My parents had suggested that we exit I-70 at Route 128 in order to take the scenic drive along the Colorado River into Moab. This was a fantastic idea…as JMac said, “Good thinking, Jimbo.” The scenery did not disappoint. With no particular schedule to meet, a rarity for the both of us, we took time to pull off and take some pictures, winding our way through the open country. We drove up to the stunning Fisher Towers, another beautiful landmark and took some more pictures there as well.
We eventually made it to Moab and checked in at the Up the Creek Campground, a small, tent only campground about a half block off the main drag on the south side of town. We have a nice site backed up against a creek that winds through town. It’s actually quite lovely. Quiet. Clean. With running water and hot showers. It is also significantly cheaper than all of the other lodging I saw in town, including the Air BnB stays. Dinner found us at the Moab Brewery. They have an entire section of their menu dedicated to #plantpowered entrees so I had no trouble finding something substantive to eat. I have now read three articles on Utah’s liquor laws but still have no real understanding of how they work. At the brewery, if you order one of their beers on draft, it’s 3.2% ABV. But you can also order the same beer in a can, drink it in the restaurant and it will be “full test” or somewhere in the 6-7% range. Weird.
I found town to be a lot more busy than I was anticipating. I realize that it’s a tourist destination but I was under the impression it was a more quiet, artsy community. Not so, my friends. It’s artsy but with offroad vehicles driving through town and people everywhere. Something like Gatlinburg meets Jackson, WY?
Breakfast on Wednesday was at the aptly named Eklectica Café. With a wide range of options (they will do a tofu sub for all egg dishes and also have GF bread and pastry), JMac and I both had a hearty meal. Our plan for the day was laundry, return some messages knowing we would be without cell access after today, check out Arches National Park and then repack our gear for four days in the backcountry.
Laundry? Washed, dried and folded. Messages returned? Done. So then we were off to Arches. If you have seen any pictures from there, you know that the scenery is quite stunning. Large sandstone walls. Stone towers. And of course, these amazing geological works of art, the arches. But, I have to say, it’s pretty much near impossible to avoid the crowds. The NPS map flat out states that there is no real “backcountry” at Arches to speak of. They suggest checking out Canyonlands for a backcountry experience. I had been hoping to hike out to several of the arches under the theory I have found to be true at most parks, get more than a mile from a parking lot and the crowds thin immensely. But most of the roads go within a mile of the destination arch, with a wonderfully accessible walking trail to get you the rest of the way. The park service requests that visitors stay off the land not labelled as trail as human impact will damage the surrounding vegetation.
I get it. But I guess I just generally prefer a more solitary experience. So.
For dinner, we tried Fiesta Mexicana. Both food and margaritas were very tasty. With everything else accomplished for the day, that left us with rearranging our camping gear to get ready for our backpack excursion Thursday – Sunday. I’m happy with my clothing selections but am pretty sure I’m over packed on food. But a hungry Marsita is an angry Marsita and we don’t want that. So I guess it’s all coming with us.