Into the fiery furnace (or at least very close)
Trip Start
Jul 05, 2008
1
23
34
Trip End
Sep 2008
Moab,
Utah,
United States
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Welcome to Utah
106 - WOW!!!
While the distance is not very far, when we got to Moab, the temperature had soared to 106F. Fortunately the RV park was nestled in a small bend of the Colorado and had mature trees around each site providing at least some shade and allowing the A/C to keep up. When the temperatures reach these levels, the A/C and refrigerator have a hard time keeping temperatures in their proper ranges. We got setup and then went into Arches National Park to get some pictures in afternoon light.
Wall Street
Arches is a very unique geological formation. Millions of years ago, the area became an inland sea several times and then evaporated. This laid down a layer cake of sediment and salt deposits. Some of the salt layers were several thousand feet thick. As the earth buckled and folded and raised this area, the sediment layers were literally turned on edge. Over time, the alternating layers of sediment and salt were exposed to the elements and the salt between the layers was washed away, leaving vertical fins of red sandstone. As these fins were exposed to erosion, openings were worn away, creating the arches. The whole area is fractured, eroded sandstone, of varying degrees of hardness. This creates myriad shapes and forms, including Balanced Rock, which looks artificial in its stance.
Balanced Rock
After going as far into the park as Fiery Furnace, we returned to home and dinner.
Fiery Furnace 3
