May 31, 2013 Our last day In Utah......

Today is the last day of May & our last day in Utah! Since it was "OUR" last day in Utah, the OUR also includes Otis, so whatever we chose to do today Otis was going to be part of it!!!!
We didn't have any definite plans for our last day in Utah, so after our regular morning routine, we packed our picnic lunch & drove to Hwy 191 just to see what we could see!?!
Our first stop was HOLE "N" THE ROCK  Home & gift shop! This was at one time, a real 5000 sq ft home, owned by Albert & Gladys Christensen.Now Hole N" Rock ranks high in America's uncommon roadside attractions! You could pay & tour the 14 room house, we did not!  ($$$)

but we did walk the grounds & check out some of the "cool stuff" they had on display!

More cool stuff!

                this cactus was made from 881 BOWLING BALLS!!!!

We were told that the day before our visit to Hole N" The Rock, the tourist attraction was closed to the public, open only to a film crew that was filming a segment of the latest Transformers movie!?! Okay....moving on!
A short distance up the road we came upon Wilson Arch, can you see why we liked Utah so much???

Driving further down the road we came upon a real historical sight! Newspaper Rock called this because it is covered with petroglyphs left behind by Indians!

Eventually we found ourselves back at Canyonland National Park,

this time the southeast corner of the park & smaller, called The Needles. Only thing was.....NO dogs, but being a smaller park, 6.5 mile drive,
we were able to view the formations from our car. Like this one, guess the name of this formation?

Did anyone guess Wooden Shoe Arch????

When we were ready for lunch, once again tables are limited. This time another couple offered to share the picnic table with us!

                        the other couple was from Crafordville, Ind. &         
guess how they were traveling!?!
          We better check out the rest of the scenery before it's time to leave.......

                                     the scenery never ends

                       but we do have to get back to the RV, darn!!!!
After dinner we took Otis for his last evening walk in Utah, I think even Otis is sad to leave!?!

We have thoroughly enjoyed Utah. Everything was sooooooo beautiful. From the highest mountains

to the beautiful desert flowers....

I have sooooooo many pictures of Utah in my camera, but even more in my "Memory Bank"!  I definitely want to come back to Utah again!!!!

Tomorrow we start a new state, a new adventure!

May 30, 2013 Arches National Park without OTIS !?!

Today the weather was just perfect to leave Otis behind in the RV, windows open of course!!! Actually Otis didn't act like he wanted to go with us today? He does that sometimes. After breakfast he didn't even get up off the love seat while I was packing the picnic lunch??? I didn't even feel bad after Otis' potty walk & we left for Arches National Park!         
There was a little more traffic heading into the park today.

Today we'll go on some of the trails we couldn't go on when we had Otis with us.

Otis hated that sign!?!

The first trail we went on was called Park Avenue. The map said EASY to MODERATE, & it was EASY going down, but coming back up had me huffing & puffing again! Maybe I should stay off these trails???? Lennie was all set to go!

Without Otis we were able to take the trail walk around the base of Balance Rock

the person in white is Lennie!

Our picnic,

well......just as we parked, a tour bus pulled up. The picnic areas are really limited in the park, we had just found a table & were starting to set up when 4 tourists approached our table. A woman asked if we would mind them joining us? We didn't own the table, so of course we didn't mind, but they didn't say another word to us, only spoke among themselves in their own language, something European??? One guy smoked, but at least he left the table to enjoy his habit. Lennie & I were done & as we left "OUR" table we said "Good-bye, have a nice day". Then the only one who seemed to be able to speak English, struck up a conversation with us?????          Too late, we've got more

scenery to look at!

And more!

There's more!

We have one more trail we want to hike before heading back to the RV to see Otis! That's Sand Dunes Arch, another easy trail!

The paved path ended here, beyond this point was reddish SAND, making walking a little harder. Some people, (younger people!) took their shoes & soxs off to trudge through the sand! The Sand Dune Arch was really cool!

another view of

 Sand Dune Arch

One more arch, is Broken Arch.

It was an easy trail across open grasslands, then.....there's the ARCH!!!!

I think Otis is calling us home! When he called he must have told Lennie to stop at McDonald's to get him a McDouble, cause we did stop at McDonalds to get Otis his "treat" for staying home like "a dog"!?!
Tomorrow is our last day here in Moab, & also Utah!!!! I'm really going to hate to leave, we have really enjoyed ALL the natural beauty here.
                    I wonder what we're going to do for our last day in Utah?????

May 29,2013 Len,Wen,& OTIS view Canyonlands & Dead Horse Point Park

Last night after the rain, when Lennie took Otis out, he told me it was pretty chilly out! Not enough to use the extra blanket, but come morning time when I heard Lennie up, I was chilly enough I thought we needed the electric heater on!?! I heard noise in the kitchen, I thought for sure he was setting it up, but nope, he was just making coffee. I laid in bed till I heard him finish his shower. I knew then for sure if he showered without the heater, I didn't stand a chance to have it on!!! By the time I finished breakfast I was brave enough to get in the shower, besides the fact it was already warming up!!!
Today we are going to visit Canyonlands National Park & Dead Horse Point State Park.They are both relatively small parks & close making it possible to visit both parks in a day.Canyonlands National Park was  established in 1964. Only Indians, cowboys, river explorers, & uranium prospectors had dared enter this rugged corner of southeastern Utah. Canyonlands remains largely untrammeled, its roads mostly unpaved, trails primitive, & rivers free-flowing.Big horn sheep, coyotes, & other native animals roam its 527 square miles, tho....we didn't see any of these species!?!

We stopped first at the visitor's Center so I could get some postcards!

There are so many ways to view  Canyonlands. By Trail, including short & long hikes. By River, motorboats, rafts,& canoes use the Colorado & Green River, There are 4-wheel-drive guided tours, mountain bike tours, hiking trips, & river float trips year round. We did see some Jeepers & ATVers having fun!

But......if you've got a dog, you drive the whole park, miss the trails you have to walk on(no dogs allowed) & just view the overlooks that are close enough you're comfortable leaving your dog in the car. Otis wasn't the only dog waiting in a car, we saw other dogs too!

The park has sooooo much natural beauty we didn't feel cheated by having to take the shorter version!

                                          See what I mean!?!

and......

                       there's always a picnic

which gave Lennie the energy to make it up this mountain !

He must be tired after all that climbing!?!

Lennie wasn't the only one climbing, Otis did a little mountain climbing himself. I better take these tired boys out of here, we still have another park to visit!

This is how Otis rides when we're sightseeing, but somehow he knows THAT lap is off limits when we're in the RV!?!

Leaving Canyonlands, heading to Dead Horse Point State Park just a short distance away.

                           This is a State Park, Get your wallet out Len!

THE LEGENDS OF DEAD HORSE POINT
In the 1800s, cowboys used Dead Horse Point to catch wild horses. With sheer cliffs on all sides & an access only 30 yards wide, the point made a perfect horse trap. According to legend, a band of horses left corralled on the waterless point died of thirst within view of the Colorado River 2,000 feet below.

   The Colorado River blends in with the rest of the decor, so look close!           

I loved this mountain range & probably have way too many pictures of them!

Otis was allowed in this park, the only place he wasn't allowed was on trails we weren't going on anyhow, rated STRENUOUS!

If you've never been to Dead Horse Point State Park in real life, maybe you've been there in the movies!?! Dead Horse Point State Park is where the movie Thelma & Louise filmed the scene where they drove their car off the cliff !?!

Today's weather was "dog friendly" notice at times we even had a sweatshirt jacket on? We've had a full day, my eyes are ready to burst! Tomorrow they'll be all refreshed ready to start looking all over again.

Sorry Otis.....you're not coming with us tomorrow!!!