Today’s outing was in the Island In The Sky district of Canyonlands National Park. Mainly we drove along the high plateau and sampled great scenery accessible along or at the end of easy hikes. It was good to rest tired legs and feet. (I did log 7.5 miles of walking, so being a light hiking day is a relative measure.) Lots of great scenes to photograph. Here are eleven that I like.

Great hike today in the Needles section of Canyonlands National Park. Starting at Elephant Hill, the out-and-back route ended at the awesome Druid Arch. It was an all day outing, with 2 h of driving each way and 7 h to complete the 11 mile hike. Progress near the Arch was slow: “the upper end is steep with one ladder and some scrambling.” Ingrid thought the hike quality compares favorably with Half Dome as a “must do.”

Wow! Clear why this is among the most popular national parks. Stunning scenery and high accessibility. We visited more than half the sites along the main 18-mile road through the park, logging 12.2 hiking/walking miles. Here are photos of nine arches we saw up close, plus a bonus: Balanced Rock.

I’m not in great driving shape. So the 1060 miles covered these past two days wore me out, even though we’re driving a nice vehicle and the driving conditions were good. We stayed last night in Henderson NV, near Las Vegas. Today we settled into an air bnb in Moab, the eastern edge of this trip. Tomorrow, we visit Arches NP. Scenery on I70 through UT was spectacular. Here is one photo from a hwy viewpoint.

We took a regional train (45 min ride) to spend a full day exploring the huge chateau and grounds at Versailles. The site was mainly developed under Louis XIV, the Sun King (“l’etat, c’est moi!”). Louis XV and Louis XVI also lived here, with the latter being captured at the start of the French Revolution, along with his wife, Marie Antoinette. The site reminded me of the Summer Palace in Saint Petersburg. We split our time learning a bit of French history inside, and strolling the extensive, formally structured yet casually used grounds.

Our departure from France is tomorrow, so this might be the final post on this site. Look for more at bilboincr.blogspot.com.

Some remarkable sites we’ve seen the past few days.

Musée d’Orsay

Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel

Pyramid de Louvre

Musée Louvre

(View from Louvre)

Sainte Chapelle

Cathedral of Notre Dame

Place Saint-Michel

Arc de Triomphe

Montmartre rises about 100 meters above the majority of Paris. In the past, it was a major area for artists lacking funds and seeking community. At its peak sits the Sacré-Coeur (Sacred Heart) Basilica, built in the late 19th and early 20th century. We climbed to the upper part of the dome (300 steps) for great views of Paris as the sun set.

More Monet and Renoir. Featured: eight monumental canvases of water lilies by Monet, measuring in all about 2 m tall by 100 meters long.

The museum covers western art from 1848 to 1914. It only opened in 1986. The building — an old railroad station — is spectacular. The collection on paintings is extraordinary, even judged from a limited knowledge of art history.

We made it!

Today’s ride took good measures of several skills: map-based route planning; route finding (assisted by Siri, an imperfect but useful tool); and urban cycling. Photos don’t reflect the reality.

Total biking distance for Paris to the Mediterranean and back: 1425 miles.

We’re in Paris for 5 nights before flying home. Our hotel (Courtyard at Gare de Lyon) is brand new. Literally: opened just this week!

The fourth photo from the end shows one side of the busy Gare de Lyon. The final three are from the Coulée verte René-Dumont, a linear park built along an abandoned railway line, including a lengthy elevated section. It opened in 1993.

Stats

Distance: 28.3 miles

Elapsed time: 4 hours

Average speed: 10.1 mph