This weekend we did some relaxing (i.e. hungover) day-hikes close to home. On Sunday, we hiked into Hunter Canyon, which is along Kane Creek road just west of Moab. It was a perfect spring hike -- cottonwood trees were leafed out, little fish were swimming in the creek, and birds were flying between the cliffs. The hike is pretty short -- the plants get thick and overgrown after about 2 miles. We scooted out when we felt some rain drops, but it was definitely a pretty, enjoyable stroll.
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| Hunter Canyon |
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| Mahonia -- smells like honey. |
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| Evening primrose -- wilts pink in the sunlight. |
On Monday, we hiked Courthouse Wash in Arches National Park. Courthouse is a lush, pretty canyon with soaring Entrada cliffs, a running creek, little waterfalls, huge cottonwoods, and loads of beaver dams. The entire hike from Highway 191 to the Arches Road is 6.2 miles one-way, and you can use a shuttle car to avoid backtracking. I wouldn't consider it a "classic" Arches hike (major problem -- no arches,) but we had the place to ourselves and only saw 2 other people. A quiet hike so close to town is really nice during the spring chaos.
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| Cottonwood leaves in full force. |
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| Green! |
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| Paintbrush -- partially parasitic. |
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| Fendlerbush -- grow on rocky slopes. |
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