thanksgiving weekend, part 1: stormy

Because of the big storm that blanketed most of the state for Thanksgiving, we hightailed it out of SLC after work on Tuesday, rolling into Moab around 10:30 p.m.  It wasn't the most relaxing drive since it was all after dark, plus evening commuter rush through Provo, but the roads were dry and once we got off I-15, there wasn't much traffic.

H and I both worked on Wednesday, although Milton and I managed to get out for a quick walk up at Sand Flats Recreation Area.  When we stopped at the entrance to show our pass, the lady warned us that the dirt roads had been treated with magnesium chloride - I think she was concerned about Milton - and when I said we intended to do the Practice Loop, she smiled and waved us on.  It was windy and chilly and there were patches of snow and ice out on the slickrock.  We saw a handful of MTBers (most of them on their way back to the trailhead as the wind picked up) and a couple of hikers.  Milton got to stretch his legs and run-run-run: he really seems to love slickrock hiking and some of his jumps are impressive.

Blustery out on the rock

On Thanksgiving, H and I got our hiking stuff on and drove out to Delicate Arch in Arches National Park.  It had been quite a while since we'd done that hike (since our sunset hike in 2013) and we thought Thanksgiving morning might be a good time to do it again.  We were rather taken aback to see that SO MANY other people thought the same thing.  The main trailhead parking lot wasn't quite full when we got there but it did fill up while we were hiking.  We did our best to be patient, however, and managed to pass oodles of people once we were on the steep slickrock ramp that leads up to the ridge.

Hang onto your hat!

It was cool and breezy as we ascended.  Then, when we turned the last corner and stepped out into the sandstone bowl that surrounds the arch, we caught the full force of the wind: H nearly lost his hat and I actually had to sit down a couple of times to keep from being blown over.  On the plus side, those crazy winds dissuaded people from lingering too long, taking in the scenery, and H was actually able to get a photograph of the arch without any other people in it.  Amazing!

Blustery out on the rock

We descended quickly, as still more and more people were heading up.  We heard one girl remark, "There really isn't any off-season anymore," and that seems pretty accurate.  It's always post-hike parking lot beer season, though, and we took care of that before heading back to Milton and the rest of our quiet Thanksgiving.  FYI:  the Moab Brewery is open on Thanksgiving (Woody's is not), in case that is something you need to know.