Day Six

Waking up early during the warmer months makes going into Arches National Park much more comfortable as the sun can be brutal. If you're a fan of Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade, you'll recognize the famous Arch at the beginning of the movie.

The park has plenty of Arches, so you have many to choose from with many trails rated from easy to difficult.  Delicate Arch, Landscape Arch, and Balanced Rock are only a few. After a few hours, we decided to have breakfast in town before heading south. Jailhouse diner was the best breakfast on the trip and don't skip the Soul Food Bacon.

After fueling up, we started the drive to Telluride, where I have friends from my many visits there. This drive was my favorite as it featured many climate changes and beautiful vistas.

Leaving Moab, you go over Mt. Peale with an actual single lane mountain road. At the top, trees may be covered with snow as well as some snow on the ground. It snowed a bit while driving here. While it's stunning in its beauty, this is a road to be very careful on—lots of steep turns and switchbacks with significant elevations and cliffs.

Upon entering Telluride, your backdrop is the fantastic San Juan mountains. It is one of the great mining towns of the west that's become a trendy ski destination.  Its main road still has the look of a town from the 1800s. Summer or winter offers plenty to enjoy here.

Durango is another mining town that's become a destination for outdoor adventure.  The Strader Hotel and its shockingly good restaurant is the place you'll want to stay.