Movin' On to Moab

Well this weekend went by way too fast. We had a great time but we have to start heading back to Santa Fe. I guess all good trips must come to an end sometime. But the time isn't now - we still have a few days to go. Sunday morning we loaded the car and headed back south. It was still dark so we didn't get to see much until we were out of Montana and into Idaho. We left Montana via Lost Trail Pass. The Idaho side of the pass was beautiful and we enjoyed the drive to Salmon, ID. In Salmon we stopped for some coffee and to fill the car with gas - we also picked up a map of Idaho to see which way we wanted to travel. We decided to go southeast to Idaho Falls and hit I-15 which would eventually take us to Salt Lake City. When we arrived in Idaho Falls we did a little letterboxing. We found a couple of boxes in Idaho Falls, three in Blackfoot, two in Pocatello and one in Malad City before leaving Idaho and entering Utah. We enjoyed the drive through Idaho and were a little surprised to find that some of the landscape reminded us of New Mexico. During our trek through Idaho I filled up my logbook. Luckily I had another with me. I am now using a beautiful logbook made for me by my letterboxing buddie - Astro D. Thanks D for the logbook - it is working out great.

Since we had stopped for a few letterboxes and something to eat during our drive through Idaho it put us getting to Salt Lake City a little late. We were tired - so we found a hotel and called it a night. I can tell you that Thomas and I were both asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow. We didn't set the alarm - we decided to just get up when our bodies told us to. So by the time we woke up, got dressed and had breakfast it was 10:00am. I love visiting capital cities so we made time to go downtown in Salt Lake and see the Capitol. From there we searched for two letterboxes close to the downtown area. One of the boxes gave us an incredible view of the city. It was amazing. After having out fill of downtown we headed to Wheeler Historic Farm. Thomas was having issues with allergies today and had a really bad headache, so he opted to sit under a tree and rest while I went letterboxing. So I headed to the back of the farm to find Farmin' Fun Fer All. It was an easy find and I found a bench to sit on and stamp in. While I was stamping in I watched a woman go to the hiding spot and look for the box. Of course she didn't find it because I had it. So I called her over and we had a great chat. This was her very first attempt at letterboxing. She was really excited to actually meet another letterboxer out on the trail - and so was I! In the year and a half that I have been letterboxing I have only met two letterboxers out on the trail. So we did a quick exchange and went on our seperate ways. I then went in search of the On the Farm Series (4 boxes). I found the pig, but didn't find the goose, then found the sheep and cow. Thomas and I were getting back into the car when I saw a family with papers in hand and they headed right for the sheep. I watched until they had the box in hand and then made my way over to them to meet the second letterboxers of the day on the trail - what are the odds of that. We talked for a little while and did an exchange. One of the kids was celebrating his 4th birthday and he was so excited. So I said my goodbyes and Thomas and I left the Farm and Salt Lake City headed for Moab.

The drive to Moab was pretty uneventful. There was little traffic, we got a little rain and we enjoyed the beautiful scenery. As we got closer to Moab we stopped to find Dino Dig. It was short drive off the highway and had the beautiful views. I stamped in and we sat for a short while just enjoying the area. It was 6:30pm and we wanted to get to Moab and get settled in a hotel. We decided to stay at The Gonzo Inn. I think it is a great little place. A little different and a whole lot more intersting than the regular chain hotels. Thomas decided he wanted to go for a swim and I went for a walk along Main Street. I didn't get very far (maybe a mile or two) when it decided to start raining. So I made my way - very quickly I might add - back to the hotel. After showering I worked on logging my finds and this blog. Tomorrow we do some letterboxing and head to Arches National Park.