Yep, I'm back to Moab again. 

Hard to believe that our last Moab trip was in October, and it's now nearly Easter, and I'm still editing Moab photos!

But...so it goes. Life moves far too quickly with a 5-year-old.

 

Moab coffee has always been the best in the West...and as many incarnations as this coffeeshop/bookshop has endured over the past decade or two, the quality of the coffee has remained surprisingly consistent. It used to be called Mondo Coffee. I think it's called Wake 'n' Bake these days, but really I have lost track.  Fortunately, consecutive owners have stayed true to the independent-coffee-shop-slash-underground-booksellers ethic over the years.

 The vintage/new bookshop section is now separate from the café, but I have to say that the vintage book selection has, if anything, improved. I bought a first edition Alice in Wonderland book for a very reasonable price in quite passable condition this last visit. I did not buy the book pictured in this photo, but now I kind of wish I had. I was trying really hard to exercise self control. I think now that my self-control might have been a bit misguided in this particular case.

 Q, our future goth, walking down the mainstreet of Moab with her "pet bat".

 The local Uranium office. Yah, it's a mineral-rich area.

 An example of a typical shop window in downtown Moab. You should see what they sell at the local drugstore!

 As we headed up the slope to the mesa overlooking Canyonlands, it became increasingly clear that this was going to be a dramatic weather day.

 And it was.

Mike showing Q the lay of the land.

 A little rest stop overlooking the incredible vistas of Canyonlands.

 Shooting and snuggling. The wind was on its way up.

Fully-clothed against the incoming weather system, just a few minutes later.

Adding layers for warmth at a very high overlook.

In Moab in the fall, it can be difficult to keep up with the swift and dramatic weather changes. Q in the van, showing her various layers of clothes-changed behind her. 

Shortly hereafter, the weather took a turn for the even-more-dramatic...photos of Arches national park in the weather to come in the near-ish future.

 Moab, and the hike to Delicate Arch...

 

Always before, in Moab, for all those early, childless years, I (and then we, my husband and I) have camped. We have stayed in designated campgrounds occasionally when the weather is cold, but mostly, we have camped in the wilderness - of trails and dirt roads and byways that we know so well after years of roadtripping to the desert. 

This time, on the occasion of Q's first trip to Moab with us, it being late October and the weather wild and unpredictable, we chose to stay at the beautiful Pack Creek Ranch, just under the snowy La Salle peaks.

 

 We stayed in the Gate House cabin...highly recommended, if you are ever going to Moab with a yen to sleep indoors!

 The livingroom of the Gatehouse Cabin, complete with tumbleweed on the mantle.

 I haven't seen inside all the cabins, but I feel pretty confident that we stayed in the best one! Those are the La Salles behind the (winter-closed) pool that you can see in the upper righthand image. By the next day, they were capped in snow!

The cabins are equipped for all seasons, and were extremely cozy, even when the weather turned cold. On this, our first day, the weather was (obviously) superb!

Q dozing on her day bed after the 6-hour drive from Denver to the desert.

 After a brief nap, we took her on her first drive through the redrock canyons, where climbers park where they can to frequent the many breathtaking climbing routes along the river.

 

 Near sunset.

An exhausted little one at the end of her first day in the Moab desert. She is so beautiful when she sleeps.