My 8 year old son and I did an afternoon trip with Tristan in late November to Arches. It was truly one of the best days we’ve had in recent memory and one of our favorite adventures in Moab. Tristan was incredibly patient and gracious with my 8 year old’s barrage of questions and jokes, and he did a fantastic job engaging my kid in the amazing nature and beauty of Arches. The trip was educational and fun, and never once did we feel rushed. We loved the dinosaur tracks and the short hikes to Eye of the Whale and Skyline arches. My California kid was fascinated by all of the patches of snow throughout the park and the pockets of ice in the shadow of the arches. Tristan matched my son’s enthusiasm with kindness and positive energy, even helping him to find a patch of ice he could crack at the end of the trip. My kid generally hates long car rides, but Tristan’s friendly banter and sharing of his wide scientific knowledge made the entire day a blast. My eight year old literally skipped to Tristan’s jeep at the end of the day because he was having so much fun.
Tristan made great recommendations that we followed up on during the subsequent days of our visit: In addition to checking out Lin Ottinger’s impressive Moab Rock Shop for the free dinosaur bone and sliding down the massive red sand dunes across from the park, we went back to Arches on our own to do the Landscape Arch trail and to check out the windows sections. We also went back to the beautiful La Sal Mountains viewpoint at sunset. All of these were great recommendations from Tristan.
Arches is easy to drive through on your own to see many spectacular sites, but we are so glad we started our visit off-roading through the back entrance with Tristan. We loved the silence (even hearing the beating of a raven’s wings!) and experiencing the park without the crowds. We also learned so much from our afternoon with Tristan that gave us helpful perspectives for the rest of our time in Moab! I would heartily recommend this tour with Navtec, and if you have kids, definitely ask for Tristan. We couldn’t have asked for a kinder, more patient guide! (Tristan, if you read this, don’t miss Point Lobos State Park for the amazing lichen if you make it out to California again!) Thank you from a grateful mom!