Utah, Who Knew?

The drive into Utah was full of vistas I could have never imagined. We came from the north, camping in Idaho the night before, and making our way to Moab. Moab is known for hosting a series of national and state parks, all filled with incredible red rock structures.  Each hour driving through Utah proved to be stranger and stranger. The forms that shoot up from the ground are this bright red, and crazy looking art that we kept trying to make sense of, saying things like, "that one looks like lasagna", or "that's a moustached man".  We needed a geologist asap.

We checked into our little motel, The Red Stone Inn, upon arrival to Moab. We decided not to camp because none of the parks let Barley onto the trails, and we were there to hike! The little motel was cute, but smelled like a sauna. It was about 100 degrees out and the place was made of wood. I had only heard about dry heat up until now, but I finally got it here. 

That evening the three of us walked into the cute little downtown and grabbed a bite to eat at a place called Eddie McStiff's. We shared some yummy small plates, and I have officially changed my favorite dish from eggplant parmesan to fish tacos after having one of the best ever in Utah. 

We got up at 6am the next morning to try and get a hike in before the heat hit hard. Barley stayed back at the motel while we headed out and grabbed coffees to help us deal with the early morning. I've gotta share, it's been such a treat to keep vacation sleeping hours. It was almost 8a.m. by the time we made it to the trail head for the Delicate Arch. The hike was pretty challenging, and had people not been there to lead the way, I am not sure we would have figured it out alone. The whole first 50 minutes were uphill and not a minute of shade. The way that the sun beats down against the rock face is insane. As we started to get close, people encouraged us, letting us know we were almost there. Phew, this Florida girl needed it! The view at the top was spectacular, and worth the challenge. I can't even begin to describe Arches National, so I included photos to help. For now, off to Colorado.