Into the Wilds of Utah

On our last frosty morning in Grand Junction, CO, we set out to explore the western side of Colorado National Monument. Sunny skies shone down on our freshly-washed car as we ascended the rocky road into the monument. We snapped a couple of good photos before setting off into Utah.

Balanced Rock, poised precariously over the road.

A view into the canyon. 

As we crossed into Utah, we appeared to be entering some sort of frozen apocalyptic wasteland, with no indicators of human habitation for dozens of miles around. These bleak surroundings changed soon after we left the interstate. Heading south, we entered the canyon of the Colorado River. Our route followed the river past small ranches on its banks, bottlenecks of ice in its channel, and increasingly stunning sandstone cliffs and pinnacles on either side. As night crept in, we reached Moab, with lies just outside of Arches National Park. We set up camp on the banks of the river and watched the silver moon illuminate the high cliffs on the far bank.

One of our first glimpses of Utah's stunning geology.

We spent the next two days touring Arches National Park. Theres not much to say about this landscape that can't be better expressed in pictures, so we'll let them do most of the talking.

Balanced Rock (Arches has one too).

Balanced Rock, another view.

Delicate Arch, the most photographed in the park.

The Pipe Organ & Tower of Babel (car shown for scale).

(Left to right) The Three Gossips, Sheep Rock, and Tower of Babel/Pipe Organ

The ever-present raven.

Petrified sand dunes in the foreground, with the La Sal Mountains behind.

The snow in the park had formed beautiful crytals.

North and South Window Arches.

Beneath the South Window.

Double Arch.

From beneath Double Arch.

The Fiery Furnace, a long strip of sandstone fins.

Park Avenue.

Moonrise from our second campsite.

The cliffs above our campsite.

Within the fins of the Fiery Furnace.

Landscape Arch (306 feet in length).

From Arches National Park we drove northward, then westward , then southward again to Bryce Canyon National Park. More pictures to come!