day 9, Tuesday, June 30 - rafting trip on the Colorado

Having an extra day in Moab since we made so many miles in the first week of the trip, we decided to do a rafting trip. They are reasonably priced

compared to some activities ($100/person approx, full day, incl lunch).

We were a bit worried about the rafting trip because the weather had been very windy the day before.  And it was predicted to be chilly (70s) rather than 80s.  But it turned out to be mild and warm.  The wind did pick up a few times, and we had to paddle against it, but in general it was perfect.

Arrived at 8:20 at Paddle Moab.  2 families and a couple.  We ended up with rafting guide Brendan in a blue boat with the older couple from Texas or maybe Arizona who are active mountain bikers.  We put in about 25 miles upriver from Moab. After a quick safety check, we started floating, sometimes paddling.  The boat was not large. See photos below.

We went through about 6 rapids prior to lunch and a total of about 9 miles.  The view was almost entirely unbroken expanses of walls 1,000 feet above us, towers of rock, mesas, and the ocassional ranch.

Words and even photos really don't do the views justice.  It can't be captured with any kind of camera.

Lunch was at a riverside winery/ranch.  Binh and I visited the winery after eating but since we were traveling by boat, we opted out of buying anything.  The grapes were all local according to the hostess.

Brendan turned out to be a serious rock-climber.  The "I've been on El Capitan in Yosemite" level - not your typical hobbyist.  He regaled us with tales of climbing the towers and walls we passed in the boat, giving us a view of the rock we'd never have otherwise.

The couple was only half day so there was just the Saltman/Nguyens in the boat for lunch and after.

After lunch I jumped off the boat for a swim in the Colorado during a flat stretch with no rapids, along with the guides. Daniel, Audrey and Binh wimped out. The best part of the swim for Steve was floating gracefully down the colorado river. The best part of the swim for everyone else was watching me hauled back in the raft like an old boot someone found at the end of their fishing rod - another "I wish we'd caught it on video" moment.

Day 8 Monday, June 29, - Arches National Park

I have Mint Mobile, which is on the T-Mobile network and I have had basically no cell or data at campgrounds so I'm behind on posting.  This post is being made on July 6, 2020.

Arches NP

Our first national park. We were concerned about crowds, but also hopeful because there are no tour busses since all tours have been Covi-cancelled.  No foreign tourists effectively.

So rather than get up super early and try to beat the crowds, we dawdled and showed up at the gate at around 9:30am.  And there was no line. This isn't to say the park was empty - there were plenty of people, but we found parking spots at every viewpoint we wanted, even very popular ones.

We saw the famous double arch - a short hike from a parking lot.

Next we drove to another trailhead and opted to do a 3 mile roundtrip hike to get a birdseye view of "Delicate Arch" - one of the more photographed arches - it's on some Nevada license plates.

Masks were used by some on the hike. It was easy to maintain 6 feet between fellow hikers except when passing people coming the opposite direction.  Some hikers (say 20%) wore masks.  I opted to put on my bandana and lift it over my mouth on ocassion and then I put it up because of high winds on the ridge to block dust.

The kids opted not to make the final push to the arch. The dust caused Audrey's asthma to act up enough to bother her and Danny hung back with her.  Binh and I trekked the last bit- I shuffled close to the rock wall with the edge of the path being a sheer drop off.  We saw some petroglyphs and the ruins of Wolf Ranch on the edge of a creek bed called Salt Wash on the way back to the parking lot.

Since we didn't bring snacks with us, just water, and the hike was hot and dusty and we had seen many arches and towers, we opted to head back to Moab.

Milt's Burgers

Not knowing what was open, we perused a pamphlet picked up at the RV park and decided on "Milt's" - a burger joint.

Turns out Milt's is not just any burger joint, it's a classed '50's place with walk-up windows and even car-hop service.

Masks on, we ordered burgers and shakes and ate them at picnic tables.  To sum up - mmmmmmmm.  Danny had a Honey Shake that he talked about for days. I had a coffee shake that was the best and only coffee shake I've ever had.  Audrey didn't finish her cheese fries and they got taken back to the camper as leftovers - and they were excellent when refried a day later.

Moab is undergoing rapid growth. Lots of traffic. The main road is being widened and condos/hotels are being built nearby.

At Slickrock RV Park

Mask on

Double Arch