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We got up a little before 7. We ate a quick breakfast, then Carl and I took off for Arches National Park.
The J’s are doing some more extreme jeeping today, so we’ll meet back at the condo eventually.
Our first stop was the Visitor’s Center after purchasing a senior’s pass. Seems senior passes are for those over 62, not 70, as I had thought.
We stopped at several of the vistas and took some small hikes at Balanced Rock and Double Arch.
And we walked up to the Delicate Arch Overlook. It was too hot a day for the full hike, which they say to allow three hours for. We’ll save that for some other time...
The three photos above were taken on our walk around Balanced Rock. The center photo shows a view of some distant formations and the Lasal Mountains from the far side of Balanced Rock. The other two photos are of Balanced Rock.
The photo on the left shows an unidentified person standing in the North Window, as seen from the parking lot for the Windows area of Arches. The photo on the right shows an arch in Elephant Butte from the trail to Double Arch, also in the Windows area of Arches.
The three photos above show different views of Double Arch, which has had other names in the past, including the Jug Handles.
The three photos above were taken during the walk back to the parking lot from Double Arch. The photo on the left is Elephant Butte. The center photo shows some formations in the distance. And the photo on the right shows the stairs over the rise in the middle of the circular parking lot with some common globemallow flowering at the side of the path.
The photo on the left shows an unusual pricklypear plant we spotted in the Windows area parking lot. It had both yellow and pink blossoms on the same pad!
The photo on the right shows Delicate Arch from the upper Delicate Arch Overlook. There were a lot of people taking the full two mile hike to the base of the arch.
We had lunch near the Devil’s Garden Trail. There were a lot of picnic tables, but it’s Saturday, so the park was crowded. We wound up sharing a picnic table with a talkative couple from Moab.
Then we hiked down Devil’s Garden Trail as far as Landscape Arch. People aren’t allowed to walk under it any more - a 60 foot long slab weighing about 180 tons crashed off of it in 1991 and the park service has closed that portion of the trail.
The three photos above were taken on the Devil's Garden Trail. The photo on the left shows some of the "fins" at the beginning of the trail. The center photo shows some formations that loom over the trail. The photo on the right shows part of the trail, more fins, and the Lasal Mountains.
It was much too hot a day for me. And there were too many people on the trails - not all of whom were prepared for hiking. Some will be badly burned tonight... I saw one woman climbing to Delicate Arch Overlook wearing heeled sandals (about 1.5 inches high). I also saw way too many overweight people in not enough clothing - spaghetti strap tops on the women and shirtless men. I saw one older woman who must be really sensitive to the sun. Not only was she wearing long pants and long sleeves and a hat with a huge brim, she also had on what looked like cotton workman’s gloves!
The three photos above show Landscape Arch. The photo on the right focus on the section of the arch that lost the large slab several years ago.
The photo to the left shows another view of the fins marking the beginning of the Devil's Garden Trail.
We turned back for the parking lot after viewing Landscape Arch as I had just had it. I was hot and tired. That sun can really sap the energy. The thermometer in the car said it was only 82, but the sun felt warmer. The shade, however, felt fantastic!
We stopped by Balanced Rock on the way back out of the park to catch it in better light.
The photos to the left and right show our afternoon view of Balanced Rock. In the photo on the right, you can see another balanced rock on the butte in the background.
And we stopped at Visitor’s Center again - this time for restrooms, then drove back into town for some smoothies.
Then back to condo for showers and to start laundry. We may be on vacation, but the laundry still needs to be washed once a week...
I thought the washer was going to walk out the door on the jeans load... It traveled a good ten inches out of its normal position.
The rest of the afternoon was quiet. Then the J’s returned about 5 and Carl, Jim, and the teens left to do Steel Bender again. That’s a more extreme jeep trail near the condo.
Jenny and I talked and I paid bills. Dinner was here at the condo again - tacos this time. We all crashed early.