So, back to Moab! After the great hiking in Canyonlands we camped at BLM's Horsethief campground. When choosing a site we had explored the grounds thoroughly to find one with good orientation with in relation to the wind (which was blasting cold) as the campground is near the top of a hill. We maneuvered the van in such a way that it would block the wind from the table which would double up as Tyler's shelter.
After that it was the usual: get the fire started, cook a meal, clean up the dishes and get read for sleep. Tyler had been a bit restless during the day and announced that instead of going to Salt Lake he would go back home. This triggered a good discussion about his reasons and how he's been living for the last couple of months.
The next morning I dropped him off at Moab, from where he wanted to start hitchhiking back. I'm glad I met him and I think we had a great week exploring the US together. It was also great fun to meet a few of his relatives and friends to get a glimpse of the real day to day US life. Tyler: all the best, and I'm curious what kind of business you'll be running in a couple of years ;-)
For me the travel continued: I got the van's supplies restocked and headed off for Arches National Monument. I decided to head for the furthest arches and hike first, and let the schedule decide which other arches to visit on the way back out of the park.
The hike would consist of a visit to Landscape arch, and time permitting, a walk on 'primitive loop'. However, judging by the schedule posted by the Park I thought time would not allow me to complete this loop. The landscape this trails winds through was once again stunning: an alien landscape consisting of a wind-eroded labyrinth of huge ridges.
Hidden in between these ridges were various arches, some of which on the brink of collapse. That's why you can no longer walk below the top one below.
The hike was actually quite exciting, and once again physically challenging (height and soft sand combined with my devilish pace). When I needed a break I first climbed a nearby cliff or ridge, so that while resting I could enjoy the great views. At the start of the hike there were signs saying that you should go prepared and take water, food, clothes for inclement weather and a map. I didn't take the last two, and was timing my hike so that I could be back in time to see a little of the rest of the park and also get some miles on the road. This meant that by the time I got to 'private arch' (the above picture) I took one last break, and would then have to turn back.
At the start of the trail I studied the map of the hike: it featured one trail leading up to the loop track. On the track I came across a German couple who looked rather exhausted. I had a chat with them about how far they went and whether the stuff they saw was worth it. They said it was very beautiful, but that they had had a very difficult time getting back to the parking lot (they hadn't known that the rocks piled on top of each other indicated the route). When I had about 5 minutes left on my schedule I came across a three way sign: indicating 'primitive loop' left and right, and 'private arch' straight on. I wanted to see the arch, was sure I had no time left to start on the loop right now, so I headed on to ask the first people to meet me on the private arch track how far I still had to go. Luckily the answer was about 100ft, so I made it to private arch!
I walked to the end of the cliff that private arch is on to enjoy a great private view into an alien landscape for a couple of minutes (the picture once again does not do justice to the scale, find the trail to get an idea of how large this valley is).
Because I didn't feel like hiking back the exact same trail I squeezed myself through a nearby rock crack to see if I could get down into this valley. The tracks seemed to indicate that there had been people hiking there, and it also looked like a great shortcut (the track I had come from had looped and zigzagged across multiple ridges to the one where this picture was taken). It took some squeezing and climbing for about 100m, but then I ended up on an isolated platform, with a 7m vertical drop to get to the bottom of the valley. No ropes, so no option to try this :-(. If you look at the above picture on picasa, you can see some people walking on the top middle ridge. I had been studying these to see if they were going only one way, because I couldn't imagine that the loop track would go away so far and return to the point 100m behind me. However, people were walking on it in both directions, so I concluded that it was another trail with a dead end and started back on the trail I had come.
Near the beginning of the track there were two turn-off to see some Arches. You can see these in the pictures on Picasa. When I got back to the start of the track I studied the map that was posted there carefully and started cursing myself a little...
Private arch was already 2/3 of the way on the primitive loop! A guy who I had met on the trail earlier was standing nearby and told me that the Devils garden part of the trail was the most incredible he had ever seen (that was the ridge in the above picture), adding to the pain... well, another lesson learned (Bring the frigging map!) and I guess I'll have to come back here some day and walk the proper loop.
Now with a little less haste as in the way coming into the park I drove the way back to the park entrance slowly to enjoy the views and get out wherever there were interesting formations. Some impressions below:
Delicate arch from a distance
I skipped on delicate arch because I didn't have time to do the full hike and also because it is 'the most photographed piece of geology on the planet'. You can see on the full-res picture on Picasa that there's about a 100 people standing around and under it. Actually I enjoyed the stunning rock cliffs in the bottom picture more than the arches: what great scenery to drive through!
The next destination would be Dinosaur National Monument, about 200 miles north of my current location, so way too far for the 1-2 hours driving time I had left in the day. Furthermore it was time to get my hair trimmed and my beard shaved and I was craving for some luxury... Checking the rates for Motels in Moab offered no solutions (everything was fully booked due to the 4WD event, and prices were $ 120+). However, in Grand Junction a motel went for about $ 30 and it was on the way to Dinosaur via the 128 scenic route along the Colorado river. I plugged the coordinates into the GPS unit and went off.
The drive through the Colorado canyon was once again stunning: very little traffic and great views of the river and the canyon.
Youtube: http://youtu.be/G6kSzvtzj6Q
Inside the canyon were some greatly situated Ranches... nice places to stay if you're ever in the area. When emerging out of the canyon it was broad views into the desert distance again. Here and there were chemical plants, or deserted towns.
A final piece of highway driving and then it was personal grooming time at the Motel in Grand Junction... and a nice relaxing sleep in a large bed in a heated room.... :-D.
A lot of driving and a visit to Dinosaur National Monument in the next post!
Day 25: Moab Arches
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