recovery, or at least a good portion of it, we went to Utah and a bit of Arizona for what became known as our “I’m Not Dead Yet” tour. We hit many of the big parks for three night stays in their lodges or nearby and had a blast. Those posts start here if you’re interested. One thing that we learned is that just a few days in these types of locations is not enough. There is a direct line from that lesson to our going full-time in the RV last year. You can’t say we’re slow learners. At least in this instance.
So now we find ourselves back where it started. We booked a 2-week stay just outside Moab and it still wasn’t enough to even begin to see everything there is to see, but we saw a lot. Our lifestyle (ie: staying at a destination location in our own home) allowed us to take our time, but still go see cool stuff. If we decide to take a day off for laundry, chores, naps, and perhaps a bit of Xbox, no sweat.
Obviously this is a target-rich environment for photographers. This post will cover Arches National Park since it was our most visited destination with five separate trips (thank you once again America The Beautiful Pass!). It’s hard to pick just a handful, but needs must.
Sunset view of Balanced Rock, Arches NP, 9/21/20
A closer view of Balanced Rock. Arches NP 9/18/20
Sunset in Arches NP, 9/21/20
Early morning in Arches NP, 9/18/20
Early morning in Arches NP, 9/18/20
Landscape Arch, Arches NP 9/18/20
Pine Tree Arch, Arches NP, 9/18/20
Tunnel Arch, Arches NP, 9/18/20
Navajo Arch, Arches NP, 9/18/20
Arches NP, 9/18/20
Fiery Furnace, Arches NP, 9/17/20
Broken Arch, Arches NP, 9/17/20
The Fiery Furnace, Arches NP, 9/21/20
The Courthouse Wash Rock Art Panel. Arches NP, 9/22/20
Sand Dune Arch, Arches NP, 9/21/20
Broken Arch, Arches NP, 9/21/20
Skyline Arch, Arches NP, 9/21/20
We felt like Randall Flagg was following us around. #TheStand Arches NP, 9/17/20
Skyline Arch, Arches NP, 9/21/20
Capitol Reef National Park, 8/2/12
After finally getting a hot shower, we left Bryce and hit Utah Route 12 for the drive to Torrey and Capitol Reef National Park. This whole leg was a result of research back in Florida. The Rt 12 drive was described as a “must do” by the folks on TripAdvisor and it is easy to see why. It has been designated a “National Scenic Byway” and, even more impressively, an All American Road. We needed to go north anyway in order to get back to Salt Lake City, so this was a no-brainer.
Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, 8/1/12
And what a beautiful drive it was, too. Impressive scenery, some sphincter-tightening moments, a great lunch and some unplanned turn-offs all combined for a very enjoyable day. The first unplanned stop was at the Escalante Petrified Forest State Park (it’s easy to find while traveling north…just hang a left after the Airstream-themed Drive-In/Campground) where we met a very nice young lady who took our entrance fee. Since there was nobody behind us, we spoke for a bit and asked her what else we should see on the way to Torrey. She STRONGLY recommended that we drive down the Burr Trail where, about 11.5 miles in, there was a nice slot canyon we could walk into. We took a hike in the park where Patti saw petrified wood for the first time, then we pressed on. In Boulder, we stopped for a delicious lunch at Hell’s Backbone Grill where they also recommended the Burr Trail. After doing the Anasazi State Park Museum, and getting yet another Burr Trail recommendation, we headed down the Burr Trail Scenic Backway. The narrow, winding road connects Boulder, Utah, to Capitol Reef and continues on to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. We wished we were in our own truck rather than a rental car so that we could keep on going but a segment of it is unpaved. It’s a stunning drive through red canyons and scrub land. We found the slot canyon without a problem, right at 11.5 miles, and got out to explore. It was raining not too far off, though, so we didn’t linger.
Torrey, UT, 8/1/12
We arrived in Torrey with plenty of daylight left, so we ducked into Capitol Reef for a bit. Stopped at the visitor’s center where the ranger told us to check out the petroglyphs that were close by. We got there just as a herd of deer moved through an orchard, complete with a fawn frolicking through the trees. After seeing the glyphs, we headed back to our hotel just outside the park. At dinner that night, Patti got her second “first” of the day when she saw hummingbirds at a feeder just outside the restaurant window. It was pretty spectacular and I got some nice photos and even a movie.
Next morning, our last on the road, we explored Capitol Reef some more, enough to know we need to come back. Lots of beautiful scenery in this lightly visited park. We also got to participate a bit in the park’s 75th birthday celebration (yummy cupcakes), took a scenic hike to Hickman Bridge, picked peaches in one of the orchards (free if eaten there, $1/lb otherwise), bought some delicious pies and preserves (which we’re still enjoying), took many more photos, then headed up the road to Salt Lake City and eventually, home. Road Trip 2012 was over. Bummer.
Slot Canyon, 11.5 miles ESE of Boulder, UT, 8/1/12
Slot Canyon, 11.5 miles ESE of Boulder, UT, 8/1/12
Capitol Reef National Park, 8/1/12
Petroglyphs, Capitol Reef National Park, 8/1/12
Hickmans Bridge, Capitol Reef National Park, 8/2/12
Orchard, Capitol Reef National Park, 8/2/12
Capitol Reef National Park, 8/2/12
The World as We See It 