Moab - Arches National Park

It is Saturday, May 5th and our last night here in Moab.  Been here for 4 days and we have had so much fun.   Good friends from Green Valley Az, Bill and Karen Woodrow came up to meet us and we have spent three fun filled, event filled, laughter filled days.

Everyone we talked to before we got here, said it was one of their most favorite places to go.  After spending a day in Arches National Park and taking a night cruise on the  Colorado River, we have to agree.

Parade of elephants.. can you see
them?

First full day, we spent all day in Arches National Park.  We only saw about 1/3 of the park, but what we did see was beautiful.  We hiked a bit, and decided we both would like to come back here and see and hike more of this park.

Landscape Arch - most photographed
arch

Balance Rock

Bill, Karen, Terri and Deane

After our day in the park, we had dinner and took a moonlight boat ride on the Colorado River.  The moon was two days short of being a 'blood moon', so it was full and bright.  The evening weather could not have been more perfect and the water of the river was like glass.  The boat ride is choreographed to music and the history of Utah and specifically the Moab valley.  The boat is followed on the road that runs next to the river by a truck that is set up with 40,000 watts of lights that they shine on the walls of the gorge as we floated by and listened to the story.  This was truly a magical night.

Day two brought us more fun than anyone should be allowed to have.  We rented a jeep and the four of us went 4-wheeling on the trails.  We travelled up and down over rocks, sometimes they were 40-50 degrees angles.  We all drove at one time or another, challenging ourselves.  Bill and Karen have done this before and acted as our guide.  The first half of the day we spent rocking over rocks following the Fins and  Things trail.  Interesting how they mark the rocks with a white paint splotch to keep you going the right way and not wandering off into the dessert never to be seen again.  There were a number of times when either Bill or Deane had to get out of the car to figure out how we were

going to get down the rock

 .. 

Deane got out, he said to take pics..
I think he just wanted out while I
was driving.

Bill checking on how we were
going to get down.

Not sure how we got off
this rock.

The second half of the day was spent traveling up and over the bluffs and finding ourselves on top of the world and at the base of two monuments Monitor and Merrimac.   You can see them about 3/4 the way through this video. This route was suppose to be 7 miles, but once we got on it, we figured it was measured on how the crow flew.... not how the 'trail' went.  I use the word trail loosely.... it is NOT a trail.  Every now and then we would see a marker indicating we were still going the right way, but I swear we went in circles a couple of times.   Once on top, we stopped to see if we could fly kites...couldn't believe it, we get out of the car and the wind dies.  Deane did manage to capture a couple of good gusts.

Flying  kites on top of the world

On the top of the bluff, at the base
of Merrimac

Castle Rock

Our last day in Moab we took a drive that followed the Colorado River and then went up onto another bluff to see Castle Rock.  At one time we were looking down on Castle Rock. 

We ended our days with Bill and Karen with a few games of Pegs and Jokers.  At the end of the three days........ the girls ruled!!!!