And Outside We Went: Part 2

I’d love to say that we are purposely staggering the blog posts to give our readers an appropriate amount of time to digest each part of our insane North American road trip. However, the truth is we've been running ragged from one job interview to the next in search of the right fit for us as we look to settle down more permanent roots here in PA. If you want to know how it’s going I can sum it up in one word: BUSY! I won’t bother giving details, one of us will just let you know where we'll be whenever it is that we figure all that out.

Now, onto more pressing issues, the much anticipated second leg of our journey. When we left you last, we were just reentering the good old continental U.S. of A. It was great to be back. Cheaper gas, no more fake money that may or may not smell like maple syrup, and we were done with the God awful metric system. Ahead of us was the promise of a new National Park, a familiar city, and the wide open spaces that define Montana.

Our National Parks tour began with a chilly 29 degree entrance to Glacier National Park. We knew we only had limited time in the park as we drove along the 10 mile long Lake MacDonald towards Avalanche Creek. We set out on a 4 mile hike to Avalanche Lake, but first came across a sweet looking gorge that was carved and smoothed by the glacially fed waters that flow through it.

The shaped rocks of Avalanche Gorge

After taking pictures from every possible angle, we made our way through the spruce, cedar, and cottonwood lined trail. Avalanche Lake is fed by the Sperry Glacier runoff. Interestingly enough, you can’t actually see the Sperry Glacier because it is positioned below a ridge on the far side of the lake. In this snow covered natural amphitheater you are surrounded by rock faces which cause the sound of your voice to reverberate seemingly without end. Despite it being only November 1st, this scene was more representative of Winter than Fall. 

I promise, Sperry Glacier is out there

While we wish we had more time to spend at Glacier, we were excited for the next stop, Missoula, MT. For those of you that follow our adventures, you should recall that we stopped in Missoula on our way to Washington. We absolutely love this city. It is not overwhelming like most cities, has great places to hang out, and friendly people everywhere you go. As we thought back on our two years of travelling, it was a shame we never got a position in or around Missoula because that would have been an awesome experience. We didn't dwell on what could have been though. There wasn't enough time. Before we knew it, we had to move on yet again.

Our goal for Day 8 was to take the scenic route from Missoula to Salt Lake City, UT. Unfortunately, we made a wrong turn going through Idaho and took the VERY scenic route. While we got to our destination safely, it was not without a little stress. Thankfully the stress was relieved by the scenery of the Salmon River, lava fields, and snow-capped mountain peaks.

Diamond Peak riding above the clouds

It was kind of crazy driving into Salt Lake City because they have this weird toll system. It looks like you have to have Utah's version of EZ Pass to be on the highways, but from the little bit we understood it seemed that you could bypass the tolls by using the carpool lane. It's an odd system, but we made it safely and didn't have to pay any tolls. I'm still waiting for a series of tickets to come in the mail, but so far I'm in the clear.

The beehive is a symbol of industry that is
found everywhere, including road signs.

In Salt Lake City we were visiting Amanda's childhood friends Derek and James Butcher. She knows them from her years vacationing at Quimby Country in Vermont. Derek lives in the city while James flew in from Colorado just to see Amanda. Amanda and her friends caught up, we had dinner, went bowling, and then had a second dinner. Bowling was clearly the highlight. James LOVES bowling. It is pretty much assumed that anytime James visits Salt Lake City he is going bowling. He did win 3 out of 4 games, but I take pride in the fact that I was the only one to knock him off the top of the standings, even if only once. Overall, it was a fun and food filled night on the town.

What a good looking bowling crew!

The thing that surprised us the most about Salt Lake City was the weather. When we arrived on Saturday, November 2 it was 67 degrees and I was wearing shorts. When we awoke on Sunday to leave, it was frigidly cold and absolutely dumping snow. That made our morning drive painfully slow, but we made it through the snowstorm unscathed and into the red rock wonderland that is southern Utah.

What the heck man?!?

Ahhhh....that's more like it.

Southern Utah was the part of the road trip I was most excited for when we set out 9 days prior. There are 5 National Parks, world class hiking trails, extreme landscapes, and 5 NATIONAL PARKS!!! We set up shop in Moab, UT for 3 days and 2 nights while we explored Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. As its name would imply, Arches National Park is known for large sandstone structures which have been carved by wind and rain into the arches seen below.

One of over 2,000 natural arches in the park

It’s a long story to describe how an arch is formed, but I’m going to tell you anyway. Millions of years ago the area that is now southern Utah, was an inland sea. This sea formed and evaporated at least 29 times, leaving behind large deposits of salt each time it went away. This super thick layer of salt was then covered by sand and other erosive particles. This layer of sand became thousands of feet thick and eventually the weight from the top layers of sand turned the lower levels into rock. This rock remained stable until the pressure from its immense weight caused the underlying salt to liquefy. When the now mobile salt reached the Moab Fault, it bulged upwards fracturing the sandstone above. Over time, weak spots around the cracked sandstone were eaten away by wind and rain, resulting in the formations you see today.  Eventually these rock formations will erode away, so enjoy them while you can!

During our second day at Arches, we went on a ranger guided tour of the Fiery Furnace. This is a labyrinth that travels through fins of sandstone. It is home to creatures such as mountains lions, mule deer, and kangaroo rats, as well as vegetation like Utah junipers, rabbit brush, Mormon tea, and pinyon pines.

More fun facts:

• Kangaroo rats never drink water during their lives, even in captivity. They conserve enough water from the food they eat to live and excrete only a solid uric acid crystal as needed.
• Utah Juniper berries are used to flavor gin
• Mormon tea is one of a family of plants from which the drug Ephedra can be harvested

Working hard to get through the furnace

Anyway, back to the action. The Fiery Furnace tour forces us to climb over, under, around, and through the surrounding sandstone. It was a blast, but I’m thankful we had a ranger with us because it would have been very easy to get lost or turned around. We made it out safely and quickly hiked over to Landscape Arch, the largest known arch in the world with a span of 306'.

Save the best for last, right?

While Canyonlands is only about a 45 minute drive from Arches, it is a very different park. We chose to explore the area called Island in the Sky. It is at a significantly higher elevation and is filled with an infinite series of canyons, mesas, and buttes. We hiked our hearts out here completing 5 different trails, each with unique features to behold. We had scenic overlooks, slick rock scrambling, craters of unknown origins, an arch, and even an ancient Puebloan granary. We were absolutely exhausted at the end of the day, but experienced about as much of the Island in the Sky at Canyonlands as is humanly possible.

Amanda enjoying one of the best views in the park

Thousands of years ago grain was stored here.
Now Charlie trespasses here.   

We were reluctant to leave Moab since we had so much fun here, so we decided to do one more side trip. We did a little off-roading in our filled to the brim Ford Escape so we could check out a hot bed of dinosaur fossils which have been left exposed for public viewing. I give all the credit in the world to the paleontologists who discover these things. How they find them is beyond me. Even though the signs at the Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trail specifically tell you where to look, I still couldn't find some of what they were describing.  I can’t even imagine trying to find them on my own. The ones that were readily viewable were really interesting though since neither of us had ever seen a natural fossil up close and personal. It was well worth whatever damage was done to our car’s suspension.

A Sauropod vertebrae: one of the fossils I could actually find

As we headed west across Utah, we made sure to pass through Capitol Reef National Park. This was the quickest National Park visit we have ever made, but still a worthwhile detour. Aside from the always impressive rock formations southern Utah is known for, Capitol Reef offers roadside views of ancient petroglyphs. The Fremont people who lived in this area about 2,000 years ago etched images of people and animals into the rock walls which have been well preserved and are easily visible today.

Art class from over 2,000 years ago. 

With the sun setting and temperature dropping into the teens, we made a beeline for Bryce, UT. Following a good night’s sleep, we were ready to attack Bryce Canyon National Park. Despite its name, Bryce Canyon isn't actually a canyon. It’s a series of natural amphitheaters that have combined to form a beautiful and ever evolving chasm. The layers of sedimentary rock have been worn away into delicate looking hoodoos and spires which rise from the walls and floor of this immense landscape.

A little snow, a lot of beauty

While driving along the main road through the park, each viewpoint is just as breathtaking as the last. The best part though was following the Navajo and Queen's Garden Trails deep into the canyon. It gave us such a different perspective than the overlooks and allows you to appreciate how impressive this place truly is.

Among the hoodoos

We didn't initially know what to expect from Bryce Canyon. We honestly didn't think it would be that big of a deal, but it ended up being one of the most memorable stops along our whole road trip. I would love to go back there and explore further. Plus, going to Bryce gives you the chance to repeatedly use the word "hoodoo". I love saying that word. HOODOO!

Having left the hoodoos behind, we made our final stop in Utah, 2 days at Zion National Park. Zion is most known for the beautiful valley that was carved out by the Virgin River. Photographers from all over the world set up shop throughout the park to capture the stunning sunsets that illuminate the valley walls. Aside from the picturesque scenery, this park is home to two of the most well-known hikes in the United States, Angel's Landing and The Narrows.

First we tackled Angel's Landing. This is a 1,488 foot rock outcrop whose summit provides unobstructed panoramic views of the Zion Valley. This is a strenuous, though well-traveled climb which includes rocky terrain and series of steep switchbacks. One such section is Walter's Wiggles which has 21 consecutive switchbacks that ascend over 800' vertical feet (more than half of the overall elevation gain) in a very short period of time.

After this climb we came to what we thought was Angel's Landing. We were certainly tired enough to think it should be the end of the trail. It turns out we were just at Scout Lookout and still had a half mile more to go. A very treacherous half mile. The last part of the trail follows a narrow path with sheer drops on either side. There are chains to hold onto for balance, but in reality, those chains just give you a false sense of security. Since 2004, 6 people have fallen off the cliffs and plummeted to their deaths. A very comforting sign informs you of this before you set off.

Seeing this makes you feel
all warm and fuzzy inside

Yep, a half mile onto that.
For the record, a horrible idea.

We carefully navigated the ridiculously narrow trail all while wondering, "Who thought this was a good idea?" When we finally reached Angel's Landing though, we understood why people risk their lives for this vantage point. It was absolutely spectacular, especially with the clear blue sky as a backdrop and sunshine lighting up the valley below.

Zion Valley on a perfect day

We ate lunch, while making sure the bold ground squirrels who reside here didn't steal our food, before we made our way back down. The hard part is watching your step while not looking down so much that you see just how far you would fall should you slip.

Safely back on the ground, we made our way towards the Narrows. First, you follow a well maintained trail along the banks of the Virgin River. The Fall colors were still prominent on the trees lining the river and the water was rushing past us in areas of whitewater rapids. Normally, once you reach the end of this trail, you would continue on hiking through the river itself. This path takes you between canyon walls that extend over 2,000' above you while wading through knee to chest deep water. Unfortunately, the water was so cold that only those fitted with dry suits were able to continue on. Since we did not have the proper gear, we could only take in the scenery before heading back. I want to come back to Zion someday just for the chance to complete this unique excursion.

I relished the two nights of camping at Zion. Due to unexpectedly cold temperatures in the previous National Parks, we were unable to camp as much as I would have liked. However, I understood that sacrificing camping experiences was a better option than turning Amanda into a 5'2" long popsicle. With the milder temperatures at Zion, we could again enjoy a roaring campfire, brisk fresh air, and sleeping under the stars.

The time passed all too quick and just like that we were off once again. On day 14 we were leaving Utah behind us as we headed for the most visited National Park, Grand Canyon. However, I think I've taken up enough of your time for now. Thank you for humoring me as I rambled on about how amazing Montana and Utah were. We'll let this leg of the journey sink in before starting the next. Who knows, maybe we'll have jobs locked down when we get to Part 3! Or maybe not. You should know by now how this process goes.