Who'd have thought?

"You'll see Amarillo, Gallup, New Mexico..." What famous song has those lyrics? Those of a certain generation will readily recognize the song made famous by a young Nat King Cole when motoring out to the west coast was all the rage as airline travel as we know it today was still but a dream.

The stretch of highway, once known as the 'Main Street of America', made famous in the song has seen its best days come and go and a lot of sections are looking more than a little forlorn. Towns lucky enough to be located along the highway saw boom times that have now faded in the glimmer of times long gone. From 1926 up through the '50's and '60's generation after generation of Americans heading out to explore the U.S. of A traveled the route that was the first completely paved highway in the U.S. Highway system.

My recent travels took me through Gallup, New Mexico. Normally I just spend the night in Gallup on my way to and from Spring Training Baseball in Arizona but this trip I had the chance to spend a couple of days in the area and got the opportunity to check out some of the local hikes. I never knew Gallup offered such great venues for stretching out the legs and wearing out shoe leather. One of the hikes, up Pyramid Peak just outside of town, is featured in the video below. Most folks stopping in Gallup quickly get back on the Highway (now I-40) and head on their way so the trails are almost empty which is a rare treat in today's busy world. They are also well-marked and well maintained. One of the things I most longed for when I dreamt of retirement was having the time to slow down and stop wherever I wanted and Gallup is one of the places where if you stop and stay a while you might really like what you see!

Still can't place the song mentioned at the beginning? It was written by Bobby Troup when he and his wife Cynthia loaded up their 1941 Buick and took the ten day trip out to California where he wanted to try his hand at becoming a Hollywood songwriter. Here's Bobby performing his song... Nat King Cole recorded his version, which went on to top the charts, in 1946. Here's his take...

Where Goblins Abound

Okay, Goblin Valley State Park May not really be the spookiest place in Utah but it’s still a must see for anyone remotely close to the area. Located off of I-70 between Green River and Hanksville, Utah,  Goblin is a gem of a State Park. A lot of folks intent on bagging Utah’s share of National Parks overlook the Utah State Parks to their detriment. Goblin offers features not found in most National Parks and the Park offers hiking access that allows the visitor to get up and close with the Park’s namesake features that would be frowned upon in our national treasures (beware though, there is a study ongoing at Goblin measuring the impact of visitors that might in the future limit access so get there while you can!).

Goblin, as well as other Utah Parks, has also not outright banned the use of aerial drones though as of this May (2019) they are using a fee permit system to track drones flying within the Park boundaries. When I first went to Goblin several years ago I had been pleasantly surprised to find the Park allowed drone photography, so I give kudos to the Utah Parks administrators for taking a measured approach in instituting the permit policy rather than an outright ban. And yes, the Park Rangers do make sure you have the permit as you actually fly and film within the Park. 

I’m conscious of the fact that many folks don’t appreciate the sight and sound of a drone buzzing overhead as they sojourn with Nature so I kept my flying to very early morning and dusk unless there was no one around. I also made the effort to hike far enough into the Park to avoid most people before putting my DJI Mavic Pro into the air. Of course, if you’re a photographer, you know that very early morning and dusk, or the period known as golden hours, are the best time for pictures. The few people who actually saw my drone in the air were mostly more curious than bothered and I made a point of showing them the footage I was taking which elicited ooh’s and aah’s more than complaints.

Goblin offers a small campground with no electrical or other hookups though water is available at taps. Flush toilets and hot showers are available. Due to its small the size the campground fills up quickly and reservations for sites often need to be made months in advance.

At night the Park turns into a Stargazers delight as no towns are close by and the Park lighting is intentionally kept to a minimum. My wife’s camera doesn’t do night photography all that well but in the video below the one night sky shot at the end was taken at Goblin around 2 o’clock in the morning as the full moon was just rising over the eastern horizon (it took probably 30+ exposures playing with the manual settings to finally get this one image). 

Hiking at Goblin is almost infinite as you wander all the nooks and crannys. There are steps leading down from the parking lot that sits on a bluff overlooking the valley of Goblins. Once down you can make the hike as easy or as strenuous as you wish. As I mentioned above, the farther you hike the more what crowds there are diminish and before you know it you’re the only one out there which to me is pure nirvana. The surface can get a little slippery, if not downright muddy, if it rains so it behooves the savvy hiker to keep a weather eye out for clouds moving in.

There is also mountain biking allowed on the designated trails on the Mesa above the campground. The next canyon to the west of the Park boundary also allows unlimited mountain biking opportunities but you’ll likely share the trails with OHV’s. As with the Park, the farther you go the more serenity you’ll find. This would also be a great place for bike-packing and camping.

I’ve been to Goblin in September on my first trip and now in May so avoided the summer heat. Still, we had plenty of water on our hikes and bikes and given that it is in fact a desert climate I’d watch the time of day for my hikes if I was there in the summer.

I could go on and on about the wonders of Goblin Valley State Park but suffice it to say that it’s a must see. As glorious as the National Parks are in Utah, you’ll be sorry if you pass that special place by! Hope you enjoy my short video tour:

For more of Goblin here's video from my first trip as well as what its like to mountain bike in the area... If these three video snapshots cant entice you to get out to Goblin, I don't know what to do!