Day 3 (P3) of 10 of Our Epic Summer Journey

ARCHES NATIONAL PARK WITH OVER 2,000 NATURAL STONE ARCHES!

DAY 3 - Part 3: Arches National Park near Moab, UT ("The Adventure Capital of the United States", in the heart of the Colorado Plateau!)

Taking a break on Scenic Byway 12 on the way to Arches National Park.

Arches National Park holds the world's largest concentration of natural sandstone arches... over a-whopping 2,000 of them! It's best known for its Delicate Arch, but the Park Avenue and the Courthouse Towers is at the entrance of the Park. We actually started AND ended there, since it was one of Jack's dad and mom's favorite places to go and sit when they would visit Arches.

 

These guys are called The Three Gossips

While there wasn't much time for a lot of hiking, we drove the Scenic Drive
to take in as much of the Park's 76,518 acres as possible!

This teetering giant is the Balanced Rock.

The kiddos scaling the base of the Balanced Rock.

  

The North Window

View from inside the North Window

The Delicate Arch from a distance

After a 5-hour drive from Bryce National Park, we got to the Arches just in time to be able to meander through the spectacular formations. We read that to really enjoy the Park, to arrive early before 9am or to go later after 2pm.

We arrived back to Park Avenue just in time to witness an absolutely unforgettable sunset!

The Double Arch

We booked a fantastic AirBNB at Vista Villa in Moab and arrived pretty late at night. I've always thought the skies here, whether on our Carolina beaches or in the Blue Ridge Mountains, are stunning. Growing up in the countryside of (VERY) rural Union Grove... the night was completely filled with stars in that big, open sky. ~ It was the same in Moab (... unfortunately, no photos)... but the stars seemed SO, SO CLOSE that you could reach out and touch them!

As you can tell, it was late when we got to Moab, so we didn't get to see much upon arrival. When we awoke the next morning... just WOW!! We took several videos... but not near enough photos, because Day 4 was slated to head out for our 7-hour drive to Thayne, Wyoming.

My advice: Driving Scenic Byway 12 was pure bliss. And watching the sunset at the Arches' Park Avenue was amazing! Additionally... I would have loved to spend an entire day (or 2!) in Moab, since they call it, "The Adventure Capital of the United States" ~ just take a look below at just a HANDFUL of the excursions available! 

Accommodations:  AirBNB in Rim Village, Moab, UT.

What I learned: That Mother Nature is a MASTER sculptor and no amount of pictures could ever do this place justice! There's also so many things to do in Moab, that we'll definitely be scheduling a trip to spend some good quality time there. Unfortunately, there sometimes just isn't enough time in the day (very LITERALLY!). The next time we go back, we definitely want to visit Goblin Valley State Park, Canyonlands National Park, Dead Horse Point State Park, Looking Glass Rock and the Mesa Arch... just to name a few. See what I mean when I say there is LITERALLY just NOT enough time in the day!!

Cheers, y'all!!

xoxo

 “Let the people walk,” sign at Arches National Park

(See Day 1, Day 2 {P1}, Day 2 {P2}, Day 3 {P1} and Day 3{P2})