Moab, Utah - Days 12 (Canyonland National Park)

Day 12  - Friday, June 1

We drove into Canyonlands National Park.   We drove past the entrance in 2015, but didn't have time to stop or drive through, so I was happy I had allowed an extra day in Moab this time.  Next time I get this way, I think I'll stay even longer.

Canyonlands is actually divided into four districts:  Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, and the rivers.  There are no roads that actually link the different districts.  We visited the Island in the Sky district.  The entrance to this part of the park is north, then southwest of Moab, about a 40 minute drive to the entrance.

We were so tired though.. this was our 5th National Park in less than 2 weeks.   We'd driven, walked, hiked and climbed more than we had in the past year total, I think.  Our original plan was to just drive though, no hiking at all, not even short ones.  We wanted to just get out at the turn outs, enjoy the views and take a few pictures.  Right across from the Visitor center was a overlook.  The view from there was awesome.  It did, however, involve walking and climbing over the rocks.

 

The next stop on the road was Mesa Arch.  Earlier that morning, I was working a little and my friend Dan said that we should take the hike to Mesa Arch.  He said it was only about a half mile, and totally worth it.  So, even though we were really tired, we figured we should take that hike.  So very glad we did. 

And then the arch itself.  Up close and personal.  What a view.

Next we stopped at the Grand View Point Overlook.  Again, amazing views of the canyon below and the mountains in the distance.

There was a hike around the rim, and although we didn't want to walk it all, we did walk maybe a quarter of a mile on it, just to see things from a different angle.

Next we stopped at Buck Canyon Overlook.

What a beautiful place!  I have to say that Utah is, overall, a beautiful place, and there are still so many places there that we haven't even visited.  Someday we will have to come back and spend more time here.

Since we were still very tired, we headed back to the RV park, but stopped to grab some dinner from Quesadilla Mobilla.  When we asked around for what was good to eat, we were told to go here if we like quesadillas. Do we like quesadillas?  Silly question!

They had a nice shady patio area to the right of the truck, complete with misters to keep you cool while you waited for your quesadilla.  We each got a different one, so we all got to taste each others.  I had the Sweet and Spicy, Jesus had the Fiery Fungus, and Dave had the Enchanted Chicken with added Jalapeños.  They were all really good.  I think Dave's was the best though.

After that, we just went back to the campground and tried to get organized and packed up, since we were leaving in the morning, heading to Colorado.