We’re checked into a tiny motel in Monticello, Utah for the next few days. On the drive here from Aspen earlier today, we took a short detour so that we could stop at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

At the park, we toured the south rim, which features 12 scenic overlooks that are accessible via short hikes. We managed to visit 8 of them over the course of the afternoon, which gave us a pretty good sampling of views of the canyon and Gunnison river below.

I think the thing that I took away from the visit is that I have a legitimate fear of heights. Standing at the edge of the rim, you’re able to look straight down—more than half a mile to the canyon floor and river below. Even from behind guardrails (which were only in a few places), this made me more than a little bit uncomfortable. At one of the more dramatic overlooks, as I was trying to carefully gauge how close I could bring myself to the the cliff edge without feeling like I was going to die, I watched a couple kids run past me and lean out over the railing. They were laughing—having a great time and obviously not bothered in the slightest by the nearly 3,000 foot drop inches in front of them. Kids are jerks.

From the park, we headed to Monticello, Utah, where we checked into a tiny motel that’s convenient to Canyonlands, Arches (which we’ve been to but wouldn’t mind seeing more of), and Mesa Verde national parks. We’ll be here for a few nights. Internet access here reminds me of 1985, so updates might be a challenge until we move on to our next location.

Photos from today (click to enlarge):

On the left, the top third or so of the canyon’s sheer north cliff face. On the right, I’ve enlarged the circled area from the left. Look at those lunatics!

Lori smiling, because standing against the overlook railing doesn’t make her cry.

The Gunnison river as seen from an overlook over 2500 feet above.