The Needles: Part 2

After the Druid Arch hike, we stopped at the little Outpost “service station” to get ice for our cooler and a frozen treat for the kids.  And tokens for showers—oh yeah. WMan made dinner while I enjoyed a great 5-minute shower—it’s amazing how much better one can feel after scrubbing off the layers of sweat and sand, yes?  The only real downside to our campsite was that it had no shade.  The late afternoon sun was blazing…and the 85 degrees felt rather warmish. 

To keep our kids occupied in camp, I pulled out some embroidery thread and showed them how to make bracelets.  WOW, I didn’t know they would do that the rest of the night, WKid zipping along and WGirl going at a much more methodical pace…a lot like their hiking.  They loved that activity!  As WMan began cleaning out our packs, he discovered he’d accidently given WGirl the largest bladder, meaning she had carried almost a gallon of water.  Her pack had been at least as heavy as my own!  She had drunk almost all the water, too, by the end of the hike (WMan kept telling us all to drink, that our “bladders” should be empty by the end of the hike…we each carried at least 3 liters). What a trooper she is! She now knows she is strong and can do difficult things.

That night, the wind blew just enough to cause our tent to “squeak” all.night.long. By morning I had totaled probably about 30 minutes of sleep.  Needless to say I was quite cranky. And you know the saying…”if momma ain’t happy…” ugh…

  We got the kids up and as we ate breakfast, talked about what hikes to do for the day.  In teasing, WMan told WKid we were going to do a 14-miler next.  To our surprise, WKid readily agreed, excited for the next adventure.  WGirl, on the other hand, wasn’t so quick to vote for another long hike.  We admitted that we were going to do a number of short hikes, that a long one wasn’t on the itinerary that day.  WGirl was relieved, WKid was disappointed.  WKid really is a smaller version of his dad. 

We started out the day with a hike to see some ruins…

Then next a hike with some newer ruins (cowboy)…we hiked past sage TREES...I thought of HSF...

seep in an overhang...

We then drove to a lookout point and another trailhead.  This slickrock hike was out in the open, and the temps were becoming warm.  I went about a third of the way with the kids, then sent WMan with the camera to finish the loop and meet us back at the trailhead. 

We had some lunch, and decided to take a drive to Monticello to get some gas and give the kids a break (they were more tired than they realized from the day before).  The drive to Monticello meant we got to see the scenic drive in the light of day, and it was gorgeous! We made a brief stop at Newspaper Rock, then continued to Monticello.  We gassed up, got some rootbeer float slurpees, and headed back to camp.  No one wanted to sit at camp in the hot sun, so near Newspaper Rock we pulled onto a dirt road that crossed a small stream and all got out to enjoy the rare water feature.

After the leisure time, we all felt refreshed enough to try one more hike, the Pothole Loop.  Here, we met up with our elderly friends from San Jose, they chuckled at seeing us following them again.

Below:  looking at the pothole "shrimp"...no kidding.

From some of the view areas on this hike, we were able to watch a small storm drop some rain and lightning out over the Needles. So cool. 

yes, the fun to be had with a panorama....:)

this arch cracked me up...its called Wooden Shoe Arch....

After dinner, we decided to actually head home in the morning, rather than take a side trip and extra day to see some family in Fruita, CO.  WKid had developed a nasty cough and runny nose and we didn’t want to spread the “joy” to their newborn.  On the way towards Moab, we took the turnoff to the Needles Overlook. I’m so glad we did.  It was as great as standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon…the same standing-on-the-edge-of-the-world feeling.

The Needles Overlook:

Wilson Arch right off the side of the road.  Yes, I yelled out the car window, "Wiiiiillllllllsssssooooonnnnn!!"

 We stopped in Moab at the kids’ favorite “giant sand hill”. 

We always have a lot of fun on our trips…and—its sure nice to come home, too!