This hot air balloon provided a nice element to lend scale to the photograph.

Today makes our second day at Arches and we get an early start to avoid the tourists and mid day heat. We are greated by the Three Gossips.

As the park became emmersed in golden light and the kids had retreated to the RV I took my time to photograph Double Arch using a multiple exposure technique that brings out all the dynamic range of the scene.

All three kids enjoyed striking a pose framed within one of the windows and I enjoyed the challenge of setting up the shots. Although we saw a lot today the grandeur of these windows were not lost on the kids who enjoyed them all the more for their ability to combine climbing with viewing.

As the afternoon was coming to an end we headed into Arches National Park where we spent a few hours in the Windows Section. As evening approached the temperature decreased and the crowds abated. Pictured here are the North and South Windows taken from Turret Arch with the kids posed in the foreground on a large outcrop. The perspective conceals the fact that the window openings are easily 30-40 feet tall.

Before leaving the park, we stopped at the visitor center just in time to hear a naturalist speak about the indigenous animals. We were able to handle the skulls pictured here, which included a long-horned sheep, mule deer, coyote, and raven as well as a bobcat and a mountain lion.

Mesa Arch offers a beautiful window into the canyon below and is embelished by the beauty in front.

It is easy to understand why the Anasazis favored this location, which offers naturally carved enclaves in the side of the butte. The temperature within is moderated, and the views are spectacular.

Our next stop is the Canyonlands National Park where we climb the Aztec Butte to explore the Anasazis built granaries located around the perimeter just below the mesa top.

After spending the night in Moab, we make an early morning trek to Dead Horse Point State Park, which offers a spectacular overlook of the Colorado River.

See if you can locate the baby elephant among the goblins. Given enough time, you begin to see faces and animals at every turn, and if temperatures were not so extreme, we could have easily spent the entire afternoon here.

The 105-degree temperature does not dissuade me from descending into the valley in search of great photo opportunities.

This park could easily pass for the surface of Mars and one could spend hours walking among the thousands of goblins created by the forces of water and wind.

Our next destination is the Goblin Valley State Park whose entrance is guarded by the Three Kings.

Prospectors and other travelers passing through the Capitol Gorge in the late 1800s left their names on a wall of rock that came to be known as the Pioneer Register. This is but one of several dozens of inscriptions that appear on the very distinctive wall.

After taking the scenic drive, the girls and I set out on a short hike into Capitol Gorge. Maya seeks refuge from the sun in a waterpocket that seems perfectly sized for her.

This little gal was walking right down the middle of a dirt road we were on and eventually pulled over to let us pass. Jeanine says it is a quail.

Our home away from home is serving us well. It is large enough that everyone has adequate space and small enough that it is not a chore to drive. It is equipped with air conditioning and furnace, an electrical generator, bathroom and shower, table with booth seating, a kitchen with sink, range, microwave and refrigerator and sleeping areas for five. It served as a great mobile base of operations and we rarely spent the night in the same place twice.

The one-room schoolhouse, constructed by residents in 1896, also served as a community center. The desks were movable and the community enjoyed dances and socials in the little building. Nico and Kyle, not great fans of historical sights, remained in the RV playing chess while Maya, Jeanine and I met up with a park ranger inside who shared details about the history of the building and community.

The Mormon settled town of Fruita at the junction of the Freemont River and Sulpher Creek is our first stop. Regretably, we are a few days late to sample peaches direct from the orchards which sustain this small enclave nestled at one end of the Waterpocket Fold which defines Capitol Reef National Park. A nearly 100-mile long warp in the Earth’s crust, the Waterpocket Fold is a classic monocline: a regional fold with one very steep side in an area of otherwise nearly horizontal layers. A monocline is a “step-up” in the rock layers.

Today’s travel begins in Capitol Reef National Park which is known for having the most intensely colored sandstone.

Each morning, Jeanine takes time to have some hot tea and write in her journal. I must remember to inquire what she wrote about on our vacation.

While en route to our campground in Torrey, UT we stop for a short climb to get a close look at ancient pictographs know as the Hundred Handprints. If you click on the image for a higher resolution view you will see the handprints about 50 feet above where Kyle is sitting which is a good 30 feet above the base of this cliff wall. One has to wonder how the creators of this montage were able to reach such heights.

I believe this area should be renamed from the Devil’s Garden to the Devil’s Playground. If not for the need to begin travelling to our next campground the kids would have been happy to spend the entire day here. Some rather brief but intense rain made us happy we had completed our slot canyon hike earlier in the day.

Monkey see, monkey do. Maya will not be out done by her brothers.

For a kid with one leg, Nicolai hasn’t the slightest difficulty or least bit of fear in leaping from one stone perch to another.

Our afternoon destination is the Devil’s Garden where the kids, now quite well versed in scaling sandstone walls, find a playground made of stone.

The boys who are often reluctant to pose for me, were quite happy to let me capture this moment. I do believe this would make a nice poster.

 
This feels a lot like our holiday card photo for the year and for those of our friends and family who follow this blog you now know the story behind it.

By now you might be wondering what would possess a sane person to make this journey across the desert, through foul water, over a dead cow, and up and down the walls of a 30 foot deep slot canyon. If you enjoy venturing to the most beautiful natural places in the world this photograph should begin to help you understand.

 
Even Maya was not skinny enough to avoid having to climb up the walls to move forward. Kyle once again looks after the safety of his little sister. All of us had to help each other at various times and I was inspired by the teamwork the family demonstrated in order to get everyone in and out of the canyon.