Moab Shopping Tips by goodfish Top 5 Page for this destination

General: What not to buy

Every tourist town has its traders of tchotchkes and Moab seemed to have acquired few more of those than when we were here 7 years earlier. Yessiree, the stuff was everywhere and much of it stuff I'd seen everywhere else in the Southwest. Spare me another dishtowel, paperweight, shot glass, coffee cup, whatever-the-hell-it-is with Kokopelli slapped on it? Eeesh.

This region of the U.S. is blessed with talented artisans of beautiful jewelry, pottery, basketry, textiles, leather and woodworks. It's well worth the effort - and a few extra dollars - to find and choose handmade items that are unique and carefully made. In most cases your purchase will also be contributing to the local economy and/or to keeping the art of traditional craft alive and well.

So don't buy the first thing you see. Take the time to browse the shops; the same trinkets you see over and over again are the same mass-produced trinkets thousands of other people already own, and were probably made in heaven-knows-where so turn them over and look for where that was. The best pieces will either be be signed by the artist or sold by reputable dealers able to tell you who they were crafted by and provide printed proof of authenticity.

Hint: if it's behind glass, it's more likely to be the real deal. This, of course, doesn't apply items too large to be protected as such.

What to buy: Handcrafted kachinas, silver jewelry, traditional tribal pottery, handwoven rugs, locally-made baskets, etc.

What to pay: Under $100 to many thousands (where Navajo rugs are concerned)

Address: Moab shops

Theme: Other

Back of Beyond Books: The Moab Story from Cowpokes to Bike Spokes

Utah author Frank McCourt's entertaining stories about Moab's colorful past make for great coffee-house reading on a rainy afternoon. Find it at Back of Beyond Books on Main street: great little bookseller that specializes in regional and natural history of the Colorado Plateau. Subjects range from archeology to poetry, and they have maps, guidebooks, newspapers and other useful stuff.

Recommended reading for anyone with an interest in the old West/Southwest, and a fascinating tale of what was a rough desert outpost not so very long ago.

What to pay: Book mentioned is under $20

Address: 83 N. Main St. Moab, Utah

Phone: 435-259-5154

Theme: Books

Website: http://www.backofbeyondbooks.com/

Dirt Shirt: Here's the dirt

The best souvenir ever for anyone who has spent time getting good and filthy in southern Utah's red dust is a Dirt Shirt. They are permanently dyed with the same soil you'll be dragging home in your boots, and come in a range of sizes, types and irreverent slogans. You can get Dirtcaps and Dirtbags, too. Find them at some shops along the main drag; the Moab tourism site doesn't waste any space on pansy shopping nonsense so you're gonna have to hunt them down on your own.

What to pay: $25 or so

Address: Multiple locations

Theme: Local Craft

Hogan Trading Company: The Real Deal

We had purchased a hand-decorated gourd here in 2004 and made a beeline to the showroom for another one in 2011. This is the place for a nice memento of your trip to Moab; we'd probably been in every shop in town and this one has the largest selection of quality works by local or regional artisans. Stock includes pueblo pottery, jewelry, gourds, furniture, wall decor, katchinas, paintings, baskets and lots of other goodies. Prices are all over the place depending on size and amount of work/cost of materials going into them but there should be something here for all but the most skimpy of budgets, and they have some good sales. Friendly, knowledgeable staff will be able to tell you about the artists and guarantee the authenticity of tribal pieces.

I wish I had more photos but places that deal in original artwork can be touchy about that so these two were all I was able to quietly snap.

Address: 100 South Main • Moab, UT 84532

Phone: (435) 259-8118

Theme: Local Craft

Website: http://www.hogantrading.com/