[This post is part of the Utah Ultimate National Parkness series - see the main post for additional background.] What is it about natural arches made of rock that intrigues and inspires us so much? I have no idea, but they are SO VERY COOL. Going to Arches National Park, you get big arches, small arches, thin arches, double arches, far arches, near arches, etc, etc. and you can enjoy many of them in just a few days. Here are some of my favorites: The most iconic arch in the p

[This post is part of the Utah Ultimate National Parkness series - see the main post for additional background.] Why did we love Canyonlands? Because it was enormous and has these seriously carved vistas that rival the Grand Canyon. It’s also mysterious in its own way because so much of it is still completely wild and very difficult to access, with only one of the three districts having multiple paved roads. The views are simply breathtaking. The best way to start your visi

[This post is part of the Utah Ultimate National Parkness series - see the main post for additional background.] Western Escarpment of the Waterpocket Fold - NPS image, since we couldn’t get anywhere near the right perspective from the scenic drive right next to the cliffs. As mentioned in the main Utah post, we went on a lovely scenic drive between the Zion/Bryce area and the Arches/Canyonlands area (Moab, Utah), which took us through Capitol Reef National Park, the most rec

The Amphitheater - we got up close and personal with a lot of it. [This post is part of the Utah Ultimate National Parkness series - see the main post for additional background.] You can see 80-90% of the park in the above single photo - as I mentioned in the main post, it is the smallest of the Utah National Parks and has the highest elevation. And, it’s not really a canyon - the park is actually the eastern edge of a really high, enormous plateau (the eastern edge of the P