This past weekend I went to my favoritest place in the entire world.
Arches National Park.
Ah. I can't get enough of the red sandstone arches that dot the land there.
The red rocks are a much needed energy boost to me.
I can't get enough of the place,
And I'm always left wishing I had stayed longer when I have to return home to CollegeTown.
This trip in particular though.
Had a certain ferver to it.
As a couple months earlier (I may have even blogged about it)
I discovered that one of the Arches I'd been trying to find/visit in the park for the past two or three excursions....
Ah!!!!!
And I couldn't stand the thought that it could be collapsed right now and no one would know!! :S
I mean, since it's not on the main trails, people don't go see it much... I mean they only have a general idea of when it fell. Sometime between April 2014 and Oct 2014
Which meant, I HAD to go see it before it fully collapsed (if it hadn't already)
Which left me....very ansy to go see this Arch.
I mean, it had been two years since this partial collapse! It could collapse at any second!!
It was my number one priority in a trip already filled with tons of priorities.
The Arch in Question?
Ring Arch.
And you can see it from the main road...with binoculars.
It's very tiny in the distance.
And difficult to get to...since there is no official trail there.
The main directions are "Follow the wash."
Which looking on maps didn't seem that difficult.
Of course.
Maps, especially the google earth kind that are seen from directly above....
Do a horrible job of conveying the kind of terrain that I'd be hiking through.
I mean, it looks like flat ground for the most part.
But that 'flat' ground could be deep gullies, high cliffs, who knew?
Still...
I'd driven past the area enough to think it wouldn't be that hard to reach.
Just follow the wash right?
So.
The first day down, like literally we (my family and friends who'd joined us) had basically arrived at our hotel room, dropped our luggage and headed into the park to go see Ring Arch.
I. was. Not. waiting. Another. Day!!!
My friends and family were all too willing to join me on my adventure.
I mean! New ARCH!! Never before seen!!
ha....
ha...
ha.
Note to self: When bringing greenies (people who'd never been to the park before) on trips down to Arches....Do. Not. Take. Them. Off. Trail. Especially when you'd never been to the feature before.
As the journey....
Ended up being more difficult than anticipated.
Isn't that how it always goes?
Since we came in the spring time, after some recent rain storms.
The wash was pretty muddy where it didn't have water in it.
And it was GREEN.
Like huge cottonwood trees towering above us.
Lots of thick grasses.
Lots of green bushes....
Basically....the wash was hardly the wash that I'd come to expect from hiking elsewhere in Arches.
I mean I knew there were trees, but I didn't expect it to be so green underneath.
Which meant a lot of bushwacking through the wash to try and find a good route to get us over to the Arch.
We had to slide down into gullies.
Climb back up....
And my poor friends....had worn kapris and shorts.....
Meaning that by the time we got out of the wash....
They were pretty cut up. As there were thorn bushes and pointy bushes among those greens as well. :(
oops.
Though, how was I supposed to know?
Like I said, never take people on a hike you've never been to before.... lol.
But oh!
Was it worth it!!
To see Ring Arch.
To see it STILL STANDING!!
But wow.
Is it thin.
Super thin.
Like I'm surprised it hadn't already fallen thin.
It can't be more than 6 inches to a foot thick in some areas.
But so gorgeous with a great view from underneath it.
I'm glad I got to see it. ^^
Until you next see these words;
I'll be watching the leaves.
Enjoy the day!
-Sarnic Dirchi
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