Moab's the oasis of Utah

By Lacy Lindstrom

December 21, 2005 | It is where Thelma and Louise took their deadly plunge; a young Indiana Jones began his last crusade and where visitors can go on camel expeditions. Moab, Utah, is known for beautiful red rock landscapes featured in movies.

Terry Moore owner of Camelot Adventure Lodge offers visitors a view of these landscapes by camelback. Camel expeditions take visitors through winding red rock canyons, across sand dunes, and along the cliffs of the Colorado River. These expeditions highlight petroglyphs and ancient Indian tool sites in the Colorado River Valley. Camel rides range from $105 to $140 dollars and last up to four hours. The Camelot Lodge offers visitors a peaceful visit with rooms starting at $125 a night and three meals provided each day.

The native American remnants are not the only historical factors that draw visitors to Moab. Morrison Formation is an exposed Jurrasic rock containing fossil remains of plants and dinosaurs and is open to the public. Just outside Arches National Park, visitors can find Allosaurus, Camptosaurus, Stegosaurus, and Camarasaurus fossils in the rock.

Nearby is The Copper Ridge Dinosaur Trackway. The trackway contains rocks of shale, clay and sandstone that contain footprints from dinosaurs in the Jurassic period.

Moab has festivals for more than 15 different sports and hobbies each year, including the annual Easter Jeep Safari . "Jeep Safari is the highlight of my year," said Logan Lindstrom. Logan has attended Moab's Jeef Safari for 5 years. "It is neat to see all the built up vehicles!" he said.

The safari is hosted by the Red Rock 4-Wheelers Inc., the local four wheel drive club of Moab. Easter Jeep Safari begins April 8 and concludes April 16 for 2006. Jeep Safari draws those who enjoy rock crawling from all over the world. Moab has 30 official off road vehicle trails . These trails cover several types of terrain ranging from canyons and rims to forest, desert and Moab's famous "slick rock". Difficulty ranges from easy to nearly impossible. This attracts enthusiasts with standard vehicles and well as those on competition circuit. Participants in the Safari provide their own vehicle and ride the trails they choose. "Big Saturday" is the Safari Day with most participants. Groups of 30 vehicles ride the trails together.

River rafters can find 67 rapids through the Green River's Desolation Canyon. Desolation Canyon is Utah's deepest Canyon. The Colorado river has a 17 mile stretch of river flowing through gorge of Precambriam black rock and 1,000 foot high canyon walls. This stretch of river is nicknamed "Little Grand and has 11 whitewater rapids.

Canyonlands National Park boasts Cataract Canyon, Utah's most famous stretch of the Colorado River. River rafting trips vary between one and seven days. Both rivers have slow stretches where calm water floating is available and side hikes are accessible.

Moab offers diverse events for many hobbies. "Moab is God's playground," said Aaron Hill, a Moab entusiast from Logan. Moab also hosts and annual action car show. This show features classic hot rods, trucks, street rods and muscle cars. For those with motorcycles, Moab hosts the Canyonland Cruise, a national morotcycle event sponsored by the International Star Riders Association. If you don't have a vehicle to bring to Moab, no worries. Moab hosts marathons such as Canyonlands Half Marathon and the Moab Marathon and the Dead Horse Moab Marathon. Moab has a huge variety of mountain biking trains for riders of any experience level. "Mountain Biking in Moab was a dream come true," said Adam Crawford of Washington State. Beginners can ride over scenic mesas and through red rock canyons while experienced riders can ride to world famous Slickrock Bike Trail. The 9.6-mile trail provides terrain for experienced riders.

The Tour of Canyonlands Bike Race is one of many in the Moab terrain. If the Tour of Canyonlands is too daunting, there is also The Moonshadows of Moab, an evening cycling event.

The festivities in Moab are continuous throughout the year. From a chocolate-lovers fling to Art's festivals and gem and mineral shows, Moab has a festival for many hobbies. Moab has something to offer almost everyone.

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