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Canyonlands National Park and Delicate Arch in Arches NP
After mountain biking and eating lunch, Jordan, my parents and I drove the ~45 min to Canyonlands National Park. We didn’t have much time to spend here because we had plans to hike Delicate Arch back at Arches, so we made a quick stop at the visitor’s center and drove to the trail to Mesa Arch, one of the most popular spots in the Island in the Sky District. The trail was short, but offered some great views. You can see the La Sal Mountains in the background. What an awesome spot! There were lots of people wandering around the arch so I wanted until nobody was under it to…
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Mountain Biking in Klondike Bluffs, Moab, Utah
Our last full day of the trip was an action-packed one. Jordan and I were on the fence about renting mountain bikes during the trip, but decided to go for it on the last day. We were in Moab, after all, where some of the best and most famous mountain biking trails are located. Our hotel was also right across from the best bike rental shop in Moab, Poison Spider. The night before we picked out and got fit for our bikes. I chose an Ibis Mojo HD3, an extremely high end, 27.5 wheel size, carbon fiber, full suspension mountain bike. We asked our friends who had come to Moab previously…
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Hiking the Devil’s Garden, Arches National Park
Finally, we arrived in Moab! Not only is Moab close to Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park, it is the mountain biking capital of the US! First on our to-do list while in Moab: hike the Devil’s Garden Trail in Arches National Park. The Devil’s Garden is the longest hiking trail in the park at about 7 miles RT. With side trails to many different arches and cool rock formations, it was high on my list ! At one point the trail got a little hairy. It went up and over these big slickrock ledges, with cairns marking the path. How do these arches form, you ask? According…
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Hiking Capitol Gorge at Capitol Reef National Park
We said goodbye to Bryce Canyon and headed to our next stop on the tour of the Utah Five, Capitol Reef National Park. The drive was long, but scenic. Our stop at this park was brief since we were en route to Moab, but still pretty awesome. We drove to the trail head for Capital Gorge, a short hike within the park. It was getting pretty hot so we didn’t hike all the way up to the tanks, but had it been cooler we might have. The hike through the gorge was pretty awesome. The writings on these rocks have been here since the 1880s when the early…
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Horseback Riding into Bryce Canyon
The Bryce Canyon Half Marathon was over by 9:00am, and that day Jordan and I didn’t feel like hiking. After a delicious breakfast at our lodge Ruby’s Inn, we opted for the next best thing, horseback riding! We both love horses and my parents do too, so we thought a ride through the canyon would be a great way for all of us to see the sights. My mom made reservations with Canyon Rides. They have a stable right at the Lodge in Bryce Canyon. I would **HIGHLY** recommend booking a ride with these guys. They were phenomenal. Since I have a few years of riding experience (I rode Western from age…