Day 10

We began the day driving west to Salt Lake City. It was pouring rain, and neither of us cared much about seeing another big body of water. We decided to stay dry and forego a tour of Salt Lake. From there we drove south and east to Arches National Park. It is accessible through Moab, Utah. The drive into southern Utah is full of amazing red rock features, and the journey into the park foreshadows the arches to come. If you look closely during the drive in, you will see a few arches buried in the mass of red stone lining the park.

Arches is different from Badlands, Yellowstone, and Glacier in that you have to venture off the main road to truly experience what the park has to offer. Various hikes of lengths between 0.2 miles and about 2 miles take you to different arches. The ones we saw were Delicate, Skyline, Landscape, Double O, Tunnel, Pine Tree, and Sand Dune Arches. The hike up to see Delicate Arch ended in a walk up a steeply inclining very large rock face. It was an interesting trail, because you pick your own route when you get close to the top.

Utah is a worthwhile trip, and I would say the best of Utah is better than the best of Yellowstone. However, the variety of Yellowstone is unmatched by anything I've seen.

I am apparently slipping into a mild state of delusion. A guy asked me for the time last night, and I gave him the east coast time. I haven't changed my watch and glanced down without thinking. If it was one of those questions you ask people before you rob them, I suppose he figured he was wasting his time.

Tomorrow we're going to head down to the Canyonlands. I'll see you on the other side.

Later,
Matt

Tunnel Arch


Tunnel Arch


Pine Tree Arch


Sand Dune Arch





Balanced Rock


Delicate Arch


Skyline Arch


Landscape Arch


Part of Double O Arch