Island in the Sky

Day 103: Sunday, October 17, 2010

Moab, UT; Drive to Canyonlands in the Sky

Given its proximity to Arches National Park, I confess I was expecting something similar. Cacti, dead trees, red dirt, blah blah blah. I was wildly mistaken.The Canyonlands Island in the Sky District is amazing. Brief hikes led one right to the edge of another, much larger canyon below. There was an entire world down there, etched by a river and guarded by soaring rocks. There is something about looking down that makes one feel simultaneously powerful and meek; whatever apparent power height provides is fleeting and at the mercy of Another. Squinting, one can make out far-off mountain ranges and important landmarks. It is a timeless vista, and therefore at first disquieting.I eased myself as close to the edge as I dared. The lack of a railing I took as a challenge. I wanted to see what the ravens saw, whizzing around on the thermals. I wanted to feel how a tree feels, clutching onto the rock edifice for stability. The powers of erosion had once again silenced me.