Day 8

We left Gooseneck and headed to a camping spot outside of Arches National Park, Goose Island right on the Colorado River.

As we departed the area, Mike wanted to drive the Moki Dugway. I wasn’t thrilled about it. It is a narrow 3 mile unpaved road that winds up and down.

Second stop off was a hike at House of Fire. Whelp we only did a 1/4 mile of it. Someone (not me) took a spill and landed on a prickly pear cactus. This nameless person was not seriously injured, just needles sticking out of his hand and legs that were easy to remove. His pants received the most stab wounds and they have to be thrown out.

After that we headed straight to Moab. We decided to have our first meal out of the trip, pizza. Whelp (yes another one) Mike discovered our heat had turned off at home (thank you to apps) and needed a manual reset. Luckily for us a good friend and her hubby were able to come over and reset our furnace. This was a first for us while traveling, heat going off.

But the upside is we had a great campsite with wonderful views.

Day 9

Moving day to Island in the Sky, Canyonlands.

We began our day hiking Grandstaff Canyon to the Morning Glory Bridge. The 6th largest natural bridge in the U.S. This hike included 11 stream crossings.

It was 4.62 mile trail that was great fun.

Arrived at Canyonlands and headed to the one campsite in the Park. We choose spot #1.

After claiming our spot we hiked Upheaval Dome to outlook 1 and 2.

After the hike we did the Green River overlook.

The clouds rolled in and there was no starry walks to the bathrooms.

Day 10 (Jan. 1st)

Happy New Year. We woke to rain and slush in Canyonlands. We wanted to hike to Mesa Arch on our way out, but it was not to be. Today was our move day to Capitol Reef where the sun was out.

We found our reserved site for the next three nights, site 9 and we have view of the horses! We made lunch before heading out.

We went out to Panorama Overlook, Sunset Point and finished at Gooseneck Overlook. I cried driving into Panorama Point, it is so beautiful.

We finished our drive on the Scenic Drive (sorry no pictures).

Once back at the campsite, we walked over to the “Mail” tree. Stunning cottonwood trees.

Our campsite views are lovely and we are tucked in for the evening. The sky has clouded over, so no starry photos.