Moab and More

Leaving Yellowstone

After leaving Yellowstone, the trip south took me by the Grand Tetons again and down through Jackson, Wyoming to wind my way southwest to Ogden, Utah and warmer weather as I headed here to southwest Colorado -- South Fork to be specific and Grandview Cabins and RV Park.  The trip down route 89 was seemingly the most direct but, the winding and climbing through Wyoming, Idaho, and Utah was slow and tedious at times.

Passing Bear Lake in Idaho and Utah made me think the whole city of Denver would fit into it with room to spare -- the climb up the pass from the lake had me stopping a couple times to keep the RV from overheating but, the views were impressive at the top.  The lake was beautiful and the colors of the waters reminded me of the turquoise colors of the waters in the Keys of Florida.

I had hoped to get past Salt Lake City (maybe to Provo) but, the slower, tedious pace had me tired and content to stop in Ogden if an RV park had a spot open for the night -- first I found the nearest Walmart to restock on some things.  I called two places from the Walmart and the second had a spot for me and was less than two miles west of the Walmart.  Funny how that always seems to be the case -- except here in South Fork.

Before heading out the next morning, I called ahead to Moab to reserve a spot there for two nights and hoped my one full day would be enough to see all the best Moab had to offer.  The trip across the hot (over 100 degrees), high plains from Ogden was another test of the RVs cooling system and again I had to stop numerous times before finally getting to the cutoff from route I-70 onto 191 south.  Immediately hit construction after the ramp from I-70 but, the slow (or really stopped) pace let he diesel keep running cool and the AC inside was good too.

The road construction continued all along the way down 191 into the town of Moab and picked up again on the other side of the town -- couldn't even turn into the RV park I had called ahead to reserve because the asphalt was freshly layed so, had to call again to the Moab KOA farther south.  I misread the address and headed back north and had to turn around into the stopped traffic again before finally getting into the RV park.  Boy, was I hot under the collar and all over (think it had been over 105 that day and supposed to continue the next day).


Delicate Arch

After getting into the spot at the RV park, I learned from one of the park staff that the road would be closed the next morning (my one day there) from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. so, an early start would be required to get out and see all that I hoped to see.  First, I figured to got to the Arches National Park and hike early before the temperatures started to climb -- only problem with hiking was that when I unhooked the Jeep the night before, the towbar fell on my left foot (second toe) and cut/smashed two toes (only had sandals on).  Did manage to hike 3 miles round trip to Delicate Arch and then another mile round trip to Landscape Arch -- going downhill was a killer on the toe and after those 4 miles it said No!  No more hiking.


Landscape Arch

When I had finished most of my water and snacks, I left Arches National Park and headed back for a midday break to check on the cats and the RV -- called ahead to be sure I could get into the park.  The temperature in the RV got into the 90s as the heat outside reached nearly 107 so, I stayed with Tiger and Molly until the afternoon temps started to drop (around 4:30 p.m.) before heading out to the Canyonlands National Park -- knowing there wouldn't be much hiking I could do and the brochure I had said mostly asphalt road with pulloffs or viewpoints (just what my foot needed).

Balancing Rock - Arches N.P.










Arches and Caves (No Hike)



It was a longer drive than I expected from the Moab KOA but, well worth taking the drive to the end -- Grand View Point (with numerous stops along the way down and back, of course).  Most of the turnouts or pulloffs gave quick and easy access to take pictures of the beautiful landscapes -- good thing there was a little breeze working too.  Longest walks were in the hundreds of feet from the parking/pullouts.

Nest day had me going through a small section of the far southeast part of the Canyonlands -- past the south rim entrance off 191 to the Needles Area.  I imagine the views there would have been more spectacular with both of the rivers visible from there (the Colorado and the Green rivers).  What I saw was still spectacular.

The distances across these canyons is hard to conceive and can't imagine even setting out to attempt to cross portions of them.  If you want a great test for your 4-wheeler (and your nerves), try the Shafer Trail down the cliffside to the bottom of the canyon.

Shafer Trail

Or just stay on the asphalt and walkways as I did.

Green River zoomed in