Logo.png

Thursday, 6/3/21: Arches

I knew that we’d have a great day as soon as I opened our door this morning and saw this sight.

A hot-air balloon floating over the nearest rock monument greeted us at 6 am. I took that as a good omen and I was right. When we reached the entrance of Arches at 7:15 am, the line was practically nothing. We got right in.


Of course, we bee-lined to the trailhead to Delicate Arch, the iconic symbol of the Park, and all of Utah, for that matter. When we reached the turn off for the trail, a Ranger frantically waved us, and the line of cars behind us, by. The parking lot was full and no other cars were allowed in.


Change of plans - our theme this week. With us in the lead, our little pack of cars headed straight for the Devil’s Garden Trailhead at the end of the main road.

We arrived just in time to get one of the last parking spots available. Next time we’ll have to get up at 5 am.


The trail is a 7.2 mile loop with a total of eight arches to view. We wimped out and only went as far as Landscape Arch, a fairly easy 1.6 miles, however we did take a couple of side trails to view Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch, adding another 3/4 mile to our total.


Landscape Arch is the longest arch in the Park. It is also very thin after a big chunk fell off in 1991. That event left a very elegant structure. Unfortunately, we noticed a long fracture on the underside of the arch that may just bring the whole thing down. Hopefully, not until the distant future.

There were many great sandstone formations on the way to Landscape Arch.

Landscape Arch and Delicate Arch should switch names. This arch, although it is the widest arch in Utah, is easily the most delicate.

There’s nothing delicate about Pine Tree Arch. I never did figure out why it is called Pine Tree Arch.


Tunnel Arch turned out to be a double arch. The smaller arch didn’t seem to have name. Hmmmmm..... Wanda Arch?!?!? To go with Wanda Bridge?!?!?!

We stopped at Sand Dune Arch on our way back to Delicate Arch. The arch itself was OK, but the hike through a narrow pathway was a blast.

The approach to Sand Arch was fun. The trail went through some narrow spots. The arch was located in the heart of a well protected room with towering sandstone walls.

Sand Arch.

The frantic Ranger was nowhere to be seen, so we figured that parking was available. It was 11:30 am, and it was heating up fast and furious. The trail is only a 3.2 mile there-and-back round-trip. We had no idea that it was 1.6 miles straight up, halfway to the moon. The cloudless sky gave the sun permission to beat on us. The famed Moab wind was napping. And there was precious little shade all the way up.


Was it worth it? As soon as we rounded the corner and the arch came into view, we were blown away. Delicate Arch is a structure of pure beauty and joy. All other arches and natural bridges that we have seen have big rock formations buttressing each side. Not Delicate Arch. It is all arch; only arch; pure arch; no supporting sides.


At a little past noon, very few people were at the arch. We lingered for 45 minutes just awestruck. When we finally hustled our way back down the mountain side, it was hotter yet. The van thermometer read 97º when we drove off. Yikes! That’s hot, but hey, it’s a dry heat. Don’t kid yourself, dry heat can roast a chicken in an oven just as well as humid heat.


We skipped the whole “Windows” section of the Park. We just couldn’t hike another step. We hope to come back to finish up what we missed. If we do, it will be very early in the “cool” morning.

The long arduous trail up the cliff to see Delicate Arch started by crossing a creek, passing by an old settler cabin, and taking in some petroglyphs.

Looking back down after climbing a quarter of the way up.

Bushes like this were all the shade we could find.

The final ledge, before the final corner, before arriving at Delicate Arch. Notice the small arch in the distance just before seeing Delicate Arch.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the Delicate Arch.

We met George at Delicate Arch. He was a show-off with his flight skills, and a beggar just like yesterday’s chipmunk. As soon as Wanda opened up the bag of gorp, George was all over it.

The surrounding area just below the arch. What a setting!

That was it for hiking. We stopped at a bunch more overlooks on our way out. Arches is a beautiful landscape, as all five of Utah’s National Parks are.

Some of the scenes as we drove out of the Park.

It was 3 pm and 100º when we passed the exit at Arches. It was too early and too hot to return to V-Jer. We decided to explore, with Saturn’s air-conditioning on ful-arctic, Highway 128, our final scenic byway in the Moab area. Technically, it is just a small piece of the Dinosaur Diamond Prehistoric Highway - National Scenic Byway. I just love those long names.


This stunning highway closely follows the Colorado River through a maroon-colored canyon. There are several small campgrounds squeezed between the highway and the river. As nice as they looked, they were all full.

The temperature had dipped down to 97º when we reached V-Jer around 6:15 pm. We had all the shades pulled down and the ceiling fan turned to max all day. It was warm inside, but not baking.

Glossary of terms used for newcomers: 1) V-Jer. The name of our camper. 2) Saturn. The name of our Van. 3) Duende. Our mischievous gremlin that breaks things. 4) Tata. The good gremlin that helps us fix Duende’s dirty work. 5) The Black Hole. This is what we call Walmart because every time we go in for just a couple of items, we come out spending way more than we figured. 6) QT. Quaint Town. 7) Little Buddy. This is what we call our Dyson cordless stick vacuum.

Dave and Wanda

Get Vaccinated To Save Lives.

Virtual Business Card

North America . Europe . Mexico . Asia . Product Reviews . Books & Maps


Please send us your thoughts and any errors we may have missed. We're on the road and cellular service is intermittent in the remote areas. As soon as we get online, we are eager to read all of your messages.


Text: 715-252-6664 | 715-252-3326

Email: alloverthemaptravelventures@gmail.com

Visit our Website
Pinterest Share This Email