Death defying day

I wanted to get an early start on my day at Arches National Park. Mainly to beat the heat...90 degrees was forecasted...but, also to beat the inevitable weekend crowd. When I visited the park last year (see blog post "The Real Golden Arches"), I saw a lot of arches, but I missed some, too. Those arches would require some hiking...and a bit of risk taking on my part. I arrived at Arches promptly at 7:00 am, the sun just coming over the horizon. My first hike of the day was the 3 mile round trip to the park's famous Delicate Arch. I left the Wolfe Ranch trail head at 7:30 and made good time, the biggest challenge being a very steep walk over slickrock...that's bare stone that can be slippery when wet or icy. But, the slickrock was dry, and an hour later, I made it to the end of the trail...and Delicate Arch!

The view from the arch was awesome, and I had to be very careful walking on the rock to get closer to it. One misstep and over the edge I would go and...well, it's best not to think about something that didn't happen. The hike back went much faster as it was pretty much all downhill. When I reached the parking lot, I quickly hopped in my Blazer and headed north to the Devil's Garden trailhead. By now, it was 10:00 am and temperatures were well into the 70s. Last year, I only walked about a mile to Landscape Arch. This time, I planned to go farther, hiking the full 5 miles to Double O Arch and back, with side trips to Partition and Navajo Arches. I knew the trail was going to be a bit challenging, but I almost changed my mind when presented with a huge...and potentially dangerous...section of slickrock. I mean, it was REALLY steep!

That little hump of rock right above the tree was the most frightening for me. Hard to get around and over going up, and even harder when coming back down. In fact, it was the descent that could have been fatal. It's a good thing I'm not afraid of heights. But, it was all worth it in the end. Partition Arch was particularly beautiful.

It was at this arch that a humorous incident occurred. It was right before I took the photo shown above. Three guys with pretty fancy cameras were taking photos of the arch. They were all moving around trying to get the best shots. I was getting ready to take some shots of my own when I heard one of them talking about how people just stand in the way and ruin the shot. He kept at it, and I realized he was directing his comments...but not directly at...a young woman standing right next to the arch. I finally told him why he just didn't say something to her. I guess he was just being too polite, so I decided to do it for him. I got her attention, and made it clear that the guy was trying to take a photo without her in it, and to please move to the side. I think she may have been a foreign visitor because she initially didn't seem to comprehend. But, when I added my hand gestures, she moved enough for the guy to get his shot. He complimented my technique...admitted I said it better than he would have. Afterward, he laughed and said the photo probably wouldn't be that great anyway!

After 8 miles...and about 5 1/2 hours of hiking...I was hot and exhausted. Yes, it was 90 degrees when I finished my ordeal. I'm seeing cooler temperatures are just over the horizon. It can't come soon enough for this Pacific Northwesterner.