Solo Travel Journal – Western USA - Week 2

Day 1

I drove down to Flagstaff to see my friend Amanda and meet her husband and new son. It was great to spend time with them and get in a good visit. It had been a while.

(Since then Amanda has opened a restaurant in Flagstaff "Pasto". See the link on the Resources page.)

Day 2

The next morning it was time to move on. I still have 2 weeks of driving and sight seeing.

I decided to pay a quick visit to the Grand Canyon's south rim on my way back north. I'd been this way several years earlier, and just couldn't pass up another chance since I was so close. I only stopped at a couple of overlooks, just for a few moments.

Then I made my first mistake of the trip, it turned out okay, but it was a rough ride that I took up through Cottonwood Canyon on dirt roads. A dirt road scenic backway, filled with washboard roads and rutted areas. Thankfully there was no rain or water to cross. I had gone this way in an effort to see Kodachrome Basin, but I didn't see much, and was worn out after 46 miles of scary driving. Not a good idea to be in this situation when traveling alone.

I found a nice motel at the entrance to Bryce Canyon and got checked in. There was still enough daylight for me to take a short drive into Bryce. I was able to visit the Sunset Overlook at Sunset. That was amazing!

Day 3

I went back into Bryce Canyon and took every road I could find and stopped at all the overlooks. The hoodoo's (what they call these formations) are so interesting and quite colorful. Sometimes they look like people or animals.

I took what is said to be the most scenic byway in Utah, Highway 12 from Bryce Canyon to Capital Reef National Park. Ten miles east of Escalante there is an overlook, the sign says, "on a clear day you can see forever". The view is fantastic! I highly recommend this scenic byway

Capital Reef National Park had lots of beautiful red and white sandstone. This afternoon there was a storm threatening and the road had a lot of washes, so I was a bit nervous, and didn't spend as much time as I could have here.

Day 4

The drive south of Hanksville on the Bicentennial Highway 95 was gorgeous! Red rock canyons, high desert and the widened Colorado River area known as Lake Powell.

The is really a great drive. The red and white rocks and blue water are beautiful.

I entered National Bridges National Monument where there is a nine mile loop. I was able to see three really great "bridges".

Leaving Highway 95 I drove north on US 191 through Blanding and Monticello. About 7 miles north of Monticello I turned left onto UT 211 into a portion of Canyonlands National Park and Newspaper Rock State Park.

I did not drive all the way into Canyonlands from here. I just went as far as Newspaper Rock and stopped to see the petroglyph panel. I have never seen anything like this, it is fantastic! There are several hundred figures! The panel was created by the Anasazi and Ute.

I returned to US 191 and exited at the Needles Overlook. The "needles" are red and white striped rock pinnacles.

Continuing back up US 191 towards Moab, I stopped at Wilson Arch. This is one of the thickest arches I have seen.

Day 5

From Moab, my first day is spent at Arches National Park. Arches is one of the places I wanted to see the most on this trip. All the other fantastic scenery has been a bonus!

Arches contains more than 1,500 recognized natural arches. I took the park road drive. There are many places to pull over and take short trails to see some of the formations, and you can see quite a few from the road. I know I didn't see anywhere close to 1,500 arches, but I was thrilled with the ones that I did see. If you have seen a Utah license plate, you will see Delicate Arch depicted here, and while I did not hike up to it, I did see some great views of it.

In the afternoon I went to Canyonlands National Park and drove out UT 313 to "Island in the Sky" the elevated northern section of Canyonlands to see the view. From this location you overlook the canyon, it is not as amazing, to me, as the Grand Canyon, but the scenery is wonderful and there are some great overlooks.

Day 6

Leaving Moab, I took UT128 paralleling the Colorado River through the Professor Valley towards Interstate 70. Along the way you will also see formations called Fisher Towers and Castle Rock.

I jumped on Interstate 70 and headed through Grand Junction, Colorado to Montrose to visit a friend for a couple of days.

Day 7

My friend to me to Black Canyon not too far outside of Montrose, Colorado. There is quite a contrast between the red and white rocks I've been loving and the black rocks here. It is still great scenery.