A Visit to Salt Lake City, UT - October 2002

The road south from Salt Lake City is I-15 through Provo. Then turn east on US 6 at Spanish Forks. This route heads up through a pass in the Wasatch Mountains to Price, UT, where it connects up with US 191. South of Price, the road is straight and long through a high desert valley with stunning cliffs on each side, until it hooks up with I-70 at Green River. (The Green River is a tributary of the Colorado River, and merges into the Colorado at Canyon Lands National Park.) Take I-70 east to Crescent Junction, and then south on US 191 to Arches National Park and Moab, UT.

Arches National Park, Moab, UT

Arches National Park is located on US 191, near Moab, UT. Along with nearby Canyonlands National Park, it is one of a pair of national parks in southern Utah that showcase some of the most spectacular scenery in the country.

Arches National Park contains the highest concentration of sandstone arches in the world. These arches are formed when softer portions of rock are etched out by water, ice, wind, and erosion.

I arrived at the park at 5:30 PM, and had not much more than one hour to explore before sunset. Unfortunately, I was not able to view the most famous arch in the park, Delicate Arch, because the sun had already set. Still, I was able to explore the North and South Window area, and enjoyed the visit very much.

After leaving Arches National Park, I headed south into Moab for a good dinner of Prime Rib at a local restaurant, and then headed on in the dark down US 191 and US 666 to Cortez, Colorado, where I spent the night.