by Jane
Last year we spent some time in Moab, Utah, visiting Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. But we had some bad weather that kept us from seeing (literally) everything we wanted at Canyonlands, and besides, now we have one of those cool National Park passport books, so we decided a second trip was in order--if only to get the stamps in our passport.
my favorite arch, Landscape Arch (which I think looks more delicate than Delicate Arch),
and the petroglyphs (art pecked into stone) and pictographs (art painted on stone) within the park
as well as some of those outside the park. (I never tire of petroglyphs. Be grateful I'm not posting all our petroglyph pictures!)
If you ever go to Moab, be sure to get a copy of the free booklet listing the petroglyph sites in the area. Many of them are right along the road (as is a multitude of rock climbers, which is also fun to see). If you get tired of petroglyphs, just turn your back and admire views of the Colorado River like this one.
We were also able to take a cool hike to Corona Arch, outside the park, which we hadn't done last time because slickrock gets, well, slick in the rainy weather we had then. For a sense of scale, find me; I'm the one in white with my arms in the air.
Having just been to Golden Spike National Historic Park and walked the railroad grades, we were impressed with the rock cut required to lay a track in the canyon where Corona Arch is.
At Canyonlands, we hiked a few trails we missed last year, including one to this Ancestral Puebloan granary. (I like cliff structures as much as I like petroglyphs.)
And we got to actually see the view from the overlooks this time. The first picture is from last year; the second is from this trip. See why we went back?
Next stop: three parks we've never seen before, all featuring Ancestral Puebloan ruins.
