Goosenecks and Blanding, Utah

We left Lake Powell with plans made and our hearts, giddy. We were going to travel between weather systems because we don't like to travel through rain. We watched our weather apps for the opportune moment to leave. No rain at the moment in Page and our final destination was dry. 10 miles out of Page it started to rain. It rained on us all of the way to Kayenta, Arizona. So note to self, check the weather half way between destinations.

Southeast Utah if by far one the most beautiful places that we know of. Our destination was a place that we have checked out before when we were in Utah but never had the opportunity to camp there. With our pickup camper, it made it possible to stop and enjoy this special spot.

Goosenecks State Park. Thanks to all of the media induced panic over the Covid-19 virus, I am way behind on the blog which is good news for you. That means more pictures and less commentary!

The fun thing about this state park is that you can park your camper as close to the edge as you dare. If we had the fifthwheel you can hang the back end over the edge and have a spectacular view. But we were in the pickup camper.

That's us on the edge there. It is 1000 feet down to the San Juan River below. So watch your step. The rains were going to show up again the next day. We had hoped to camp in the Valley of the Gods but the road through there is impassable in the rain. So we decided to go to Blanding, Utah and explore from there. We waited for the rain to quit and then we went back to the Valley of the Gods to drive through it.

The clouds hung around all morning. When the sun is out the colors in the rocks are so vivid. It would have been nice to camp there. We were told that that is the darkest sky in America. So if you are into stargazing, this is the place you want to go. The road goes from the north end to the south end which is right near the Moki Dugway. Moki Dugway? What praytell is the Moki Dugway. The Moki Dugway is a road that is 3 miles long, it climbs 1200 feet up the side of a cliff. Doesn't that sound like fun?

Straight ahead is the road that climbs that rock face. It's hard to see but it is there.

It is a nice drive unless you are afraid of heights. Then you will be clutching your butt cheeks all of the way up. Now a couple of people told us about Muley point at the top of the Moki Dugway. Boy were we glad they told us about that. I think it was Steve C. and Mark G. so thanks. Right at the top of the Moki Dugway you take a left on the first dirt road you come to. There is no sign there so it took us awhile to find it. Go down the road 4 miles and it comes out to an amazing vista that looks down to the San Juan river. So doing the math, 1200 ft. up the Moki Dugway and then another 1000 ft. to the San Juan. That's over 2200 ft. down to the San Juan now.

 When you are taking pictures out here it is amazing the amount of elevations that you are in. The visibility goes for miles on end during clear days. That is why this area has always been our favorite for scenery. It is so breathtaking. Our last day in Blanding was going to be another weather day so we didn't do a whole lot. We went to the Edge of the Cedars State Park to learn about the ancient Puebloan people that used to inhabit this area.

The gentleman at the visitor center also told us to check out a cliff dwelling near our campground. It's not marked but he told us how to get there. It was called the Five Kivas Dwelling.

It was found in a ravine just outside of town.

Next up for us is Moab, Utah. 

The world is becoming a crazy place. So many things are out of our control. All we can do is wait and see what happens. For me, I have a beer in one hand and a Zombie gun in the other.

"Gladys! Watch your six!"