Day Two: Arches National Park & Canyonlands National Park

We woke up early so that Clifton and Finley could hike Park Avenue.  It was a little over a mile one way, so we decided it best that I drive and pick them up at the end instead of having all of us hike round trip.  Finley did great on her hike and she was quite excited that she had made it.  After Park Avenue, we headed to the Sand Dune Arch.  Finley had so much fun trudging through the sand, too bad her shoes filled up quickly with all that stomping around.  After a quick shoe cleaning, we made the hike to the Broken Arch.  It was really beautiful.  Along the trail Clifton warned Finley not to step on wood since there might be snakes living inside.  This totally freaked Finley out and she got scared.  We drove over to the Skyline Arch, made a quick view of it, then headed back to Moab for lunch and swimming.  After a nap, we headed out to Canyonlands National Park.  Finley became a Junior Park Ranger and even got her very own Park Ranger Badge.  After making it to the end of the road, we took in our first amazing view of Canyonlands.  We loaded back up into the car and Finley promptly fell asleep.  I guess her nap wasn't enough!  She napped through most of Canyonlands while Clifton and I took turns taking in the views at the overlooks.  She woke up toward the end and was feeling much better.  We had dinner in Moab, complete with an ice cream cone.

Glenwood Hot Springs

We met Auntie Hodder in Glenwood Springs today for an enchilada lunch and some fun at Glenwood Hot Springs. It is HOT here. 98 degrees in Glenwood Springs to be exact, for those temperatures I could be in Houston. At least it is a dry heat. We rode the water slides a ton of times and Finley did amazing by herself down the slide. I was a little bit frightened by how fast it went, but Finley loved it. I was worried she might be scared, but she was just happy that she got to "go upside down" on the slide. I think she was sliding all around in the tube. She also did somersaults and handstands in the water. It was the perfect temperature. The hot springs are open all year round, I am not sure I would be able to handle it when it was cold outside.

Instagram Fun

Ghost Town

Back in May, we drove up to Independence Pass and on the way stopped to check out the ghost town on the way. Unfortunately, there was too much snow on the ground to access the town from the parking area.  Things sure have changed in a month, there wasn't a bit of snow on the ground, just water running down the side of the mountain from the melt.  Finley was excited for some "hitchhiking ghosts" like she sees at the Haunted Mansion in Disney.  There were no ghosts, but there were a lot of neat buildings, even a general store set up with information about the former mining town.  Finley and I hiked earlier this morning, so we got a couple more runs today in her hiking shoes, so hopefully they are well broken in by now.

Arches National Park: Day One

After leaving Snowmass just before noon, we made the four hour drive to Moab to visit Arches National Park, with a quick stop in Glenwood Springs for a Target and Sports Authority run. We needed snacks, a hat for Finley (she decided her old hat was too tight) and socks for me since I forgot to pack any. We stopped at a Mexican place for a very late lunch in Moab before we checked into our hotel. We geared up and headed straight out for Arches National Park. After a flash of our annual pass, we were in. We made a quick stop to the Visitor's Center and decided that we would hit the Windows Section first. This included the Windows Arches (both north and south) and the Turret Arch. We waited our turn for a photo op at the North Arch and I climbed up with Finley. As soon as we reached the top, Finley's hat blew off and down the other side of the arch. I was yelling at her to stay put, Clifton was clueless yards away trying to take a photo and I was climbing down the other side of the arch while watching her hat blow further and further away. I eventually got to it, Finley was fine by herself at the top and then a nice family offered to snap a photo of all of us together. We walked down to South Arch and Finley was complaining about her socks and shoes. Turns out climbing may have not been the best idea for her first wear of her new hiking shoes. Clifton carried her to Turret Arch. There was a guy climbing up in the circular arch, which Finley thought was really neat. We then drove through the Parade of Elephants on our way to the Balanced Rock. We did a quick walking tour around Balanced Rock with Finley in her favorite sandals instead of the hiking shoes. Our next stop was the view point for Park Avenue. There was a one mile hike through the canyon that Finley insisted she wanted to do the next morning. It was getting late and we headed back to Moab to rest up for our full Saturday at Arches National Park.