Plan B 2.0

This morning we are leaving Breckenridge, CO, and heading to Utah. It seems out Colorado trip has turned into a Utah trip. Utah is a beautiful state and there is plenty to see. We'll start by heading to Moab. We've decided to scratch Black Canyon of the Gunnison from our list of destinations. The weather report just doesn't look good to us.

We've visited Moab before, and had a marvelous time. Using Moab as our home base, we'll be visiting Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park. Here is an image from a previous visit to Canyonlands.

We've always said we'd like to return. From there we will head south to Capitol Reef National Park, one of Mike's favorites. Here's an image of a Claret Cup cactus from a previous visit.

After that, we'll drive through the beautiful landscape of the Grand Staircase Escalante (GSE). GSE has some of the most breath-taking scenery I've ever seen in my life, and so I'm happy to be driving through that region again. After that, we'll be back on course, visiting Zion National Park and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Having shaved so much time off of our vacation with this rerouting, we should have plenty of time to enjoy all of these destinations.

Before I finish off today, I want to update you on the situation in Estes Park. Had we stayed one more day, we would have been stranded because the national park closed the day after we left. I'm including a link from our hometown newspaper, The Oregonian, that includes a picture essay of some of the flooded areas. Pay particular attention to images #16-17. That is the road we used to drive into Estes Park, and it is also the road we wanted to take when we left. It looks as if that road will be out of commission for weeks. We are obviously VERY glad we left when we did.

So today is another drive over the Interstate, I-70 to be precise. First we'll be stopping off for groceries, and then we'll be on our way. More later.