Canyonlands National Park

Saturday morning was spent in the Island In the Sky section of Canyonlands National Park.

We traveled the short distance from Moab to the Route 313 entrance to the park and then spent the better part of the morning going from one view point to another. We did do a little walking early on, but both Terry and I agreed that as the day got hotter and our knees got sorer, we would do as little as possible.

Even so, we managed to get some great views of the immense canyon structure, stone buttes and mesas and just about everything we could from the comfort of a paved road and a Tundra's cushioned (and air conditioned) seat. (The temperature would reach over 100 degrees later in the afternoon while we were at Arches NP.)

If you're not going "Wow!" before you get to the entrance to the park, you are not paying attention.

At the turnoff for Route 313 from US 191.

Buttes just inside the park proper.

Upheaved dome of salt. Caused either by a salt dome swelling and popping the rocks above or a meteor impact. Their leaning toward the meteor. The color doesn't do it justice. The jagged rocks are actually a bright turquoise.

Butte.

View of the Green River from the Green River Overlook.

Dosen't this belong in Yosemite? Actually, no. This is formed from sandstone. Half Dome in Yosemite is granite.

Terry at the Grandview Overlook.

View of some canyons from the Grandview Overlook.

 We spent the morning exploring and then returned to Moab to have lunch. In the afternoon, we headed to Arches National Park.