When we first headed towards Arches NP we were not planning on going to Canyonlands NP because all the national parks in Utah were starting to look the same, especially when looking at pictures in a book. But when we got close to Arches, while heading to the RV park in Moab, UT we figured out that they were only 30 miles from each other. So when we were at the RV park in Moab we ran into a ranger that worked at both parks and told us it would be better to stay in Canyonlands and unhook and drive through both Canyonlands and Arches then to stay in Arches. We went with his advise and were super lucky!
On Wednesday morning we headed to Canyonlands NP, it was a pretty 25 mile drive up about 7000 feet elevation. We stopped at the visitor center to ask about campgrounds and hikes. The ranger told us they were just about to get the report on how many campsites were left, while we were waiting she pointed out on the map which trails to check out and which overlooks to stop at. We got the report that there were only 3 campsites left, so we booked it to the trailer and went over to the campground. We found a perfect spot and it was actually paved and level so we would be able to unhook!
Joe backed up into it beautifully (we are getting better with every try) and we successfully unhooked and then ate lunch. When we were filling out our campsite voucher ( at some NP's they do not have people working in the campsite,so you have to fill out this envelope and leave money, and we guess they check them later, scout's honor) we met a guy from Oklahoma, named Travis, who was driving cross country mountain biking. We swapped stories for a while and then decided to check out the park. We drove the scenic drive through the park, stopping at overlooks and vistas. Our camera and the weather (it was slightly overcast) could not do this park justice. The sights we saw were incredible and indescribable. We hiked three trails that day, getting to see some of the more famous (which they are not too famous because no one really stops at this park) sights of the park. We got to see a 1.5 mile wide crater that scientists have two theories for (either a meteorite or salt dome theory), the Mesa Arch, and also the White Rim. All were amazing and more evidence that this NP was the underdog. We talked to lots of people who said that this park was one of the least visited parks, which is so crazy because it is so close to Arches!
After all the hiking we were pretty beat and pretty stoked to go BBQ ( I forgot to mention that we went grocery shopping, so we were fully stocked again, and got kebabs!) While Joe was BBQing he noticed the sun going down and making some crazy lights on the canyon near us. There was actually an overlook point just down the road from our campsite so I headed down to take some photos, I got a couple but still do not due the sights I saw justice.
We ate our delicious kebabs and got ready to go to Arches NP the next day.
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