Hi Melnq8

You may remember that I had lots of questions 2 years ago about driving the Million Dollar Highway. Glad to say we really enjoyed it in early October. Don't get to see amazing golden aspens in the east.

I agree that going from Ouray to Moab would be a long day, but then you've probably seen much of what we stopped to see along the way. After Ouray, we did a night in Durango, 3 nights in Mesa Vera and 5 in Moab.

So much can easily be accessed from Moab. Imagine April isn't very crowded, but even in October, an early start into Arches is worth it as the line lengthened in mid-day. Know you're a great photographer, so an early start or late afternoon visit to Arches is best. I have some info on best times to see various features. Email me if interested.

At the time we went, my husband was having some difficulty hiking, but he managed to go to Landscape Arch.

Our days in Moab were:

Day 1: Arches. Started at Devils Garden to Landscape Arch, Pine Tree and Tunnel Arch,Double Arch, Balanced Rock, visitor center
Day 2: Sal Mountain Loop, Fisher Towers, Titan Tower
Day 3: Canyonlands, Island in the Sky section, Mesa Arch late in day
Day 4 church in morning, laid back day, uninteresting Negro Bill Trail, beautiful late afternoon visit back to Arches (really need to see it on both ends of the day) loved walking down Park Ave and having DH pick me up at other end, Delicate Arch lower viewpoint, did not go up to arch due to open rock ledge, actually told lower view was better than upper???,magical time at Windows/Turrent Arches closer to sunset

This was not a fast paced trip, especially with DH walking limitations. On some of the trails, he simply hung out near the car and waited for me.

I know you have reservations, but we stayed at a wonderful B&B, Dessert Hills B&B, onside of town with basic cooking privileges and a great outside eating area. Even in October, we got frustrated trying to get simple take out meals because it was so crowded. Maybe it's to be expected in this area, but in the east, 20% is not added to a takeout meal. However, e did get takeout to be enjoyed "at home" on 3 of the 5 nights. One nice, upscale restaurant we liked was Dessert Bistro.

Let me know if I can help any other way. You've provided me with great info in the past. Looking forward to your next adventure and hearing about it.

Hi Clousie, good to see you here. Best I can tell the drive from Ouray to Moab is just under three hours, although I'm sure it'll take us longer than that as we tend to stop along the way.

I've booked one night at our favorite place in Ouray, four in Moab (which can be changed if necessary), two in Durango and one at Ojo Caliente in New Mexico. Only Moab will be new for us.

I think our longest drive days will be getting from home to Ouray, then getting from Ojo back home, but I'm not yet sure how much driving will be involved in our day trips from Moab.

I've cut and pasted your comments into my ever growing file to sort out in the coming days. I get the distinct feeling Moab is going to be quite busy, but I hope I'm wrong. Large numbers of people are not our thing, but sometimes they can't be avoided.

My camera's life hangs in the balance at the moment...it's in the shop in another state and I fear it's on its last legs. I may be forced to go camera shopping before our trip.

Thanks for chiming in!

Melnq8, yes, peak season in Moab begins mid-March, so I expect April may be pretty busy - especially so on the weekends. Not sure when you'll be there, but I do hope it's not over Easter weekend. Easter Jeep Safari runs April 13-21 as well. Here's a good reference site: https://www.discovermoab.com/events/

Having said that, you have a whole lot of area there, and I think you can avoid most of the crowds with some planning. FWIW, even in a slower time (February), the downtown area got congested. I second Mlgb's suggestion of a boat trip We did the jet boat tour; had a great time and got some fantastic pictures. https://www.moabadventurecenter.com/

It's a wonderful area, and I think you'll really enjoy it.

April will be just as busy as October, maybe busier. Here are monthly stats for all of the parks https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/SSRSRepor...ear)?Park=ARCH Also there's the Jeep Safari during Easter week.

The entrance to Arches is right there. Moab to the Islands in the Sky section of Canyonlands is about an hour one way. The Needles section is farther.

We timed our arrival at Mesa Arch at Canyonlands immediately after sunrise. As we were on the trail, there was a mass exodus of photographers with tripods but we were able to enjoy the view in relative peace and I still managed to get a decent shot.

Not sure when you'll be there, but I do hope it's not over Easter weekend.

No, we'll be there the last week of April - Monday through Thursday. I try to avoid weekends pretty much everywhere when possible. We'll be in Durango over the weekend, then Ojo on Sunday night.

Thanks for the help everyone. Seems there's a lot more to do than we've allotted time for, which usually seems to be the case. But we're close enough that we can go back another time.

Couple comments on this: nobody's mentioned it but Moab is very busy during Jeep week which falls on April 13th to the 21st this year. The parks will be busier than normal but it's more of an impact outside the parks.

As for Delicate Arch, I've never heard anyone say the lower view is better than the upper so I'm wondering if someone told you that to make you feel better? The views are quite different. Upper is the iconic image on the UT license plate, lower is quite a distance away and the arch looks tiny in comparison. I'd go for the upper view if at all possible. The open rock ledge is not real difficult.

Slowly putting together the drive details - thought we could incorporate Utah 128 on our arrival day from Ouray - perhaps taking 191 from Moab to I-70 and then coming back via 128, making a loop. Best I can tell it'll take about two hours.

Is the whole drive pretty (minus the I-70 bit) or is one section of 128 nicer than another? Trying to determine if it's worthwhile to make the entire drive, or just a portion, if that makes sense.

I recall most of 128 being scenic.

128 is a lovely drive, well worth the time (not that much extra). Lots of photo ops, IMO. From the canyon entrance (exit?) to I70 is flattish and scrub, but we thought it pretty (driving I70 to 128 with a dramatic sky and mountains and canyon in the distance, not the reverse).

That wasn't very clear. IMO, the 191 to 128 loop is not worth the time and gas. I would recommend it only if driving from Colorado on 70.

Interesting, thank you.

but you might take 128 from Moab to Ftshers Towers

Highway 128

At Milepost 14 is Castle Creek Winery and Red Cliffs Resort (hotel)
It is the largest winery in Utah having free wine tasting
In the hotel, visit their Hollywood museum
Beautiful place along the Colorado River

vaga

Thanks again, I'm taking notes.