Welcome to Utah!

We have finally crossed the line into a new state, and we are pretty excited about being in Utah!  We are not as excited about the heat.  You might not be able to read the green elevation sign to the left, but we are now at 4,760 feet.  We are no longer protected from the August heat by high elevations, and we have temperatures forecast in the 90's.

The next sign we passed just down the road read, "Eagles on Highway."  We didn't see any eagles, but we thought it was interesting that it must be such a usual occurrence that it merits a sign.  

We are now parked at SpanishTrail RV Park in Moab, Utah, where we are enjoying full hook-ups for the motor home.  After 23 days and 4 different sites without sewer hook-ups, we can now take long showers (or as long as a ten-gallon water heater will allow) and wash dishes without catching the rinse water.  Our holding tanks are large enough to allow us flexibility with choosing camp sites, but having full hook-ups is a nice luxury.

But the real treat to being in Moab is that Arches National Park is just four miles outside of town.  We are finding that the small towns and small RV parks right outside of national parks will price gouge campers with high prices.  But there are so many RV parks in Moab that good deals can still be had.  We are staying at a very nice park for $22/night with our Passport America discount card.  Of course, this rate is only available for campers that are willing to brave the summer heat.  The price will go up to $44 in September.

We have decided to visit Arches National Park early and late in the day to miss the afternoon heat.  Denisa had read that it's best to hike to the famous "Delicate Arch" for sunset.  So we followed the thronging crowd of people that had been given the same advice. Looking like a line of ants, there was a steady stream of people climbing up the slick rock hill ahead.

It was a beautiful blue sky day in Utah, and much of the 1.5 mile walk was over these slick rock domes.

We even got to experience our first arch right beside this trail.  There are over 2000 arches in this park--the most of any where in the world.

The last incline is on a narrow trail next to some pink rock formations that were lit up by the setting sun.  We are getting used to these outrageous rocks in this part of Utah, and we really love it.

Then we turned the corner around that high rock wall to see the star of the show--Delicate Arch.  That would be Denisa waving while standing under the arch.

This is the scene from the natural amphitheater area in front of the arch.  There's a line of people waiting for their moment under the arch.  Others are lounging and waiting for that magical moment of sundown.

Mark would also get his moment of fame under the arch.  Delicate arch is one of the icons of the state of Utah.  We see it on all the Utah license plates.  Based on the crack on the left hand side of the arch, it does look quite delicate.

For those not wanting to wait in line, there were also plenty of photo options from a distance.










Mark thought that he could take a picture of delicate arch with the setting sun shining through the arch.  Denisa pointed out that the rock sloped away at too steep of an angle to get in that position.  But Mark just slid down that slope to prove her wrong.   Denisa should have taken a picture of him hanging on to the side of the sloped slick rock hill to get that shot.

This picture shows more of the crowd that was gathering for sunset.  But we include it to show the hefty guy in the white shirt on the far right.  He saw Mark taking the above shot and thought it was a great idea--until he started sliding down that steep slope.  Mark decided to get out of the way before he got knocked off the mountain by the rotund photographer.  The other guy did get his shot, but he told Mark that it wasn't the smartest idea of his life.

We left right after sunset, but before the rush of people, and had the trail back to the parking lot to ourselves.  We got to watch the sky changing color on the way back to the car.  It was a nice ending to our first evening in Utah.  We think we're going to like it here!