Utah Rocks!

Utah has welcomed us with open arms and has turned out to be an instant favorite for all of us.  I know, I know…  we have a lot of favorites.  Seriously though, we really like Utah.  It rocks….  literally!  There are rocks everywhere, but I am pleasantly surprised that there is so much more here than just rocks.  There is an abundance of farm lands, snow-capped mountains galore, forests with beautiful green deciduous trees, arches, canyons, gorges, lakes, and even waterfalls.  And of course, rocks! But not just red rocks…, there are also white rocks, grey rocks, brown rocks, green rocks and black rocks! As far as wildlife, just having been here less than a week we’ve already seen several herds of both elk and deer, jack rabbits, squirrels, and some gorgeous birds.  We even have a striking resident Black-billed Magpie who has a nest right here in our campground.  Unfortunately, I have yet to be able to get a good picture of him.  We really need a camera with an optical zoom so we can get some better pictures of all the amazing wildlife we get to see!  Speaking of wildlife, we had no idea that there are moose that live all around here as well!  How exciting is that?!?!  We are now back to taking nightly drives (just like old times) on the hunt for wildlife.  We really, REALLY want to see a Moose in the wild.

We are staying at Butch Cassidy RV Campground, which is in Salina, Utah. We are only staying here for two weeks as this is a RPI campground and that is our limit. RPI stands for Resort Parks International and is another campground membership that came with our Thousand Trails upgrade.  We can stay in RPI affiliated resorts/campgrounds for $10/night.  Some have a resort fee which can add $3-5 per night.  So at most we would pay $15/night.  Here at Butch Cassidy we have a huge 50 amp site with full hook ups (meaning sewer as well) and we are only paying $10/night.  There is a limit of two weeks that we can stay at most RPI campgrounds at that rate, but that’s fine with us.  Since there are no TT campgrounds anywhere in the states of Utah or Idaho, we are using our RPI membership as much as we can to still be able to stay at nice campgrounds for very little money.  After we leave here, we are relocating to another RPI park for one more week before we head up to Idaho as we want to have three full weeks to explore Utah.  Here are some pictures of our campsite and campground.

Salina (pronounced “Sa-line-ah” by the locals) is a small town with not a whole lot to offer except an adorable tiny grocery store, an excellent T-Mobile signal, and 360° of breathtaking scenery.  Perfect. As I said above, we are back to taking nightly drives looking for wildlife and considering that 67% of the land in Utah is federally owned land, there is BLM land to drive on and explore galore!  That was one of our favorite things about Arizona (which is 42% federally owned), but Utah has even more options for spotting wildlife in their natural habitat.  Here are some shots from around this area.

And now I’ve saved the best for last.  This campground is a good day trip distance from several National Parks.  Since everyone really wants to go to Bryce before we leave and I really wanted a day to myself, I decided to drive to Capitol Reef National Park for my very own day drive.  This was not one of the parks on the top of the list for neither Greg nor Elijah and it’s 81 miles away.  With Zippy, that’s not only doable, but fun! This is the farthest away I’ve yet to venture on my own, and boy am I glad I did. What an amazing place! When I went into the museum, which is the old homestead house, I was talking to the volunteer there and it turns out that he is Dale Gifford, the grandson of  the most recent owner! He grew up there and didn’t move away until he was in high school.  He showed me a picture in the museum of himself when he was only about 4 or 5 years old.  He showed me all the memorabilia and how and when they used it.  He said this is the first and only day he’s ever volunteered there.  What a privilege that I came on the very day that he was there!  Check it out:

Just a couple more pictures that I want to share:

My next blog will be about a park we have been looking forward to for a long time and are VERY excited about…  Bryce Canyon National Park!  Stay tuned as that blog post will be coming soon.  Until then….

Happy Trails and Sunny Sails from Moses, Exodus, Zipporah (aka Zippy), Greg, me (Pamela), Elijah, and Popeye.

4 thoughts on “Utah Rocks!”

  1. Love all your pictures. They are very good even though you say you need a real camera for more close ups.
    I enjoyed Utah for its parks. I think we visited all of them. Fred not so much. He prefers more greenery I guess.
    Anyway Bryce will be an experience you won’t forget anytime soon. Hope the weather cooperates.

    Happy traveling .

    Love

    Mom

    1. Thanks, Mom! I really enjoy photography and want to expand it as more of a personal hobby. Greg and I are going to Arches N.P. today. Elijah needs/wants a quiet day/break today and the weather is best if we travel east today. Exciting!

  2. Glad you are enjoying Utah. Definitely wasn’t a favorite state for me but i found the desert not to be my forte, although I’m so thankful to have had the opportunity to experience the unique and varied beauty in those areas.

    However, the terrain and most everything there seems to be an a near perfect fit for the three of you and I’m so glad you are enjoying it so much there! Also glad you were able to remain there for several weeks. p.s. I love your red and gold vases!

    Safe, Happy & Blessed Adventures Ahead!

    1. I didn’t know you didn’t like Utah. Did you visit any of the national parks here? It’s not all desert for sure.

      Thanks for always reading and commenting on my blogs. ?

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