After Cedar City, we traveled to Moab, Utah. There is A LOT to see in and around Moab: Canyonlands, Arches, dinosaur places, UFO crash sites. You name it, they’ve got it. Luckily, we were spending three nights in Moab. Practically moving in!
I have said this before and I will say it again, I really enjoy traveling across states and seeing how they change. Moab is very different than where Zion is. Granted, Utah is a big state. Still…amazing landscape from West to East. Keeps the driving interesting for sure. Ignore the weird podcast that is playing in the background.
On the way to Moab, we made dinner. How you ask? A Wonderbag, of course! Mom had given this to me for Christmas and I hadn’t used it yet and thought this trip would be a great opportunity to use it. When Mom was here, we had made a chicken fajita dish, so this was actually the second time I was using it since being on this adventure. On the way to Moab we made a bison chili and it was delicious.
Then you stick it in the car, or wherever is most convenient and 6-8 hours later, you have your meal! It’s great for traveling. It’s basically a crockpot that doesn’t require electricity. I forgot to take a video of the final product, but we made taco salad with the leftovers and have a picture of that.
Anyway…enough about food. The first night we basically ate and found an amazing park for Luna to get some energy out at.
The next day we were going to head to the Arches, but Luna couldn’t come so we got up early to call the local doggie daycare but it was full!!! Now what?!! They suggested boarding her at a local vet. This gave me heart palpitations, so we decided to find a dog friendly hike in the morning while we tried to figure out a Plan B. Luna loves to hike and we found a loop that wasn’t too long or hot for her.
I called the suggested vet and they told me they had a big fenced in area where she could play, seemed really nice and had good reviews, so I decided we would do that for the afternoon and go to Arches National Park which was only a few miles away. The vet seemed nice, clean and normal, but Luna wasn’t super keen on it. They had to carry her back. I managed to not cry. Hell, it was FAR better than the place at Zion.
Arches National Park was like another world. We hiked out to the Delicate Arch. The hike was pretty intense. It was about 1.8 miles each way and the estimated time was 2-3 hours to do the round trip. I kind of laughed at that estimate until I was wheezing up the steep side of the rock “path.” It was pretty embarrassing. That being said, we were able to make it to the Arch in about 30 minutes. Still, was far more difficult than I anticipated. Mike thought I was sunburned. Nope, just a lack of oxygen causing my face to turn that nice shade of purply red.
We did a few shorter hikes at Arches, as reflected in these pictures above as well.
Luna survived the few hours at the vet and didn’t seem traumatized, so we decided we would do the same for the following day and head to Canyonlands which was a bit further away. It took us about an hour to get out to The Island in the Sky at Canyonlands. Again, being just an hour from Arches, it was like two different worlds! Unbelievable. In Canyonlands we did a few hikes including Grand View Point, Mesa Arch and Murphy Point.
Often when I’m driving to one of these parks I think, “Ehh…looks like grass and hills. This is not going to be worth the effort.” EVERY time I’m blown away when I arrive. Every one is completely breath taking and 180 degrees different from the next. It’s absolutely unbelievable what this country has to offer in natural wonders alone. These pictures definitely don’t do any of it justice. I’m looking at them now and thinking what you’re probably thinking, “Ehhh…looks like a bunch of rocks.” Well, it’s not. It’s pretty amazing. It’s without a doubt worth a trip. It’s worth all of us taking time out of your busy busy schedules. It’s worth that week of vacation, that precious time that we all hold so near and dear. It’s worth you going out and seeing it, feeling it, breathing it. You won’t regret it. I didn’t for so long and wish I had. It has changed me.
Lesson of the Day: Find your Park. Pick one and go and discover it. Do it for yourself. Do it with someone or on your own. Don’t wait for next time. Don’t wait for someone else. There will never be that “right” time we are all in search of. Life passes us all by. It’s our job to get on the ride and enjoy every second of it.
L&K Take America 