After Capitol Reef I had a decision to make – skip some parks and start driving south, or press my luck and go for more. Made some distance calculations with my road atlas (no cell service out here anywhere) and made the call to push onward in my adventures.
Only about 100 miles or so eastward is Arches National Park. The drive to the park from Reef is almost as good as Reef itself with sprawling desert vistas and mountain backdrops as far as you can see. Have some of those photos on my other camera and will post later.
Arches is famous for…well, it’s natural rock arch formations. Also containing mostly red rocks with sporadic green vegetation and scrub brush, color contrasts are phenomenal. This park was also busy, but due to layout all trails were still very accessible. Hiked several 1-2 mile paths before rain started to show on the horizon and daylight ran out. Wish I had the time for longer hikes. I don’t regret doing Reef but should have spent the whole day here instead.
I had this park on my radar before leaving WI but not high on the list. After today, this is probably in my top 3 favorites. The arches are very unique, and elevations changes from canyon to peaks occur rapidly keeping you excited for each upcoming attraction. Highly suggest if you are in Utah or west Colorado to visit here.
Wanted to do Canyonlands and/or Moab too but those are now in my rearview. Rain came in fast and with teeth so got out of Utah towards Grand Junction, CO for the night. Winds blew me all over the highway but not much rain. Lightning show looking out all windows was like fireworks! Honestly over the entire trip I can’t complain about the weather as most days were sunny and around 75. Only my seat-of-the-pants planning and night drives in the rain are regrettable but entirely of my doing.
Tomorrow I begin my journey south towards Las Cruces, NM where my family lives. Not sure I will have anything to post after today due to long driving distance but stay tuned in case I get sidetracked!
