April 14, 2010: Arches National Park

I forgot a few things in my previous blog entries...

Although I have driven 75 mph in states where it is allowed on previous trips, I learned that this particular car does not like it. It went through gas like crazy. Driving at 70 seems to be okay, but definitely not 75. There are quite a few states on the return trip that allow 75 mph on the interstates.

In Colorado, they have electronic warning signs about wildlife. They actually detect when something big is near the road and alert drivers that they have been detected. The sign warned me and I saw a small group of antelope feeding. One of them looked up and locked his gaze on my car. I kept hoping he would just stay down and keep on eating at least until I went by. Thankfully, he did.

Back to Wednesday, April 14th. I started out in Durango, Colorado. My goal for the day was to visit Arches National Park in southeast Utah. It was over three hours from my hotel. Yes, there had been some Choice hotels only two hours from the park, but I was too exhausted from the Santa Fe activities to drive the extra hour the previous night. Plus, I definitely did not want to drive to far into the night in such a rural part of Colorado. I didn't want a collision with some huge animal. Colorado actually had moose warning signs.

Durango is a nice historic city. I wish I had had time to see it. I did try to go through the downtown historic district, but it was under such construction and I couldn't get around. So, I got to at least see the architecture a bit and then got back on the road to Arches. Gas in Colorado was at $2.93/gallon for 86 octane. So, I had to pay over $3/gallon for 88.

The GPS took me on a number of rural roads. Cell phone service was spotty at best and when trying to make calls, I was frequently disconnected after three minutes or so. There were many patches with snow on the ground (not on the road, thankfully) and many snow-capped mountains fairly close to the road.


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After going through mountainous areas, I suddenly got into totally flat areas. Montana is like this too. It can go from badlands in the east to suddenly flat land for a while, and then more mountains going further west.

Of course, with flat land, there were a number of farms. At one point, of all things I actually saw a camel in someone's yard. I never expected to see one of those in Colorado.

As I drove further, there was a beautiful mountain range in the distance. I took several photos of it. Before I knew it, I was in Utah, and still hadn't passed the mountain range. So, I was looking at a mountain range for miles in Colorado that was in a different state.

Gas in Utah was well over $3/gallon. There was still the 86 octane issue, so I had to pay around $3.24/gallon for 88.

As I got closer to the park and to Moab, UT (the tourist city near the park), the scenery became spectacular with red rock formations. I of course had to stop several times along the road to take pictures.

Moab is one giant tourist trap. There are all sorts of souvenir shops, overpriced hotels, gas stations, restaurants, etc. I could not justify the costs of the hotels there and I couldn't justify the amount of points required for one night, so I had a hotel about 50 miles west of Arches NP.

I purchased an annual National Parks Pass when I entered Arches NP. The cost of an annual pass is $80, but it's well worth it if you plan to see a number of parks in the west. Parks like Yellowstone (Wyoming), Glacier (Montana), Zion (Utah), and Bryce Canyon (Utah) all cost $25 apiece to enter. Arches and the nearby Canyonlands cost $10 each to enter. But having the pass allows entrance to most national parks without havint to pay the entry fee. I will definitely get a value of more than $80 in national park visits before this trip is over.

Arches National Park has some great displays of red rocks along the main loop road. It's not a huge park (compared to others in the West), but it could take more than a day to see. I had less than a day to see it.

Competing with the interesting rock formations were the interesting people I encountered. First, there was the guy from the Czech Republic. He asked me to take his picture using a basic digital camera. I can take decent pictures of still objects (rocks, plants, etc.). But I can't do well with people or animals. On top of that, I prefer a camera where very little is automated and the camera operator can control almost everything. Thus I don't do well with basic digital cameras. So, we had to do three retakes. The guy kept standing in the middle of the main road to pose for the pictures, despite the fact that I advised him that was not such a good idea. The speed limit was 55. On the third take, he finally just said he liked it and moved on.

We happened to both be at another viewing area at the same time. I offered to take his picture again and did a better job on the first try. We talked for a bit. He explained that he was visiting from the Czech Republic and had seen Washington, DC, New York City, Wyoming, Florida, and now Utah. He was very interested in history and political science. Though he didn't like big cities, he had to see DC for the historical areas. I explained my interests and where I had been on the current trip, etc. Then I really dated myself. In the early 90s, before the Internet was available to average people, I had snail mail pen pals all over the world, including one from the Czech Republic. To someone at least ten years younger than me, the concept of "before the Internet" probably was meaningless. He seemed bored and annoyed to hear what I had to say (after I had listened to him) and wanted to just get out of there.

At Balanced Rock, a man was walking around in a kilt. Then he brought out bagpipes and started playing them. While it was interesting listening, somehow the bagpipes did not fit the environment of canyons, red rocks, and landscapes that would be seen in a western movie.

As I drove further, I found a sign indicating a side road for Delicate Arch. This is the most famous arch in the world, and is used as a symbol on Utah license plates. It's sometimes called "Cowboy Chaps." There were two hiking paths for it. I took both. The first one I took just allowed people to get a closer look, but not actually go anywhere near the arch. This was at least a half mile, though it was fairly easy.

The second trail was 1.5 miles long, each way. It was strenuous and not well marked. I continued to get lost, as did other people. I did not even realize I was lost until others started to recognize they were going the wrong way. I suspect I walked at least a half mile off the trail.

The most ridiculous part of this is that I forgot to bring water with me. I had purchased a 2 litre bottle specifically to hike in Arches National Park and I left it in the car.

When I finally got close to the Delicate Arch area, I was exhausted. The final part of the path was fairly narrow and there is a long (and deadly) drop if you lose your balance. In some parts, two people could not be side by side. Once I got up to the arch area, it was much wider, but as the surface was slightly inclined, it was still possible for one to lose their balance and fall to their death. Being so exhausted and not having had any water, I was not my best, and that made me quite nervous about possibly losing my balance.

Although this is called "Delicate Arch," it's hardly delicate. There are no signs or barricades preventing people from going right up to the arch. Some people stood under it to have their picture taken. I went up to it and took pictures from the sides and below the arch. If you walk through to the other side, there is not a lot room to go before a steep fall.

After spending quite a bit of time in the Delicate Arch area, I finally decided to head back to the car...and get some water. Since the trail was mostly uphill, going back was a lot easier --- and I did not get lost.

I drove the rest of the main road of Arches NP. I saw a couple of other arches, but many of the others (Arches NP has around 2,000 natural arches) are only available on hiking trails. I was far too exhausted and it was getting far too late to do any further hikes. Also, I think hikes are best if there are at least two people together. It's safer and certainly less boring. I have to go back to Arches NP someday with someone.

It was about an hour to my hotel from Arches NP. The hotel was located in Green River, UT. My original plan was to stay there and head back east to the Moab area to see Canyonlands on Thursday. Then I would have to head west again to get t0 the Las Vegas area for the next hotel.


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When I arrived at Green River, I had not had any dinner and after walking so much, I was hungry. It was just after 9pm. They had full restaurants but I did not feel like waiting. About three miles from the hotel was an Arby's. I normally stick with Subway and Quiznos, but it was either Arby's or the restaurant.