June 24: The 21st was a travel day but I had a lot of things to get done on my way to Utah. I stopped in Alamosa, CO to get breakfast, update my blog and go to the same outdoor outfitter I stopped at on my way through the first time. Updating my blog took way longer than expected as I was trying to re-organize the pictures and by the time I finished it was 11:30 meaning it took me about 3 hours to eat breakfast and update my blog and when I got over to the outdoorsmen store they were closed because Wednesdays are their “play day” and only stay open from 8-11. So now I had to stop in Durango, CO to try to repair my tent and buy new hiking boots.
The drive from Alamosa to Durango was very picturesque driving through the San Juan Mountains but also a little nerve racking as I’m driving down mountain roads on slick, misty blacktop.
My stop in Durango also took way longer than expected as I had to repair my tent which wasn’t quick and I couldn’t decide on a pair of boots. The salesperson helping me was unbelievably patient while I tried on every boot in the store. Even when he handed me the eighth or ninth boot, I tried it on and I said, “Well they are comfortable but they are pretty ugly, aren’t they?” Awkwardly, he responded that these are the boots he wears and loves them. I didn’t say much the rest of the time in the store.
After I left Durango my final destination was Moab, UT where I was staying in the local hostel. I got there around 730PM and I had been on the road for about 12.5 hours. A trip that should have taken me about 6.
I slept very poorly my first night in Moab, so I got up late on the 22nd and went to Arches National Park. Arches is very similar to the Great Sand Dunes National Park as it is a very touristy park. There is one road through the park. I basically just drove to the end of the park did about a 4 mile out and back hike to see some arches then started driving back towards the entrance stopping at several different viewpoints to see some more arches. I was probably in the park for about 5 hours. I will go back tomorrow for about an hour to see one more Arch I missed but if I had planned my day better I could have seen everything in the park in 1 day. After, Arches I went to get dinner, beers and plan out the next day at the Moab Microbrewery. I got their IPA and their Rocket (coffee flavored) lager. I highly recommend the brewery. I also had decided I was going to do the most written about hike in Canyonlands the following day, The Chesler Park Loop. It is an 11 mile lollipop loop in the Needles district which I wanted to get up very early for so I could finish it before it got too hot outside.
When I got back from the brewery I took care of a few things then started heading to bed but as I was I walking to bed I passed a picnic table outside the hostel and was asked to sit down and have a beer. I couldn’t say no, obviously, and sat down and talked with the group for about 2 hours. Most of the people there were also single travelers, moving through Moab for one reason or another. Tom, a Toronto resident, took a month to drive from Toronto to Vancouver then down the pacific coast to Joshua Tree NP and is now driving northeast heading back to Toronto. He looked younger than me and said he was a wedding photographer and summers are busy so this would be his last summer trip for many years so he wanted to make the most of it. He gave me a lot of good spots to hit as I leave Montana and head up into Canada. Zuzu and John were traveling from Houston, of all places, heading to Montana where Zuzu was from as she also decided to move out of Houston and move closer to home. It’s the thing to do.
Steven has just moved back to Utah from Wyoming. He is working in Moab and staying at the hostel until he finds a more permanent place to live. Then finally, Michael, an Australian who initiated the congregation grabbing people as they walked by the table asking if they would like to join and have a beer. Michael was 8 weeks into an enormous trip that I have no idea how long will take and he probably doesn’t know either. He started in LA and plans to drive across the USA, then fly to Europe and travel from Western Europe all the way through the Middle East to India then somehow get to Japan before he flies back to Australia. All doing this on his motorcycle. I don’t know how he plans to get his bike from NY to Europe but somehow he got it to LA so I guess it is possible.
After staying up until almost midnight that night I thought waking up at 5 to do an 11 mile hike was a bad idea. So I pulled another audible and drove through the Island of the Sky district of Canyonlands. Canyonlands is where the Green River and the Colorado River converge making a “Y” shaped canyon. It was an awe-inspiring view. The pictures really don’t do it justice. The size and scale of the canyons are unbelievable. You really need to be here to appreciate it.
Today, I completed the Chesler Park Loop and it lived up to expectations. The 11 mile hike passes you through red rocks, grass land prairies, slot canyons while all lined by the namesake of the district, the needles, giant spires of rock shooting out of the ground hundreds of feet.
Until next time…
Matthew