road tripping: day 3

Checking out the Goosenecks 

Our final day of road tripping found us back on the road around 8 a.m.  We made several stops in Capitol Reef: walking into the Goosenecks, to peek 800 feet over the edge at the river below; checking out the orchards and the historic schoolhouse; and gazing at the numerous Fremont petroglyphs carved into the cliffs along Route 24.

The Goosenecks in the morning sun

Desert landscaping

We kept going east on 24, out of the park and through the desolate moonscape of cliffs and rolling pale rock to Hanksville.  There, we headed north for Goblin Valley State Park.  H's parents didn't know anything about Goblin Valley ahead of time and were delighted with all the goblins.  We walked through the rock formations for a bit; under the clear skies it was warm among the goblins but a nice breeze was blowing through off the valley floor.

Parade of petroglyphs

To wrap up our road trip, H and I decided we should finish things off the way we usually finish trips off in that part of the state: with lunch at Ray's Tavern in Green River.  Ray's was decently busy, as it always is whenever we find ourselves there, whether it's a Sunday or a Wednesday, with construction workers, locals, tourists and outfitters.  Burgers, beers and recapping favorite parts of the road trip were on the menu.  It's always a bit of a letdown when a trip ends but we think H's parents had fun, seeing parts of Utah that they've only heard about before.  I know we had fun and are just counting the days until the next road trip.

Goblin Valley

Among the goblins