Entering The Land Of Red Rocks

by Steve W

Upon leaving New Mexico, we made our way to Moab, Utah, just outside the first of five national parks we intended to see in Utah. Moab is a small town that survives on visitors coming to see the two nearby national parks for sightseeing, camping, hiking, biking and off-roading. Up and down the main street were shops offering to rent ATVs or jeeps, guided tours of the area, camping supplies, rock climbing equipment, and other outdoor gear. Although we were there in the off season, many of these shops were open and doing business.

Fortunately though, the town was not that crowded, so the parks were also not crowded. There is nothing that spoils a visit to scenic areas more than crowds of people who always manage to get in the way of a photo op (all of whom seem to be wearing bright orange or yellow jackets) or cause traffic jams on one lane roads.

Our first stop was Arches National Park. As you will see from the pictures below, Arches got its name from the over 2,000 natural arches that have been created by wind and water over thousands of years.

Note the arch in progress on the left.

Some of the arches are huge!

A rare double arch.

"When you're weary, feelin' small"

A view from below the arch. Note the small amount of rock at the top that holds this thing together.

My co-pilot!

Some are "works in progress", where there are the beginnings of an arch that has not yet been completed.

Should be completed in about 10,000 years, so come back for another look.

In addition to the arches, there are enormous rock sculptures, also created by nature...

Balanced Rock

What is holding it up? Not much!

Hoo Doos

Named "Wall Street" due to the resemblance to the streets of New York.

...as well as canyons and incredibly beautiful vistas of the both the desert and the snow-capped La Sal Mountains in the distance.

Could be the landscape of Mars!

Even in this hostile environment, there is still some wildlife living here.

A mule deer doe.

"Doe, a deer, a female deer"

A mule deer buck.

And some of the largest ravens we have ever seen.

This guy is so big, he has his own parking spot.

As we discovered (and you soon will if you keep following this blog), each of these parks has a unique look to it. More great sights to see and more photos to come!

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Note: We were here in February.

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