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Southwest USA 2022 - Part 3

EIGHTH DAY – Saturday, May 21, 2022


We made a last-minute change in our plans to visit Canyonlands near Moab, UT, instead of Mesa Verde National Park. (This was largely due to our wanting to avoid some of the treacherous mountain roads that Colorado is famous for.) The next morning we gassed up the car and headed on Highway 491 to Dove Creek, CO, to Monticello, UT.

Back again into Utah.

Michelle taking a picture of Wilson Arch.

Then north on 191 to Moab. The mountains and rock around Moab were a stunning deep red orange color. We hadn’t seen anything like it anywhere else.

We came across this jeep in the parking lot of a souvenir shop. The wheels were made out of old tools.

Colorado mountains across the border in the distance.

Around Moab there are several parks.  This is a dream location for off-roaders, campers, and hikers.


Just north of Moab, we turned onto Highway 313 and entered Canyonlands National Park. More unique canyon formations. It amazed me how many different types of formations could exist. We drove around to the different viewpoints and had an enjoyable day. Notice how orange the rock formations are around Moab.

There was an hour waiting time because of the long line of cars wanting to get in the park. It was worth the wait!  To get into the Arches Park, you have to have a reservation.  As we drove by it just north of Moab, there stretched a double lane of cars a quarter of a mile long waiting with their reservation in hand for entrance into it.  Moab is just beautiful with the surrounding orange red rock everywhere.

Canyonlands is a massive national park. We visited the section called Island in the Sky.

Michelle trying to take a picture and not drop her phone!

You can drive down from the top down into canyon on an old mining road constructed in the 1950s while looking for uranium.

Notice Shafer Trail winding around the cliff on the right and then at the bottom of the canyon on the left. I bet that was an exciting ride for the people who decided to drive it!


Then we returned back to Highway 191 and turned north to drive to Interstate 70. Then east on 70 to Grand Junction, CO, where we spent the night at 1st Interstate Inn.  Along Interstate 70 is a beautiful ridge of mountains running east/west.  We drove beside these mountains all the way to Grand Junction, Colorado.

We spent the night here in the 1st Interstate Inn.  The next morning we had an unexpected pleasant surprise waiting for us.

NINTH DAY – Sunday, May 22, 2022


The next morning we filled up the gas tank across the street from the motel and headed to Walmart to buy some bread and apples. On our way to get back onto Highway 50, we ran across another surprise. We passed Union Station/Grand Union Depot where Amtrak makes stops in Grand Junction. There were three BNSF engines outside the station idling, so we got out of the car and looked around.

The depot used today.

My Dad worked for the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad (called Santa Fe) in the 40’s and 50’s. I grew up running around train depots. Dad always told me to watch my back, think about both directions. Trains are so noisy you can’t tell by ear if there are two coming from opposite directions. Also avoid watching them through a camera lens close to the track, you can’t judge your distance correctly and they can run over you.


The BNSF Railway is among the top transporters of intermodal freight in North America. It also hauls bulk cargo, including enough coal to generate around 25% of the electricity produced in the United States. So many of the items that we purchase from all over the world are moved around by intermodal containers. These same containers are standardized to fit on a ship, train, or truck - anywhere in the world.


Santa Fe and Burlington Northern were merged together in December of 1996. Then in January 2005 the name was changed officially to BNSF Railroad. I have wonderful memories of running around the depots, listening to the telegraph keys and clocks, and looking at the train calendars. Back then the engineers would let me ride along inside the switch engines as they moved train cars around the yard.


There were two depot buildings here, an older one and a newer one. I think the older one is now used just for storage. Peering into the windows you can see some stained glass windows from its past glory days.


It is fun to ride on Amtrak trains and they are more relaxing when driving long distances. Today passenger trains are subsidized by the government so they can still exist, but the freight trains take precedent on the routes. I wish they could add more routes for passenger service. Presently, they are limited to a small set of fixed routes.

Michelle and I loved to stop and run around the depot and trains taking in the railroad sites.

AMTRAK stops here.

Michelle standing in front of the older depot used in the past.

Looking through the door you could see this stained glass window inside the station. In its day, it must have been a beautiful building.


Then it was back onto Highway 50 to Montrose to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Another deep canyon, this time with black, jagged rock and more steep walls. We noticed more pullovers for lookout points and trailheads than we saw in the nineties, when we were last there. Also, there seemed to be many more hikers today than in the past. People are just bursting at the seams to get out into nature and see the wonders, no doubt fueled by all of the COVID-19 lock-downs.

The Visitor Center at the South Rim.

The visitor center is sitting on the upper ledge of the cliff on the right.


The Black Canyon of the Gunnison has a North and South Rim. You can hike from the South Rim to the river, but you must first obtain a permit. To drive from one side to the other will take you 2 to 3 hours.

The park service has done a great job of adding various hiking trails in all the parks. People from all over the world are enjoying them as well. Any park you visit now, you can walk as much as you want and choose the challenge level for your fitness. The real thing of being there just blows away mere pictures and video. Your 5 senses make it come alive in a vivid way.

Black Canyon preserves some of the darkest skies in the nation and many astronomers come to this area to observe the stars and planets. The canyon is made of hard crystalline dark rock. In places there are pink pegmatite veins that run horizontally through the canyon giving it its color.

The river is 1800 feet below the top cliff, and when all is quite you can hear it below. Here there are mountain lions, black bears, and bobcats that roam both rims. Bighorn sheep balance and run up and down the sides of the steep cliffs. Amazing!

This is a big, deep canyon

We left there and headed east on Highway 50 right into the heart of the Colorado mountains. I was thinking about John Denver’s song “Rocky Mountain High” as we drove along. Just gorgeous mountains all along the way. As we approached the Continental Divide at Monarch Pass, the snow line began to appear and we saw more and more snow. When we crested the top, everything was covered with snow.  Everything around was white, and it was snowing hard. We pulled over at the gift shop and looked at the souvenirs, and then we headed back down the mountain. There were many places on the way down where clouds covered the road and you could only see 25 to 50 yards ahead. Also, the weather on the east side was colder and more like winter. We were glad when we made it to Poncha Springs and found a motel for the night. That night we took advantage of the heater.

Heading east toward Monarch Pass on Highway 50.

Gift shop at the top of Monarch Pass.

Michelle got a kick out of this shirt!

It's cold!

On the way down.

Approaching Poncha Springs, the first town after the pass.

We were glad to see this motel.

This place has a good heater. We needed it that night.

This motel had interesting grounds.  Notice the Volkswagen Bus on the tree stump.

Volkswagen model.

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