Red Rock Country

Post by Henry and Loretta

On our continuing journey south for the winter, we stopped in Moab, Utah for about a week. We stayed at a BLM (Bureau of Land Management) campground called Ken's Lake, where we had views of the lake, lots of red rocks and the snow covered La Sal Mountains.

Ken's Lake

Snow Capped La Sal Mountains
at
Ken's Lake Campground

Faux Falls and Red Rocks
at
Ken's Lake

On the ride down, we were passing through rolling hills and somewhat mountainous terrain until we crested one mountain and BAM!!!  All of a sudden we were in Red Rock Country!  Canyons and mesas and all sorts of interesting rock formations.

Devil's Canyon

The Moab area is the pinnacle of red rocks with Canyonlands and Arches National Parks just outside of town. We were able to visit both of these parks.  After three (3) months of being in and around the Rocky Mountains, this was a totally different landscape.

Canyonlands National Park
Utah

Arches National Park
Utah

We spent a day at the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands.  The views off into the canyons are just mind boggling to think of the forces of nature that took billions of years to form them.  Our photos just barely do the scenery justice, but they're far better than words.

Island in the Sky
Canyonlands National Park
(The ribbon is a road)

Island in the Sky
Canyonlands National Park

An Arch at Canyonlands

And the same with Arches.  It's truly amazing to see so many arches and stone towers in a relatively small area and to contemplate how they were formed over the course of time.

Rock Formation
Arches National Park

Balancing Rock
Arches National Park

Double Arch
Arches National Park

Unfortunately, due to the excessive rain earlier in the week, we were not allowed to hike out to the most famous of the arches, Delicate Arch. Four days of rain closed the road leading out to the trailhead due to flooding.

Flooding and a Rainbow after a Rainstorm
Arches National Park

There's not a lot of trees in either of these parks, but the two we noticed the most were Pinyon pines and Junipers.  Some of the most picturesque of these were the dead trees with their twisted branches and trunks.

Dramatic Scene

Amidst all this red rock country is a totally contrasting feature.  Southeast of Moab, in the distance, sits the La Sal Mountains overlooking the canyons and arches.  In summer you can be in the blazing heat of red rocks and within 20 miles, be high above with refreshing temps, tall evergreen trees, and cool mountain streams.  While we were in the area those four days of precipitation transformed the La Sal mountains into beautiful snow capped peaks!

Snow Capped La Sal Mountains
from
Ken's Lake Campground, Moab, Utah

I don't know how any times I can state "this is one of the most scenic places we've stayed".

But it was.

Again.