Moab KOA Campground (el 4,500 ft); Moab, Utah
(click pictures to enlarge)
(all pictures taken with Nokia Lumia 929 Cell Phone)
There were two National Parks that I wanted to see in this area. They were Arches NP and Canyonlands NP. I figured Arches would be the best so I went there first, which was Sunday. I was disappointed. Yesterday I went to Canyonlands and it made up for my disappointment with Arches. Every stop was a "wow moment". I took lots of pictures but they don't capture the true beauty and vastness of the sights. There were times when I just stood there for several minutes trying to soak in the view. There was so much to absorb, your sense of sight just gets overwhelmed. That was combined with a fragrance in the air brought on by the short rain. I wasn't able to idendify the smell, no one seemed to know. I liked this National Park a lot, and will be back in the future.
Some of the pictures may not have any captions because just seeing it says it all. I was glad my cell phone has the panorama app. It is very easy to use and produces pretty decent panoramic pictures. If anyone has a question about one, just comment or email me.
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| This is on the way to Canyonlands. I took it because that cloud over the mountains looked like an Indian smoke signal. |
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| It looked like it was going to be a pretty day although the weather forecast called for scattered showers |
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| This was taken for a "pull-off" before reaching the Park. It was a nice view. |
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| A dark cloud came up as I was getting closer to the Park entrance. Just as I pulled into the parking lot of the visitor's center, it started raining with some soft hail mixed in. I knew it wouldn't last long, so I just reclined the seat and took a nap with the rain music playing tap-tap on the roof of Freedom. |
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| Panorama picture |
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| That's the Green River in the bottom of the canyons. It joins up with the Colorado just a little ways further south. |
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| This gives an idea about the view-stops. The people are on the edge, looking around. |
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| This was on the way out. I took it because of the balanced rock. |
Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.
Darrell, are these photos of Canyonland from the park at the north entrance? I would recommend you also do the trip in the park from the south entrance also. Actually both ends of the park are spectacular but on a ten scale I would give the north side a 9 and the south a 10. Enjoying your posts and trip as much as ever. Be safe. Happy Days, Martin
ReplyDeleteMartin, these are from the northern part,,,the island in the sky. I don't know if I will get to the southern part or not before I leave the area.
DeleteWe were very impressed with the Needles area of Canyonlands we were in last March & next time in the area plan to check out the Northern end of Canyonlands. That whole southeastern area of Utah is a marvelous scenic wonder.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I will look at some of the views and it looks fake until I remind myself its real.
DeleteBeautiful pictures Darrell ! I wonder if the smell you mentioned was ozone ?
ReplyDeleteHello Ed. I thought it smelled like the creosote bushes I smelled in west Texas and Arizona, but I haven't confirmed it yet. Not sure about Ozone, there wasn't any lightening with the storm. May remain a mystery to me.
DeleteJust curious, why were you disappointed with Arches? Now, Moab, I could see being disappointed with, but we really enjoyed Arches. Lots of other tourists, though. Hard to get a picture without a crowd in it.
ReplyDeletehello KCD, good to hear from you again. I just posted about my visit to Arches. I changed my mind a little bit and went with "semi-disappointment" instead of disappointment. Beside not feeling 100% when I visited, I got the feeling of "seen one sandstone formation, seen them all". I know that doesn't sound fair, but let's blame it on me not feeling well. :)
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