Our arrival into southeast Utah was greeted by large red rock formations on either side of the road with bright blue skies. The contrast was obvious and was a welcome change from the large prairie lands that we had driven through for the past couple of weeks. We drove into Moab and got a hotel room from which to explore the area. The draw for us was the Canyonlands National Park – somewhere we had wanted to visit for years due to the unique landscape and remoteness. This was finally our chance and we had three full days to explore.

It started out a cloudy and overcast day at The Needles, but got better as the day went on.

Canyonlands is divided into three districts, each more remote than the next. First is the most accessible to tourists, about 30 mile drive from Moab: Island in the Sky. Next is approximately 60 miles away: The Needles. Finally, the most remote district only accessible by 4WD and hours of driving: The Maze. Since the Malibu is not a 4WD vehicle, we only visited the first two districts on this trip; maybe someday we’ll venture to The Maze.

In each of the two districts that we visited, we drove the entire route, stopping at many viewpoints along the way. We did a few hikes in each area as well. The remainder of this post is a composite of the hikes we did in Island in the Sky and The Needles over the course of two days.

At the beginning of each trail is a signpost describing the hike and providing some information on the history or geology of the area.

The description of the Cave Spring Trail in the Needles District – a hike with an old cowboy camp and some cave art.

The primary material is sandstone and there are many fossils found in the area. Millions of years ago, the region was covered by water so as one ranger told us, it was prime beachfront property back then.

Two fossils that the park ranger passed around during his lecture on geology at Canyonlands – these are small microorganisms that used to live in the ocean.

The waves of the water formed ripples that are still seen in the rocks today.

Ripples in the stone were carved by oceans millions of years ago.

The Pueblo Indians lived in the Canyonlands area and traces are still seen today. There is some cave art that has remained which we saw in two different caves; one with three figures representing people and the other with numerous handprints. It was amazing to see these in person, all on our own, feeling like we had discovered them ourselves.

Handprints on the rock wall from the Pueblo Indians.

Along the trail are potholes, but not the same kind of potholes that populate the roads in Michigan. These are small dips in the rock that fill with water when it rains, where small creatures come for a drink and microorganisms are born.

Potholes in the stone collect rainwater, like from the storm approaching in this picture.

There is a surprising amount of life in the dessert: flowers,

A beautiful white flower in the midst of the desert.

cactus,

The fruit on a prickly pear cactus.

and small animals like this small lizard!

A little lizard – one of many we saw!

The views along the trails are spectacular and vast – we have seen large canyons stretching for miles…

Ledges like this jut out over the canyons – I was too nervous to walk out on them but Jon had no fear!

…unique spires that have formed from a combination of erosion and time…

Many tall spires jet out from the land with visible layers of the land.

…and enormous boulders that look like they could topple at any time.

One of the many large boulders that were scattered throughout the park. This one was sitting on a flat piece of land, but we saw others that were perched on the edges of cliffs or the tops of spires.

At the edge of the park is a sight marked only by a small brown signed called Newspaper Rock. We stopped and walked about 15 feet down a sidewalk to a large rock covered in petroglyphs. Historians and archeologists aren’t sure what the wall was used for, whether it was to share messages between traveling tribes, tell stories, or just for graffiti. The petroglyphs range from the BC era to the 1300’s.

We loved hiking around the Canyonlands and exploring all of the unique geography of the region. It has been a highlight of our time and a learning experience, combining Jon’s love of science and geology and my love of history.