Day 10 - Arches NP
Trip Start
Jun 26, 2005
1
11
51
Trip End
Aug 14, 2005
Escalante SP, Utah, United States
Wednesday, July 6, 2005
Several of the study tour members woke up early today, scrambled up a nearby rock formation to catch the picturesque sunrise at Arches NP. Then, at 8:00, pancakes were served for breakfast by our fantastic cooking crew.
After some start up problems with Bus 004, we departed for our hike within Arches. Our hike consisted of different trails leading to many of the famous Arches existing inside the park. Before we left however we read about staying on the trail so that we would not disturb the cryptobiotic soil all around the desert. This is soil that contains bacteria and algae along with minerals and nutrients. It looks just like regular sand and dirt! All over we saw "Don't crush the crust!" One footfall would cause hundreds of years of damage. So staying on the trails, we came across Wall Arch, a somewhat hidden arch considering it was parallel to our trail. A few people didn't even realize it was right next to them and had to look back to see it. Then, we encountered the famous Landscape Arch. This arch, in 1991, partially collapsed, making it very thin and unstable. Therefore, the trail was re-routed as to not go underneath the arch, but just next to it. Once we climbed up and over some rocky terrain, we saw the Double O Arch. Aptly named, this was a double arch, one on top of the other. Many members of our group climbed into the lower arch for a break from the hot sun encountered on our hike. On the way back, we hiked another trail to the Navajo Arch, a ground level arch of smaller stature. After seeing all of the arches on our trail, we headed back to the buses and also for the water fountain in the parking lot.
Before leaving Arches NP, we stopped into the Visitor's Center. Many stamped their National Parks Passports and bought souvenirs, while enjoying the air conditioning. Once we were all on to the bus, we headed for Escalante Petrified Forest State Park, our campsite for the night.
Our drive was an interesting one. It was very scenic with sweeping views from the road in the mountains, overlooking parts of Utah. We encountered some cows on the side of the road, grazing and relaxing.
Our day of delicious meals was not over as the cooking crew, upon our arrival to Escalante SP, prepared a tasty Italian meal of Farfalle pasta in Pesto sauce with chicken. After enjoying our fabulous meal and evening prayer, Bro. Nigel, on behalf of the USA Study Tour moderators, awarded somewhat belatedly Week One MVPs, Most Valuable Participants, prizes (key chain lights) to the two most deserving students, Steve LaMonte and Chris Smith. They exhibited the best qualities of a Study tour member: helpful, generous, and always there when needed.
Journal Crew
Link to today's photos
