I love the desert. I love red dirt. I love red rocks.
Biking Video
Here is a short video I took when when were riding our bikes in Canyonlands. I believe those are the La Salle Mountains. The video messes up at the end when I had to stop myself from eating it.
Moab to Missoula through Capital Reef National Park
On the way back we decided to take the scenic route, went south on 191, and then cut west on highway 95. The drive was a part of Utah I had never seen. You go across the Colorado River at the very start of Lake Powell, through the Glen Canyon Recreation Area. Then you drive a little through Capital Reef National Park. Much of the drive was characterized by tall cliffs on either side as you are following various rivers as they cut their way through the the landscape.
The scenic route was our goodbye to the Southwestern landscape as approaching Salt Lake City the red and orange cliffs are replaced by urban sprawl and the snow-covered Wasatch Mountains. Our decision not to backtrack turned what was probably a 12 hour drive to Missoula into a 16 hour one.
Biking Canyonlands National Park
The last day we were back on our bikes. We drove about 60 miles south of Moab into the Needles area of Canyonlands. I was amazed at how deserted the road was. I didn’t think roads like that existed in the United States. We probably saw four or so cars total in a span of many hours.
Biking Arches National Park
The ride we did the first day in Arches ended up being a splendid introduction to the area. From bike you have a wide open view of the high rocks close the road and can really get a sense of the landscape.
Driving from Bozeman to Moab: White to Red
Last week was Spring Break. I took a trip down to Moab, Utah. Jeff took me from Bozeman to Idaho Falls and Hilary picked me up on her way from Missoula. It was a sneaky maneuver that sped things up a bit.
We brought our bikes down there and enjoyed the bright blue sky and red desert sandstone.