The Archway to Moab

If you’re in Moab it’s probably because you’re planning to visit Arches National Park . Arches is amazing – one of the best places I’ve been to in my life! I probably took about 3 rolls of film in the few short hours that we were there – it’s just stunning! Knowing that we only had a couple hours to spend there, we figured we’d just take the scenic drive and bypass the hiking trails. However, once we started driving through the park, we couldn’t contain ourselves – we had to get out and really experience as much as we could. Of course we were completely unprepared and were limited to sticking to the short trails for fear of becoming dehydrated! It was an extremely hot day, and in our rush to get there, we had forgotten to pack any bottled water!

Quick Tips:

WATER – Bring some! Also, make sure you’ve got plenty of film if you’re planning to take photos. I also recommend spending more than just a few hours, because some of the more impressive Arches are at the end of the long trails – about 3-4 miles, and I regret not being able to see them. Arches is considered a National Park, so if you’re planning to visit a lot of parks within the year, I recommend buying the National Parks Annual Pass for . National Parks Org

Best Way To Get Around:

The town of Moab is pretty small, and most everything is located on Main Street, so walking is an easy way to check the place out. However, if it’s 90 degrees outside, like it was when we were there, you’re better off hopping in your air-conditioned car and driving. Arches is about 5 miles from Moab and I advise taking your car to get there. There are, however, several 4x4 rental places in Moab if you want to go all out.

We arrived in Moab late at night without a place to stay, which was fine as there are so many motels along Main Street. The Big Horn Lodge was just what we were looking for – it had vacancies and the rates were the cheapest that we saw (about $75/night). The Lodge had a very rustic feel to it, which was a nice change from the Motel 6’s we’d been frequenting. They even have a pool, albeit a small one, but a pool nonetheless. The rooms were simple, but they had all the basic amenities: beds, bathroom, fridge, tv, fan, and coffee maker. I felt like I was either in a log cabin or a sauna from inside our room, as it was furnished with wall-to-wall wood paneling. Kind of cozy actually. They also have a restaurant on site – check out my review. Their website is: Big Horn Lodge

The restaurant was closed when we arrived at night, so we had to settle for breakfast there in the morning. Even though it’s connected to the hotel, it seems to stand quite well on it’s own, as I noticed a lot of locals dining there, and they pride themselves on having the "best steak in Moab" – can’t say I tried it though. Pretty standard family style menu: Eggs, bacon, pancakes, cereal etc…but quite tasty. Reasonable prices - breakfast was under $10.

In downtown Moab, on the corner of Main Street and Center Street, there’s the Moab Information Center. It’s open from 8 am – 7 pm, and is a good place to get acquainted with the town and the surroundings. They’ve got info on all the sights, hotels, restaurants, jeep rental etc., as well as info on the various tour operators (guided tours of Arches are available if you’d like to find out more about it’s history). They’ll also fill you in on the latest weather conditions – important to know if you plan on camping at Arches. In addition, they have a pretty decent gift shop, with lot's of great pictures, posters, postcards, etc.

Absolutely stunning! Wish I had more time to spend there. Located a mere 5 miles outside of Moab, Arches is definitely worth the trip. It is part of the National Parks Organization so if you think you’ll be visiting more than 4 or 5 parks in the year, you should buy the National Parks Pass for $50. If you don’t get one of those, admission is $10/car and is good for 7 days (some other parks charge $20 admission, so it can quickly add up).

We started off thinking we’d just drive through the park and not venture off onto the hiking trails, but the beauty of the rocks got the better of us, and soon we found ourselves walking along the trails like everyone else before us. (Make sure you pack plenty of bottled water – you’ll need it – and in case you think you don’t, there are signposts everywhere telling you that you should). Of course we didn’t plan ahead, so we were stuck drinking from the few water fountains located at the beginning of each trail. Needless to say, we only took the short (half hour) hikes.

Arches National Park is roughly 80,000 acres of the most impressive landscape I’ve ever come across. A geologist’s dream, it’s populated by more than 2,000 natural sandstone arches, as well as balanced rocks and other naturally sculptured masterpieces. The scenic drive (36 miles round trip) will bring you to many of the major sights, but if you want to see some of the more impressive Arches, be prepared to walk a few miles to get to them. The massive red rocks change color as the sun moves across the sky – they say sunset at Delicate Arch is a sight not to be missed. If you don’t want to walk the 3 miles to get there, there’s another viewpoint right off the road where you can see it from a distance. In the few hours that we were there, we managed to drive the entire scenic route and take three short trails to see the Balanced Rock, Double Arch, Sand Dune Arch, and Broken Arch, as well as the many unnamed rock formations along the way. A truly enjoyable trip – I highly recommend it!

If you’re driving south along Hwy 191, about 15 miles out of Moab, you’ll see signs for the ‘Hole N The Rock’. What, you might ask, is that? Well, that’s exactly what we asked ourselves, so we decided to check it out. It’s as though you’ve just stepped into an episode of The Flintstones, carved into an enormous rock on the side of the highway, is a 5,000 square foot home, complete with fourteen livable rooms and a chimney! The story behind it is, back in the mid-1940’s, a man named Albert Christensen began his lifelong dream of building a home inside this sandstone rock. In addition, he also carved a sculpture of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the rock. Unfortunately he passed away before the excavation was completed, so his wife, Gladys, continued the task. What stands now in addition to the home, is a rock and cactus garden, gift shop, trading post, and a few ostriches. Random? Yes, but worth a quick stop. There’s a few picnic tables carved out of rock where you can grab a bite to eat, and for a few bucks, you can take a tour of the place.