Moab - Arches, Canyons & the Colorado River

I took a short 3 day trip down to Moab the other day just to break the winter duldrums.  I've read about Moab for years in various outdoor adventure magazines.  Frankly, I figured it was overblown and expected to be let down.  I was not. 

Traveling from Colorado, be sure to take scenic Hwy 128 instead of Hwy 191.  It is absolutely breathtaking.  The scenic highway meanders through free-range, scrubby, destert fields the first few miles and seems lonely and empty.  It then turns west and falls into a canyon following the Colorado river.  It was breathtaking this time of year, filled with ice as it meandered past the red canyon walls.

Arches National Park is truly amazing and worth seeing.  The photo ops are unending.

Canyonlands will probably turn out to be my favorite of the two when I have more time to explore it.  It is much larger so I was only able to skim the surface in the 5 hours I had to visit it.  There are thousands of canyons that beg to be explored when I have more time in better weather.  The weather was cloudy, then it started snowing, so my pics of Canyonlands don't do it justice.

I can't wait to go back in warmer weather to hike Canyonlands and to float the Colorado.