After a bit restless night I wake up at 6am by my alarm clock. I see that it’s already getting a bit light outside, that’s earlier than at the west cost last week. I get dressed and drive to Arches national park, which is only about twenty minutes away from where I camped.
At the entrance there is a big sign saying that you need a reservation for entry between 7am and 4pm. I think I’d heard that the other day, but I completely forgot about it. Once again I’m lucky since it’s only 6.45am and I can drive into the park without a problem.
I drive all the way to the end of the park to the trailhead of Delicate Arch. That’s a big famous arch that you might have seen on pictures. The hike to there is about 2 miles and quite doable. The air is really nice and fresh after the rainfalls of last night. It’s very different than last time I was here in the summer when it was about 100°F / 40°C with a bright sun. Now it’s cloudy and very comfortable. Because it’s still relatively early, the trail is not so crowded and also at the arch aren’t many people. That’s nice, because it makes it easy to take some pictures. After having taken some pictures of other people who then take my picture in return, I sit down for a while until it gets busier. By now people have to wait in a longer line to get their picture taken with the arch. I think it’s time to hike back to the parking place. When I arrive there it starts to rain, perfect timing. I have breakfast and drive further through the park. Driving here reminds me of the Cars ride in Disneyland last week which is designed after rock formations like these. It’s interesting to think about how I’ve been here only just over a week and have already done so much.
Arches national park is one of those parks where just driving around is already an amazing experience. The views are wide and there are many interesting red rock formations. I stop at a few more viewing points and talk with more friendly people. That’s one of the things I like about traveling in America, it’s so easy to meet friendly people here.
Around 10.30am I drive out of the park and now there are long lines at the entrance. Being an early bird really pays off when you want to visit the national parks.
I’ve planned to drive to mountain town Telluride where I stayed about a week last summer. It’s one of my favorite places in America, a little town completely surrounded by mountains. It’s about three hours driving from Arches and I arrive there halfway the afternoon. It makes me very happy to see the beautiful enormous mountains again. I drive into town and park in the same street as before and walk to the local coffee place and bookstore in the middle of town. Sadly they’re closed for the season, but fortunately the bakery around the corner is open and I can get a cup of coffee there. The coffee is not as amazing as from the coffee place, but it gives me the opportunity to sit down and write for a bit. I have a bit of work waiting for me to do, so I think I’ll stay here for a few days to work in the mornings and hang around town and the area the rest of the day. I might go on some hikes here as well, but that depends a bit on the weather. As I’m typing this and look outside, I see it started snowing, so I’ll have to see if the weather allows for outdoor activities.
While working a girl who’s also working on a laptop walks my way and asks if I’m remotely working as well. She introduces herself as Cat and we start a conversation about work and travel and have dinner together at the bakery which apparently also makes great pastas. When the place closes we go for a walk through town. Most stores are closed now that it’s off-season, but it’s still nice to be here again. The snowcapped mountains surrounding the town are very beautiful. When we’re back near the bakery we say goodbye. It’s nice to meet friendly people everywhere I go. I’m driving out of town looking for a campsite where I stayed last year. It’s not listed on the map anymore, but fortunately I remember the road to get there. It’s about 15 minutes on a gravel road, but it’s not too hard to drive. There is no one at the campsite now, which was to be expected with these cold temperatures. I park my car at a better angle than last night which makes the bed more comfortable and then enjoy the view of the mountains while reading a book. I sleep pretty well this time, but wake up around 3am when it’s literally freezing inside the car. I turn on the engine and the heating for about ten minutes and then it’s comfortable to sleep again. While the car is heating up I look outside and see countless stars, the whole sky is filled with them, so beautiful! I’m very happy to be back in the mountains of Telluride.
