Genesis 1:31
"God saw all that he had made, and it was very good." (New International Version-NIV)

Truly Gods vast creation, landscape, wildlife and man is beautiful beyond description.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Arches National Park, Aug. 18, 2013


Today is Aug. 18, 2013 and I am having breakfast at my motel cereal, banana, yogurt and juice. I am very anxious to get started today as I have wanted to see Arches National Park for years. I depart out of Moab on Highway 191 north for 8 or 9 miles to the entrance to Arches National Park and arrive at 7:30 A. M. and they don't open until 8 A. M. Did I say I was Anxious. I am not alone as there is a tour bus and several families waiting for the visitor center to open. I suspect a lot of people want to get in and out before it gets so very hot.
Entrance To Arches National Park
Visitor Center Arches National Park
Area Outside Of The Entrance. The Nose Of Each Of These Animals Which Are Brass Are Shiny From People Rubbing Them.
Mountains Around Visitor Center. This Is Called Moab Uplift Or Fault
Part Of Parking Lot At Visitor Center And Surrounding Mountains
A Diagram Of The Geological History Of The Area Known As The Moab Fault
Enlargement Of Story Of Moab Fault
You Know You Associate Faults With Earthquakes And I always Feel Funny Standing On One Of Them
Different Colored Layers Of Rock. I Don't Let The Claimed Ages Of These Events Bother Me
Because I Know God Was The Power Behind All These Events And They Occurred In Ages And
Times He Decided.
My Travel Is In Canyonland Country Which Is Loaded With Numerous National Parks As Well State
Parks Which Would Take Weeks To Explore And Enjoy. All This Area Is Part Of The
Colorado Plateau.
Map Of Canyonland Country


Before we go any further lets look at some information about Arches National Park which is known for having over 2,000 natural sandstone arches. The park is 76,359 acres in size and ranges in elevation from 4,085 feet at the visitor center to the highest of 5,653 feet at Elephant Butte.The park receives on average 10 inches of rain each year. This helps account for the longevity of the area and arches. The area was designated a National Monument in 1929 and re designated as a National Park in 1971. The National Park lies on top of a salt bed that is thousands of feet thick in places far below the surface of the park. It is theorized that the enormous weight on top of the salt beds caused some of it to liquefy and thrust up large layers of rock into salt domes. Faulting occurred and the whole section of rock, subsided into areas between the domes. In some places they turned almost on edge. One such area is the 2500 foot displacement which is known as the Moab Fault and is seen across from the visitor center which is shown above. While this subsurface movement of the salt shaped the landscape, erosion on the surface by water and wind removed the softer sandstone and left the salmon-colored Entrada Sandstone and the buff colored Navajo Sandstone which forms most of the arches, towers, spires and  large rock formations like Courthouse and Organ. You see these colored layers of sandstone in a cake like layers throughout the park. Over time water seeped into cracks, joints, and folds of these layers. Ice formed formed in the fissures, expanding them, and putting pressure on the surrounding rock, breaking off bits and pieces. Wind later cleaned out the loose particles. This left some free standing fins. Wind and water worked on these fins and in some the cementing material gave way and chunks of rocks fell out. This caused some of the fins to weaken and fall or collapse while others survived and these became the famous arches some of which you see in this posting.


Arches National Park appears rugged  however the opposite is true. The park averages 700,000 or visitors a year and they are the cause of great damage to the park You have to understand there is no soil in the park only sand. Lots of sand and this is where the problem lies and the threat to the delicate and fragile high dessert ecosystem. You say so what is the big deal. The problem lies within the crust which is composed of cyanobacteria, algae, fungi, and lichens that grow in the dusty parts of the park. There are several factors that contribute to the impact of visitors to the park. These include the semiarid region, scarce and unpredictable rainfall, lack of deep freezing and the lack of plant litter. The impact is simply people getting off the marked trails and walking on the biological soils. Around many of the arches and other areas that are accessible by foot you will see the ground is completely bare because the biological soil has been killed. The ranger advised that each foot print kills a community of life that has taken 100 to 200 years to grow and will take that long to regrow if it ever gets the chance to do so. You will see photographs of biological soil later and were also shown in the Canyonlands posting. You can recognize it by its rather bumpy appearance and general dark green to black color. This color adds to the beautiful of the salmon colored sandstone. 

Speaking of weather the average hottest months are June ( 92.7 ), July ( 99.3 ) and August ( 96.3 ). Boy it was right on schedule today as I walk around. The average lowest temperature are in December ( 23.5 ), January  ( 21.4 ) and February ( 27.9 ). Concerning rainfall no month average above an inch of rain As for snowfall only 2 months receive over an inch. December 2.5 inches. January 1.9 inches. Other months none to a trace.

Fremont people and the Ancient Pueblo People lived in the area until about 700 years ago. The Spanish missionaries found Ute and Paiute tribes in the area in 1775, but the first European-Americans to attempt to settle in the area were the Mormon Elk Mountain Mission in 1855 and they soon abandoned the area. Ranchers, farmers, and prospectors later settled Moab in the neighboring Riverine Valley in the 1880's. The areas beauty started becoming know and as a result tourists started visiting. The area was first bought to the attention of the Park Service by Frank A. Wadleigh, passenger traffic manager for the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad who visited the area in 1923. Alexander Ringhoffer a Hungarian born prospector living in Salt Valley had written to the railroad trying to create tourist interest in an area he had discovered the year before. This area he called " Devil's Garden " which today is known as " Klondike Bluffs ). It was later suggested that the area be designated as a National Monument. Over a period of time and typical of government missteps that  led to confusion as to the exact location of the site and the name " Devil's Garden " was transposed  to an area on the opposite side of Salt Valley and Ringhoffer's original discovery was omitted from maps, while another area known as " The Windows " was included. Eventually the area was designated as the Arches National Monument and over many years the size of the monument has been enlarged and reduced and under President Nixon its status was changed to a National Park. Such is the problems when politicians get involved with anything.

It Is Interesting That In Nearly All These Parks You Have To Drive Up A Steep Curvy Road To Get Into Them And Then Descend Into The Park. Highway 191 Is Down Below On The Left  And The Visitor Center Is Just To The Right Of 191. The Bluff To The Left Of 191 Is Moab Fault.
Park Avenue Is The Name Given To The Road That Gets You Into The Park After Going Over The
Peaks Mentioned Above. The View Through Part Of This Area Is Beyond My Ability To Describe
 And Again The Road Is So Narrow With No Place To Pull Off To Take Photographs Until You Reach
The First Turnout.
Enlargement Of The Above Sign
Delicate Arch And Fiery Furnace Are Shown Later
Slick Rock Which You Saw In Canyonlands And Is Present Here Also
This Layer Erodes Faster And Contributes To Making Of Arches As Harder Rock Remains Overhead

One Of The First Trails You Encounter Is Park Avenue Trail Which Give A Beautiful View But Is Quite Lengthy And Takes A Lot Of Time. It Is Described As Easy But It Makes A Change In Elevation Of
250 Feet. The Trail Head Is Off Park Avenue Road But I Do Have Some Photographs.
View Of Surrounding Hill At Park Avenue Trail Overlook
Looking From Park Avenue Trail Overlook Down Into The Canyon Where You Can See The
Trail As It Winds Around And Goes Deeper Into The Canyon. It Is Hard To Tell From The Photograph
But The Trail Down To The Bottom Is Steep


Looks Like This Could Be The Start Of An Arch
 Display Sign At  Overlook Naming Six Of The Main Landmarks On The Landscape. Courthouse Towers Is The Large Tower Closest To You.These Formations Are Located In The Courthouse Towers Section
Of The Park
Five Of The Major Landscape Features. Three Gossips On The Left, Sheep Rock To The Right, Next
To The Right Is Tower Of Babel Then The Organ. Except For The Sheep I Am Not Sure How They
Got Thee Names
Tower Of Babel And The Organ
Tower Of Babel On The Left And The Organ On The Right. The Very Thin Layers Between The Hugh Thicker Layer Is Interesting
Courthouse Towers
The Three Gossips. Wonder What The Gossip Is Today?
Another View Of The Three Gossips. Must Be Bad They Are Blushing.
Courthouse Towers
Balanced Rock As Shown On Landscape Sign Far In The Distance
Telephoto Lens Shot Of Balanced Rock Far In The Distance. Later You Will Be Under It.
Elephant Butte As Shown On Landscape Sign. Also A Long Ways Off And is The Highest Point In
The Park
Elephant Rock As Seen Through Telephoto Lens. Never Did Figure Out Why They Called It That
An Arch Off In The Distance. Looks Like It Might Be Tower Arch.
     This Is A Couple From Minnesota Who Wanted Me To Take Their Picture Which I Did. Then There
    Were Some Chinese Visitors There Who Wanted A Photograph Of The Three Of Us So I Had Him             Take A Photo With My Camera Also. He Though It Was A Neat Camera. How Do You Like My Hat?       Courthouse Towers Is To My Left
Another View Of The Three Gossips
Sheep Rock. I Thought It Also Looked Like A Lion But There Is Another Story Here. Look At The Following.
The Rise And Fall Of An Arch. I Was Told 46 Arches Have Collapsed
Or Fallen Since 1970.

Explanation Continued

Explanation Continued
Sheep Rock Was Once Believed To Be Connect To Other Rock Faces

This Whole Area Was Once A Vast Flat Top Mesa Which Has Been Eroded Down To The Formations You See Today. Appropriately Named The Courthouse Towers Wash And It Streams Did Most Of The Eroding. As Previously Noted All This Area Is Part Of The Colorado Plateau And There Are Areas In Arches National Park Where You can See 40 Miles.

    This Is One Massive Rock Formation. As Seen From The La Sal Mountains Viewpoint. You May Recall     From The Canyonlands Posting I Mentioned The La Sal National Forest. Here At Arches National Park      These Mountains Are Outside The Park. They Reach 12,000 Feet In Elevation. The Following Is A              Photograph Of The Snow Covered Mountains Which Was Obviously Taken At Another Time Than
   When I Was There.
Snow Covered La Sal Mountains. This Is A Photograph On A Sign.
The Drive continues on to the next turn out which is The Balanced Rock Parking Area And Trail.
Back View Of Balanced Rock Formation
Balanced Rock As Viewed From Road
Parking Area Sign Provides Information About He Balanced Rock
Information About The Balanced Rock
Balance Rock Information
Interesting This One Has Fallen
Path Leading To Balance Rock
Balance Rock From A Different Angle
Base Of Balance Rock
Balance Rock
Balance Rock. The Top Rock Is About The Size Of Three School Buses
Final Look At Balance Rock
General View Around Balance Rock
Starting The Formation Of A New Arch
Here You Get Two For The Price Of One. A Photograph Of A Park Sign And One Of Me Taking A Photograph Of The Sign. It Doesn't Get Any Better Than This. This Sign Is About The Windows, Thriving In The Dessert, And Trail Information.
Enlargement Of Park Sign
The Rest Of The Story
These Are The Trail I Took To Get To These Arches
Description Of How Arches Are Formed
Description Of How Arches Are Formed
Description Of How Arches Are Formed
Description Of How Arches Are Formed
Description Of How Arches Are Formed
North Window Arch As Shown On Park Sign
South Window Arch As Shown On Park Sign
Turret Arch As Shown On Park Sign
Dead Tree Off Trail To North & South Windows Arch
Directional Sign On Trail To Arches
South Window Arch. Sign Points To Primitive Trail To Parking Lot. Primitive Means Rough And
Long Trail To Parking Lot.As Seen From The Trail
Turret Arch As Seen From The Trail
Close Up View Of Turret Arch. There Is A Couple Standing Under The Arch. As Seen From The Trail
North And South Window Arch As Seen From The Trail
Trail Leading To Turret Arch
Other Arches Forming Near Turret Arch

Trail Sign Pointing To South Window Arch
South Window Arch As Seen From Trail Approaching It.

Grandpa Bill In Front Of South Window Arch. A Young Couple Wanted Their Picture Taken And In Return They Took Mine
Directional Sign On Trail


North Window Arch As Seen From Trail Approaching It.

Looking Up At Bottom Of North Window Arch. Notice The Large Crack And Rocks That Are About
Ready To Fall
A Closer Look At A Rock In The Bottom Of North Window Arch. It Will Fall Out Some Day
And Look Out Below.
Looking Up Into Large Crack In Bottom Of North Window Arch
Another View Of Turret Arch
View Of another Arch And Parking Lot From North Window Arch. Parking Lot Is Pretty Full.
Double Arch
Park Sign About People Seeing Different Figures In The Rock Formations. I Have Experienced That.
You Can Tell How Bright It Was By Seeing My Reflection In This Sign.
Double Arch Trail Information.  1/2 Mile Round Trip. Very Deep Sand That Is Hard To Walk In. This
Was The Finest Sand I Have Ever Seen. On The Slight Uphill Parts Of The Trail It Seemed You Take
One Step Forward And Slide Back A Half A Step
Double Arch Has Had Different Names In The Past.  " Short Easy, Stroll Through Loose Sand " I Guess
It Depends On How You Handle Walking In Dry Loose Sand. Except For The Kids Running And Playing
 I Did Not See Anyone Who Was Treating This As An Easy Stroll.
Parking Lot Showing The Trails To The Four Major Arches At His Location. You Remember Back
At The North And South Window Arch I Mentioned The Primitive Trail, This Sign Shows The Route
It Takes.
Double Arch Trail Sign Showing Double Arch
Depiction Of How Double Arches Formed.
How Double Arch's Was Formed
How Double Arch's Was Formed
Description Of Double Arch's
Double Arch Sign
Other Arch's In Mountain Near Double Arch's
Formations Near Double Arch's
Double Arch's With People Climbing Inside Them
Double Arch's
Double Arch's. It Is Difficult To Visualize The Size Of These Formation And Surrounding Rocks. Look
At The Person In The Lower Middle Of This Photograph And How Small She Looks Up Next To
That Boulder
This Is A Cave Inside The Edge Of Double Arch's. It Appears Additional Arch's Are In The Process
Of Forming. This Is A Continuing Process.
This Is Another Group  Of Caves Inside The Edge Of Double Arch's. It Appears Additional Arch's
Are In The Process Of Forming. This Is A Continuing Process.
Young Boy Climbing Double Arch's Interior Wall. He's Gone About As High As He Can Go.

Dead Tree Next To Double Arch's
Interesting Design On Face Of Rock Cliff
Rock Formation Along Road. Balance Rock Is In The Background.
Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Enlargement Of Road Sign Explaining Salt Valley
Salt Valley As Seen From Roadside Overview Parking Area. The " Fins " Mentioned Above Are In
 The Mountain Range In The Distance At The Top Of The Photograph
 
Roadside View As I Drove Along To The Next Area.
Informational Sign About Delicate Arch
Enlargement Of Informational Sign About Delicate Arch
Enlargement Of Informational Sign About Delicate Arch. You Can See The Start Of The Tails
Above The Sign.
Delicate Arch Stands Out Here All Alone
Landscape Around Area Of Delicate Arch. Light Colored Rock Is What Is Called Slick Rock
Another Roadside Informational Sign About Delicate Arch And How It Looks In The Winter
Road Side Sign About Delicate Arch And Other Nicknames That Have Been Applied To It.
Road Side Sign About Delicate Arch As Seen In Early Photograph.
Road Side Sign About Delicate Arch
Road Side Sign About Delicate Arch
Road Side Sign About Delicate Arch
Enlargement Of Road Side Sign Photograph Of Delicate Arch In The Winter Time
Another View Of Delicate Arch. It Does Look Delicate From This Angle

Another View Of Delicate Arch.

The Wolfe Ranch, also known as Turnbow Cabin, is located at the trail head for the Delicate Arch. John Wesley Wolfe was a Civil War Veteran who came west and bought land in part of the area now known as Arch's National Park in 1888. A nagging leg injury from the Civil War prompted him to move west from Ohio, looking for a drier climate. He choose this tract of more than 100 acres along Salt Wash for its water and grassland. This was enough for a few cattle. He and his son Fred built a one room cabin, a coral, and a small dam across Salt Wash. For more than a decade they lived alone in this remote area. In 1906, Wolfe's daughter Flora Stanley and her husband and children moved to the ranch. Shocked by the primitive conditions she convinced her father to build a new cabin with a wood floor. The ranch on Salt Wash was established about that time under the Bar DX brand. this newer structure survived. The Stanley family moved into Moab in 1908. The family sold the ranch to Tommy Larson in 1910 and moved back to Ohio in 1910. John Wolfe died on October 22, 1913, in Etna,Ohio at the age of 84.  Larson eventually sold the ranch to Marvin Turnbow and his partners. Because Turnbow helped with the early mapping of the park the early maps show the name of the cabin as " Turnbow Cabin "". Wolfe's granddaughter, Ester Stanley Rison, visited the ranch in 1970 and provided the early history about the cabin therefore the name of Wolfe Cabin was restored.
Wolfe Cabin At Delicate Arch Trail Head

Arch's National Park Has Some Wonderful  Petroelyphs. This Is A Person Riding On A Horse
Deer. Long Horn Sheep And Geometric Design
One Figure Looks Like A Buffalo The Rest ??
Looks Like A Buffalo On The Left, Man On Horse With Bow On Right
And Could Those Be Feet ???

More Characters
Man On Horse Shooting Deer With Bow And Other Figures
Definitely Looks Like a Snake

Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace
Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace And Me Of Course
Enlargement Of Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace And Me Of Course. God
 Certainly Used His Pallet Of Colors In This Area Of The Park
Enlargement Of Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace And Me Of Course. I Suspect
This Ranger-Led Tour Into The Fiery Furnace Would Be Beautiful But Strenuous.
Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace. That Is One Rough Looking Area To Hike In
Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace. It Was 87 Degrees At The Overlook
When I Was There

Overview Parking Area Sign Tells About Fiery Furnace.
Looking Into The Fiery Furnace From The Overlook Viewing Area
Photograph Of Me With The Fiery Furnace In The Background At The Overlook Viewing Area
   Photograph Of Me With The Fiery Furnace In The Background At The Overlook Viewing Area. This          Photograph Was Taken With My Camera By An Older Couple Who Were From Michigan. Both Of 
  Them Appeared Older Than Me And I Was Amazed That They Made It Down The Trail To The 
  Overview Point. The Trail Was Not Long But Difficult With Sand And Rocks. They Were Ardent 
  Michigan Football Fans And Were Sure The  University Of Michigan Would Beat The Buckeyes. I 
  Had A Nice Long Chat with Them

Looking Into The Fiery Furnace Valley
Fiery Furnace Valley Wall
Fiery Furnace Valley Wall
Fiery Furnace Valley Wall

Many Colors Of Fiery Furnace

More Colors Of Fiery Furnace
Area Around Fiery Furnace Valley
Sand Dune And Broken Arch Trail Informational Sign
Enlargement Of Sand Dune Arch Trail Informational Sign
Enlargement Of Broken Arch Trail Informational Sign
   Rock Formation By The Broken Arch Trail. The Trail Can Be Seen As Clear Path In The Green. This Trail Is All Deep Sand That Is Hard To Walk In And Is 1.6 Miles Long Round Trip.
     Trail Goes Through Narrow Passage Way In Hugh Rock Formation. You Can See A Couple Of      Strollers Left Here Because The Path Way Is To Narrow For Them. This Was Very Deep Sand
And The Sand On The Rock Steps Was Very Slick.
Looking Up From Trail As It Goes Through Rock Formation
Looking Up From Trail As It Goes Through Rock Formation
Looking Straight Ahead As Trail As It Goes Through Rock Formation
The Trail Continues Through Rock Formation
Trail Is Coming Out Of Rock Formation Into Area Of The Arch
Finally The Arch. The Arch Really Isn't Broken There Is Just A Natural Crack In The Bridge. Isn't 
The Color Of The Sandstone Beautiful
Broken Arch
Looking Toward Trail Leaving The Broken Arch. The Kids Were Having A Ball Playing In the Shade In The Sand. The Temperature Was Close To 90 Degrees At This Time. There Was No Breeze At All Back In Here Where The Arch Is Located.
On Trail Out Of Broken Arch. Beautiful Scene
View Above The Trail Out From Broken Arch
View Above The Trail Out From Broken Arch. The Sky Is Beautiful.
Trail To Another Arch
Trail Sign About Skyline Arch
Enlargement Of Trail Sign About Skyline Arch. I Bet That Was A Big Bang When That Rock Fell
Information About Skyline Arch
 Skyline Arch. I Did Not Make All The Way To The Base Of The Arch. A Look At My Notes Indicates I Wrote " I Am Getting Pretty Tired Walking In This Deep Sand. It Really Wears You Out. "

There are many more trails and arch's I did not take because they were to long or the places were to hard to get to but I would like to share a few more photographs of some of these places. The Devil's Garden Trail Head  is located off the main road running through Arch's National Park and at the parking area for the trail there were more cars parked there than at any other place I stopped. This trail travels throughout Devils Garden and is just over 7 miles long. It goes by the Tunnel Arch, Pine tree Arch, Landscape Arch, Partition Arch, Navajo Arch, Double O Arch, Dark Angel Monolith, Private Arch and Fin Canyon.
Parking Area For Devil's Garden Trail Head
Tunnel Arch
Pine Tree Arch
Landscape Arch Has The Longest Span In The Park
Navajo Arch
Double O Arch

Dark Angel Monolith

I spent the whole day at Arches National Park. It was the greatest and as usual I don't have enough adjectives to describe it. Walked many miles over rock and deep sand and later this afternoon the temperature was in the mid 90's. I am exhausted but it is the good kind of exhaustion that comes with knowing that you have done and seen something very special. I feel so blessed to have been allowed to experience this day. Took tons of pictures. The motel in Moab made reservations for me for tomorrow night in Mount Carmel, Utah. I leave in the morning and go to Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and see Glen Canyon Dam and then on to Bryce Canyon Park. Mount Carmel is just South of Bryce Canyon. I will have to do a little doubling back to pick up my schedule but I want to make sure I have a room because the tourist are thick around this area.

Back in Moab, Utah and my motel I found a place to eat and had a nice dinner and then posting a short travel update and then bed.

I will Say goodnight and remember God Loves you and so do I.

Grandpa Bill

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