There are simply no words to describe this awe-inspiring place. We came to Canyonlands right after battleing the crowds and the heat (121 degress at oe point) in Arches, and it simply took our breath away! After seeing the landsacape and the beauty of its mesa arch, we both agreed that Arches may be a little over-rated. Not that Arches isn’t truly spectacular, but after having to register just to get a timeslot to enter the park and fighting the crowds to get a photo (not to mention the blistering heat), Canyonlads quickly moved to the top of our list.

It also helped that Canyonlands has a truly beautiful Island in the Sky campground that lives up to its name: when you have a chance to take a look from the campground’s rim, you feel like you are on an island at top of the worlld.

With its world-famous Delicate Arch, Arches National Park is one of the most visited places in the U.S., and after seeing its beauty I can definitely understand. That said, less than a hundred miles from its entrace you will find Canyonlands National Park and it is a must when you come to the area.

Though Canyonlands has its own awe-inspiring arch, it is not the one that you’ll find in Utah’s license plate so it isn’t as famous. That makes this park less crowded, and that and the fact that it has a beautiful campground inside its Island in the Sky location, puts this place a the top of our list. That said, both are a must-see if you visit Utah.

A drive of less than 100 miles south of Yellowstone and we arrived at yet another majestic spot: the Grand Teton National Park. A friend gave us the coordinates of a designated boondoking area that overlooks the Teton mountain range, the mountains of the imagination.

Unfortunately, none of the spots along the 7 mile designated area provided a clear view of the sky that we needed to connect and work from the road. With only a couple of hours before it got dark, we decided to turn around and keep driving south towars Utah.

As we got back to the entrance, we decided to take another look at a site we had already seen when we arrived, and after walking around the place, we found a view beyond comparison: the snake river in the valley to the south, a clear view of the Grand Teton range to the west, and a clear view of the northern sky to get a solid connection to the StarLink network! 

Though it is hard to see because of the steam that raises from its waters, the Grand Prismatic Spring is roughly 300 feet in diameter with water at a blistering 160 degrees Fahrenheit! This beautiful natural sprint in Yellowstone is surrounded by smaller pools and is known (and named) for its dazzling array of colors that change throughout the seasons. Amazing!

“If you can’t find God in the beauty and the wonder of nature, you will never find it in a book” (Baruch Spinoza), and I couldn’t agree more. For the natives of the area (the Arapahoe, Cheyenne, Crow, Kiowa and Lakota) this is sacred land, and although they each have a different version of how this amazing rock formation came to be, they share a common thread: a bear that tried to climb to the top and left the mark of its claws as it slid to the bottom with every attempt.

Like everything else that we’ve seen during this trip, pictures simply aren’t enough to convey the tower’s awe-inspiring beauty. From this beautiful location, another 300+ miles to our final destination before we start on our journey back to New Jersey, through the Tetons (WY), Arches (UT), and Colorado.

After 692 miles and 12 hours on the road (with one over-night stop to rest and avoid 30 mph winds!), we finally arrived to the Badlands of South Dakota, and the only word that comes to mind is EPIC! 

We are parked at the edge of what is called “the rim”, the section at the top of the wall that raises from the valley and overlooks the park. From our position, sitting as close to the edge as possible, we have a 180 degree vantage point of the entire valley… miles of beautiful land as far as the eye can see. At the bottom of this ledge, the formations that resulted from millions of years of erosion.

Rest assured, pictures don’t do this National Park justice. This is the kind of place that has to be experienced in person. It is simply epic and we plan to stay here for a couple of days basking in its beauty.

As of 4:30PM EST (2:30 MST), the temperature is in the 70s with a wonderful breeze. We can only hear the wind. No generators yet, but we’ll see what happens later tonight. If we hear any, we’ll turn on ours to make sure our systems are fully charged. If we don’t, the next two days should be handled by our battery.

Every time we leave a location with great connectivity, we worry about what comes next. For us, striking a balance between the beauty of nature and our ability to work is a must and can often be difficult, and our current stop is proving to be just that: DIFFICULT.

In the middle of a beautiful pine forest, finding an open view of the sky facing north hasn’t been easy, and even though we seem to have an opening to the north, our Starlink connectivity keeps dropping off every few minutes. Fortunately, we carry a Nighthawk M1 router and AT&T are providing the 3 bars we need to hold a flawless Zoom video call.

From here we’ll head out to the Devil’s Tower and the Badlands on Sunday, and we can’t wait!