Note from the Author: Sorry for the delay on the installment of my adventure but due to the untimely death of my phone in a hot-tub related incident, I unfortunately lost my photos from the trip. Thanks to my aunt and having printed out over 200 from the trip though, I’ve been able to continue to convey the true beauty of Utah through photos. Honestly I am so relieved not only to have saved the memories but because I am not sure words alone can express this wonderful experience.

June 18-20

We headed back on the long journey home the following Tuesday, but this time it was all in one shot. Originally Goblin Valley or a short hike along the way had been on the agenda, but it was a long drive to begin with and Goblin Valley would have added another hour plus the time we spent there.

The upside of not having to rush out of Moab is that we spent the morning walking through downtown. I got some souvenirs despite not really being a souvenir person, but I had to get at least one thing in Utah right? Then we grabbed some coffee and the six hour stretch began…

We passed by this reservoir during the drive and got out to stretch our legs. This trip was also when I noticed how the houses are clumped in Utah. There will be a stretch of land with no sign of any residents and then a group of houses on the side of a hill together. This struck me as a bit strange because why would you want to be on top of each other with so much space around you; apparently it is because land is purchased in a group for housing developments and then sold but still I don’t think I would want to live like that.

Anyway… we pretty much just drove. Enjoy some photos I took of the road and the mountains which were bordered by grey clouds.

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Honestly the weird weather made this trip even better despite the few rain days because the clouds made the sky so much more interesting and the cool weather was a blessing!

Southern Utah had given me the inspiration bug so the next day I spent entirely drawing and painting (yes these two pieces took all day. the line-work was detailed). But I had a ton of fun drawing with the Microns. They are one of my favorite mediums and washes of color over ink looks fabulous so I decided to add some watercolor on top as well. For once I completely love how they turned out even though this is one of the handful of times I’ve used watercolor.

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That night we caught the sunset as well but this photo is absolutely nothing like what the sunsets over the mountain and into the valley from Becky’s backyard look like. The deep glow with the clouds in front and bordered by the trees is gorgeous.

The next day, having recovered from our hikes in Moab, we took a hike in the mountains that followed a creek out into a valley overlooking Snowbasin. At first it seemed like the trail might be a bit busy because there was a whole line of children at the start but it turned out they were just taking a photo on a bridge and we had the trail to ourselves. Yet again we lucked out with the crowds and while it did sprinkle on us— this time we had our raincoats!!

The ambiance was perfect for this hike and the photos actually convey this quite well. The sound of the creek bubbling was relaxing with the occasional bird or raindrop falling from the trees, and the sun quietly shone through the gaps in the trees illuminating them from behind. It is wild to compare this to where I had hiked a few days ago. Add it as yet another time that the range of scenes Utah offers wowed me.

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Wheeler Creek Trail

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