Travel to Minnesota

So we have been in Minnesota a few weeks now and it is a very rainy Memorial Day and seemed like a great day to catch up on my blog. Thanks to all of you that have served or like my brother, John, are currently serving in Kuwait. Keep safe and get back to all of your families soon!

When we left Arizona, I plotted out a trip to take us up through Utah, Wyoming, and South Dakota so we could see some sites along our way home. We did not have to get home by a specific date so it gave us the great chance to take our time and enjoy the scenery.

Moab

We left Arizona to head towards Moab with a destination of Arches National Park. We really packed the truck with little room to spare. Even the backseat was pretty full! If we ever think we may fly someday between MN and AZ, we need to learn to pack lighter!!

We planned to leave about noon time and stop in Sedona to enjoy a last Oregano’s Pizza for a few months. We then took scenic 89A up to Flagstaff and headed towards Moab. The drive took a little longer than we expected and we didn’t arrive in to Moab until dark. The drive was pretty, but it is one where you better fill up with gas while you can because there is very little populated areas along the way!

It was not until the next morning when I took Max for a walk did we realize what beauty surrounded us. The last few miles of driving into Moab was very windy and hilly as I imagine we were driving through the mountains.

Arches National Park

The plan was to see Arches National Park as we have heard so much about it. We really just did the drive through but still stopped at some of the scenic stops. This is another where the pictures do not do it justice, but will still share some we took. Definitely a great place to visit if you are in the area.

Arches National Park is bordered by the Colorado River in the southeast, it’s known as the site of more than 2,000 natural sandstone arches, such as the massive, red-hued Delicate Arch in the east. Long, thin Landscape Arch stands in Devils Garden to the north. Other geological formations include Balanced Rock, towering over the desert landscape in the middle of the park.

Drive to Colorado

Our next destination was Colorado but just like I try to find local restaurants, I also try to find scenic routes to drive rather than directly to the freeway. If you are ever in Moab, you need to take highway 128 up towards interstate 70. It follows along the Colorado River most of the way and the road is very winding and goes close to the rock walls that line the road. Very interesting and very scenic!!

Coming over the mountains in Colorado on I70, there was an accident – a truck fire – that was a few miles ahead of us. At one point it was already 3 hours and we had only gone 4 miles. And of course some of us needed a potty break! 🙂 At one point, we saw a guy stop his car and just get out and “relieve” himself not really caring who was around. We finally got to the point where the accident was – almost 4 hours and 5 miles – and the traffic was diverted to the off ramp and right back on to the on ramp. It was a semi and had crashed and caught fire that was filled with lumber so a ton of damage to the road.

Once we got past the accident then we encountered some wintery weather to drive thru.

Needless to say it was another night where we planned to arrive in the hotel before dark and it was well after dark when we finally checked in.

Drive to Estes Park

The next morning we got up to head north with a plan of stopping at Estes Park. Again I found a “scenic route” to take. It was highway 119 out of Golden CO heading north. One of the first towns we came to was Black Hawk, Colorado. We were kind of in a valley with mountains on each side and as we entered the town, there was a tall casino…then there was another casino….then another…then another….it was like a town of casinos and we just laughed as one more popped up on either side of the road. They were from tall buildings to small little holes in the wall. The town’s population is 118 (54 households, 28 families) with a history of mining, but now gambling is its claim to fame. I did not get any pictures of the town, but found this one on the Black Hawk website.

We had lunch at a small cafe right outside of Estes Park and then took the drive as far as we could into the Rocky Mountain area. We could only go so far because the road was still closed due to snow. But the views were amazing and as always Max enjoyed playing in the snow.