On Wednesday, we took a short drive from our campground in Moab to Arches National Park, where we reserved timed entry passes for 9 a.m.
Upon arrival, we got our park maps and immediately drove all the way up the scenic road from the Visitor Center to the north end of the park, where we parked at Devil's Garden Trailhead and took a hike to Landscape Arch. Along the hike, we saw beautiful scenery and other arches.
 |
| Skyline Arch |
 |
| Landscape Arch |
 |
| Landscape Arch is the largest arch on the planet, spanning 290.1 feet |
On the hike back to the car, we detoured to see Tunnel Arch and the kids found a shady spot to climb around.
 |
| Tunnel Arch |
 |
| Pine Tree Arch |
 |
| The group in front of Pine Tree Arch |
 |
| Our family and Pine Tree Arch |
 |
| Pine Tree Arch from below |
We ate our picnic lunches in the Devil's Garden Area, and then went a little south along the road to check out Sand Dune Arch, which was recommended for kids by one of the rangers. It was a little hike and Audrey was not too keen on it, but the ranger nailed it and they loved it once we got there!
 |
| Hiking into a canyon where Sand Dune Arch is located |
 |
| Sand Dune Arch! |
 |
| Noah & Audrey under Sand Dune Arch |
 |
| The group watching the kids :) |
 |
| These kids never run out of energy... no matter how hard I try. |
 |
| Broken Arch from a distance |
After that fun adventure, we continued south and then turned off toward Wolfe Ranch and the Upper and Lower Delicate Arch viewpoints.
 |
| There it is... the famous delicate arch. We didn't hike the trail to it, so this is the closest we got! |
Just a little further south along the scenic drive, we turned off again to see the famous Windows Section. At this point in the afternoon, the parking was packed and we were hot and tired, so we saw this section from our cars.
 |
| Turret Arch |
 |
| "Parade of Elephants" |
 |
| Double Arch |
 |
| Parade of Elephants |
 |
"Garden of Eden"
|
One of my favorite features at Arches National Park is Balanced Rock.
It's hard to tell in the photos, but it stands an astonishing 128 ft. tall. While it looks like a tall boulder balanced on a pedestal, it's actually attached and the lower layer of mudstone is eroding over time.
 |
| That balanced rock is not going anywhere today. Not on Papa's watch. |
The kids completed their junior ranger requirements and we returned to the Visitor Center to receive their badges (and spend money at the gift shop, of course).
After leaving Arches, we wanted to return to Canyonlands Island in the Sky and the Visitor Center, since we had only seen Canyonlands from the 4x4 tour down into the canyon.
Canyonlands National Park from the Island in the Sky Visitor Center
We drove down to the Grand View Point Overlook...
...and on the way back, I talked Chris, Mom, Dad and Noah into hiking with me 1/2 a mile to Mesa Arch. This might have been my favorite arch all day!
This was such a fun day! We ended up back in Moab at the BEST place for dinner, Pasta Jay's!
No comments:
Post a Comment