Moab in the off season

This is poorly written, but sometimes we go on trips and never write anything down. For the benefit of our future selves I added some notes on our recent trip to Moab. Thank you for coming out to Colorado <3

--
I signed up for the Moab "Ultra" under the pretense of upholding a challenge: run one trail race every month of 2018.  Trail races in January are scarce, you almost have to go to the desert to find a decent course. Moab offered not only a quirky half marathon but the opportunity to see an endangered monument and climb some of the most renowned routes in southern Utah. Plus I had a pretty good feeling it wouldn't take much to get the WCAC women out here for the ride.

Three women, from three different states flew to Denver for this trip. I cannot tell you how awesome it is to have friends willing to fly to my home state and drive 12+ hours to run, hike, climb to the point of exhaustion. Who can say that??? You ladies are the best.

We drove from DIA to Grand Junction for a shake out (cough-6mi-cough) run before piling into the car for 90 more minutes to Moab.  All told the trip out was ~6.5 hours. FDK's article on the benefits of tripping on acid was greatly appreciated entertainment.

Utah only serves 3.2% alcohol on tap - weak beer, burgers, and bed were in order. We got up at 7a for the race the next day. Much to my delight the weather warmed significantly before the start. If you run the Arches Half Marathon know that pacing yourself is a poor strategy. 5 miles in you'll hit 6 miles of slick rock, and unless you are CR this surface demands a slackening in the pace. Note to 2019 Kelsey: go out hard, recover on the rock, then bring it home the last two miles.

Once the race was over we headed home for real breakfast and an 8 mile hike through the canyons and arches of Arches National Park called Devil's Garden. The "most strenuous hike in the park" is not as daunting as it sounds. Four women who ran 20+ miles in the morning completed the 8 mile loop in a little over 3 hours. 

Crack climbing in Indian Creek was on the agenda for Sunday. We're lucky to have resident climbing expert in CR. Her patience and expertise are unmatched and I wouldn't have been able to berate crack climbing sufficiently without her.

Cracks are not my game. It doesn't make much sense to shove my hands and feet into a tiny crack and pull myself up repeatedly. I have a lot to learn in this technique, give me crimp-y holds and open slabs any day (in 2018 I vow to learn proper slab climbing outside and invite you ladies back to Eldorado Canyon). Regardless, Nat and I, shepherd by CR and FDK, were able to complete a few beautiful cracks. The view didn't suck either and left me wishing we had another day to explore Indian Creek.

CR got to live the dream in the desert for a few more days, so we dropped her at a random house in Moab and drove away, back home to catch God-early flights on Monday morning. (Instagram suggests CR met up with GG and had a grand time in the canyon lands).