Arches and Canyonlands Parks

The X-treme Terrain Adventure lasted nearly three hours.  Back at the Adobe Abode, we cleaned up a bit and then drove through nearby Arches National Park.

It was President Teddy Roosevelt who preserved that Park in its pristine mountainous ruggedness for generations to come.  But, as I asked Allan, preserved it from what?  It’s not habitable.  There’s no food and water source to support people.

As we entered Arches National Park, we had no idea what we would be seeing.  I couldn’t stop taking pictures.  The rocks formations were unlike anything we had ever seen before.  Amazing.  See for yourself.

It was stupendous, but the river itself contributed little to the scenery because it could hardly be seen except from roadside viewing stops.  I caught part of it while driving; it’s brown in the photo above.

And then we traveled the Scenic Byway, a 30-mile stretch along the Colorado River.  It’s stated to be the number two ranked scenic drive in the entire country, next to the scenic drive in California that goes through the redwood trees.

And then we happened upon the Castle Creek Winery which we visited, of course.

The place included a filming museum as part of Red Cliffs Lodge.  Many films were shot on location here and the background of some of the photos shows the same terrain I just photographed myself.

Besides old movies starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara and other famous people like Henry Fonda, Anthony Quinn, Lee Marvin, and James Stewart, newer movies like City Slickers and Thelma and Louise were also filmed here.  Also, The Greatest Story Ever Told.

That evening we found delicious chicken wings for supper at a restaurant in Moab and caught some highlights of the first debate of the Republican candidates for President.

Our second breakfast at the Adobe Abode — on Thursday, September 17th — consisted of a tasty omelet baked in a tortilla cup, served with a slice of watermelon, served at 8 a.m.  By 9 a.m. our suitcases were packed and we were on our way to Canyonlands National Park, which is about an hour south of Arches.

Before we got to Canyonlands, there were a couple scenic areas begging for us to stop.

We learned that the two parks are similar in some ways (no signs of animal life and lots of red rock), but are otherwise very different.

The canyons in this park are vast and not formed by the Colorado River, but by huge climate events, flooding rains, and erosions. 

The canyons are amazing, stretching far into the distance, with unusual formations and steepest of cliffs.

I kept wanting to say these canyons are grand, realizing the Grand Canyon in Arizona is just south of the Utah state border.  People walking near the edge gave me the willies.

And then, after a few miles on the road above, it was onto Interstate 70 West and then Hwy #15 south to Cedar City, which would be our home for the next three nights. 

The scenery on the way to Cedar City continued to be picturesque and, as you can see, it was another beautiful blue sky day.

Every turn seemed to require another picture.  It went from majestic mountains to rolling hills and unusual rock formations at the roadside and on the horizon.

And then we found a gas station and a Burger King where I ordered my usual Whopper and Allan had a southwest salad with chicken.

We arrived at the Iron Gate Bed and Breakfast at 5 p.m.  Since we had stopped at a Dairy Queen in a city named Beaver for a chocolate malt at 4 p.m., we weren’t hungry so sat outside a while on a beautiful day and enjoyed our surroundings before going out for supper.