– photo by Joe Alexander, all rights reserved
I was probably a week or two late to see the peak of the leaves changing colors, but there was still a lot of bright yellow in the trees. That made a vivid contrast to the red and tan striations of the rocky terrain in the park.
– photo by Joe Alexander, all rights reserved
Most of that drive takes you northeast up Interstate 15 through eastern Nevada, a sliver of northwestern Arizona and finally into the southwestern corner of Utah.
You never know what weather you’ll get when you book your vacation a few weeks out but I was fortunate to make the drive on a clear and sunny November day.
There were no traffic issues until I tried to park at the Zion National Park visitor’s center. I guess you need to get there early but I rolled in after 1 p.m. and the parking lot was completely full.
The La Sal Mountains are located about 20 miles southeast of Moab in the Manti-La Sal National Forest near Utah’s border with Colorado.
The mountain peaks are over 12,000 feet – the second highest mountain range in Utah.
Be aware that from April 1 to October 31, 2023, you need a reservation in the form of a Timed Entry Ticket. More information on that here:
Official site: Arches: National Park Service
The park just north of Moab, Utah, has rugged trails, curvy roads and scenic views of red rocks and – if the weather behaves – really blue skies.
Official site: Arches: National Park Service
The park is west of Moab, Utah, and located is a short distance from the northern entrance to Canyonlands National Park.
Official site: stateparks.utah.gov/parks/dead-horse/
There are plenty of trails and camping is available at the park.
You reach the Canyonlands Island in the Sky visitor center by taking Highway 313 southwest from Highway 191, which is the north-south highway to and from Moab, Utah.
Official site: National Park Service: Canyonlands
The southeast part of Canyonlands is about an hour and a half drive heading south from Moab, Utah. That entrance takes you to the park district called The Needles.
According to Earth Trekkers, the park gets its name from clusters of sandstone spires.
Official site: EarthTrekkers.com
Official site: National Park Service – The Needles
The morning I got here, the sky ranged from cloudy when I first showed up to mostly sunny but still hazy. I never got any really blue-blue skies, and then it clouded up again. My best shots were in that stretch of about an hour when I got at least some sun and sort of blueish skies.
I apparently headed out just in time. Heading north I drove through a momentary now flurry and then some wind and rain. That cleared up in time for me to make an afternoon visit to the north side of the park.
It’s worth the stop.
The carvings in the rock are estimated to be up to 2,000 years old.
Newspaper Rock: Bureau of Land Management
There is a nice place to park next to the river called Lions Park and Transit Hub. The stop also has restrooms and access to a paved bicycle lane.
