20 Jul 2023 - Arrived at Moab UT + Stats

 

There is no way humanly possible we can be already headed for stop# 29 today,but that is a fact!  We pulled chocks this morning at the Glenwood Springs West /CO River KOA at 0900 hrs and headed west and south on I-70 towards our next destination, Moab UT.  The scenery for us Iowa folks was breath taking.  There may be those who say the scenery is boring, drab, etc. but this is my place.  I love the west, the wide open spaces.  I especially love the old west.  Places like Sheridan WY.  So the further we traveled today the more pictures we took.  We have been down these roads before.  In 2017 we traveled I-70 and camped at Grand Junction CO and then did a day trip down to Moab, the Arches and Canyonland.  But we were so impressed with this area that we wanted to come back.  We also did not have time to really explore the area since it was just a day trip last time.  So why not camp right here so we could really enjoy the area?!  I did secure two timed-entry passes for Arches, and Canyonland does not require timed entry, so hopefully we are covered there,  Here are a few pictures from our journey here today:

About 98 miles west we exited Colorado and entered Utah.  The scenery did not disappoint!

From here we traveled 89 miles west to Crescent Junction then headed 34 miles south to Moab.  Funny story about Crescent Junction.  We traveled this path in 2017, but then we were camping in Grand Junction and made the trek to Moab as a day trip.  Right as we made the turn south from I-70 onto the Moad highway there is a gas station.  I thought it might be a good idea to fill up there since we had 34 miles to go before we got to Moab, then we had no idea how many miles we would put on in Arches or in Canyonland.  So I pulled in.  This is roughly what I saw...  

So, again in 2017,  there was a vehicle ahead of us and we pulled up to the fuel station.  The lady got out of her vehicle, took one look at the pump and drove off.  Huh?!  Thats a bit strange, but whatever.  I then pulled up to the pump, and I don't recall the exact price but it was exorbitant, like $2 to $3 more than the going rate.  I promptly said, "Screw this."  and drove off.  So as we drove by I had to take a picture of the place for old time sake!

From there we headed south towards Moab.  A few more pictures:

34 miles later we arrived at Moab, UT.  Our campground, Moab Rim RV CamPark is on the southern part of town and we found it quickly.  

We checked in quickly and they had a few items we had ordered a while back and had delivered here waiting for us.  Our site has a nice grass yard so Liberty is thrilled.  The area is beautiful with mountains on both sides.  A few pictures:

We are thrilled to have a nice, grass yard as the way it looked from Google Maps it was going to be a desert.  We have two timed entry tickets for Arches National Park, Saturday and Sunday both at 0800 hrs, and plan to visit Canyonland National Park, the downtown area of Moab, and various other sites around here.  It is nice to have several days to enjoy the area.  Friday night starts "vendors with veggies" and other events here in town.  

 Stats:  

This is campground #29 of 42 

# States Traveled Through So Far This Trip, in order: 19 (IA, MO, KS, OK, TX, LA, MS, AL,GA, TN, KY, OH, IN, MI, WI, IA, NE, CO, UT)  

# States left to visit on this trip:  8 (UT,  CO, AZ, NM (4 corners!),  AZ, NV, UT, WY, CO, KS, NE, IA)

Baseball Parks Visited So Far This Trip:  1 (Globe Life Field - Texas Rangers)

Lighthouses visited:  1 (Biloxi Lighthouse)

Lighthouses climbed:  0

Point to point travel miles:  5881 miles 

  - Avg point to point travel miles between campgrounds:  196 miles

Vicinity miles:  2370 miles 

  - Avg vicinity miles:  82 miles

Total miles driven:  8251 miles 

Total point to point driving time:  122 hrs 00 minutes

Total diesel fuel purchased: 772.100 gals 

Total diesel fuel cost:  $2788.71 

Average diesel fuel cost/gal:  $3.630

Max diesel fuel cost:  $4.139 (Traverse City MI) 

Min diesel fuel cost:  $3.139 (San Antonio TX) 

Avg MPG:  11.39 miles/gal

Cost/mi of operation:  $0.34

# Nights at end of this stay:  133 (Includes Griff's start)

Total lodging cost:  $5234.86  (includes Griff's start)

Average cost/night:  $39.36