Natural Bridge Monument

April 30, 2016.

     Waking up to a car completely frosted over only pleases me due to my decision to sleep in the car. I found a camp site right off the road in the San Juan National Forest, CO. Bringing the 20 degree sleeping bag was a great decision. I've used it enough times to justify lugging it around.

     I was too cold and my body too creaky to start up the stove to warm up breakfast. Drinking water to suppress the hunger for another halfhour was my choice.
    
     After the car warmed up I left to visit the much anticipated Mesa Verde National Park. Nothing beats a long road day like a short one. The park was only 20 minutes away.

     The usual checking out the visitor center, grabbing a brochure, and chatting with a couple rangers commenced. I traveled to the musem on the opposite side of the park. Wfter checking the exhibits out for a while I then headed for a 6 mile loop in which you could get out and check out the vistas/sites. The area, history, and scenery lived up to the hype.

     After only few hours I had finished what I wanted to check out from the park. I grabbed a brunch PB &Nutella sandwhich. Pointing my finger towards the Natural Bridges National Monument I decided to take a drive. Only a few hours away and leaving Colorado I entered Utah.

     Last time I was here I was in awe from the large monolith natural walls that surrounded the nearby highway. I checked out Moab and was happy about it. This time I would be checking out a few more places, since Utah is abundant with naturally protected areas.

     Once I arrived and checked out the visitor cente I was kind of let down. They had onlu three bridges and it would take maybe an hour to check them all out by vista. The mood changed when I checked out the first bridge. They had a trail that went to the river. Only .6 mi down? That should not take me the suggested time of 1.5hrs as the sign states.

     It took an hour, haha. The trail was steep and it made looking up at the bridge from the bottom that much more satisfying. The view was cool, but Ill admit I enjoyed the hike more. The trail was maintained, but had pipes sticking out of rocks to help guide your way down some sections. Pipes and..my favorite...ladders. The ladders were neat. I couldnt get over using a wooden ladder as a part of a hike (get it..wordplay..). The way back up was exhausting and I had to take a few breathers.

     After that display of fun I checked out the other two bridges. This time I didnt downplay trails and decided to just check out the viewpoints. If it wasn't as late in the day I would have done one more trail.

     A short road day indeed. My destination to camp was right next door I found out. At the National Forest adjacent to the Natural Monument area. I drove down a muddy road snd found a site. These western states make it easy to find a gorgeous and free way to camp. The sun is making its way to set, but the large rock mountain will be blocking the rays out much sooner than the horizon. The site is muddy, but if thats the only problem of the day I am ok with it.

May 1st 2016

     Today I drove from the Natural Bridges Natural Monument area to the Capitol Reef National Park. The park was cool, but the weather is still bad. Dealing with rain and snow off and on with possibilities of thunderstorms for a few days.

     The park was cool, but the drive along highway 95 was awe inspiring. After a while along 95 I forgot a had a soundtrack for the moment. I pulled over to the side of the road and put "Scale the Summit - Carving Desert Canyons" album in. The drive was nothing like the last time I was in Utah.

     At an overlook I walked up to read the information on a board. The person in front of me near the cliffs edge turned around and asked "Amazing, isnt it?". I relplied "Not sure if that word describes it". He laughed and said, " Yeah, I dont think any word can describe it" to which I agreed. Unreal is the closest term in my vocabulary that best describes it.

     I'm sitting in a visitor center uploading a bunch of pictures. I will probably hangout here until they are all up, which will be a while. Hangin out listening to the gentlmen that works here tell his experiences of the area to all of the visitors coming in. Which is cool as well.