Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Our Utah Adventure: Day Four and Five, Part 1: Sunrise and Sunset In Arches National Park

 This is a continuation of a travel series to Utah.  To start at the beginning, go  HERE.  The rest of the posts in chronological order are HERE,  HEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHEREHERE,HERE, and HERE!

After we left Bryce Canyon, we grabbed some lunch and headed to our final destination of our Utah Adventure:  Arches National Park.  It is a four and a half hour drive from Bryce to Arches.  Now, my husband and I had already been to Arches back in 2016, but we went again this time around so my son could see it and also so we could hit some trails we missed on our first visit.

We arrived in Moab late in the day and had very limited time before sunset.  We had told our son all about the Delicate Arch Trail (the best trail in the park in my opinion, but also one of the most difficult).  My husband and I hiked that trail the first time we visited (you can read about it HERE).  To this day, I put that trail in my top three of most difficult hiking trails (I did hike it during the heat of the day, which is NOT recommended) but oh, so worth it!  After days of hiking, my son wasn't interested in hiking another long, arduous trail, and frankly, hubby and I were pretty pooped out ourselves, so we decided to take the "Cheater's Trail" so our son could at least see the arch from the distance.  It in no way is as great an experience as hiking the trail and getting right up to the arch, but it was still a neat experience because you get to see it from another perspective.  You really realize how HUGE this arch is when you see it from a distance.  Look at the pictures below, can you see the people standing to the left of the arch?  Like I said, it's all about perspective!


This trail has two viewpoints:  a lower and an upper.  The lower viewpoint is wheelchair accessible as is a 100 yd easy walk.  The upper viewpoint is 0.5 miles and is moderately difficult, rocky uphill route.  

If you ever visit Utah and go to Arches National Park, this is the arch that is not to be missed!  So if you don't want to walk a strenuous three mile trail to see the arch, at least take in one of the other "Cheater trails".  This arch is the one featured on Utah billboards and license plates.  It's a must see!


After we saw the Delicate Arch, we took our son to another spot in the park we thought he'd find interesting for it was featured in the movie "Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade".  It is called "Double Arch".  I also did a post on this arch back in 2016 HERE.


This is such a great arch.  It's so fun to climb right into it.  It may not look like it in the photos but this arch is huge and it is quite the climb to get up to the first window.  To get up to the base of the arch itself is very easy.  It's only a 0.5 mile hike (round trip) from the parking lot on a easy, hard-packed trail.


I climbed up this baby the first time I visited (although not as high as my hubby did), but this time I held back and let my husband and son have all the fun while I took pictures.


By the time my son was done exploring the double arch, the sun was setting fast, so we knew we had to get going.  I did get some spectacular sun set pictures though!





The next morning we woke up before dawn so we could watch the sunrise in the park.  I can't recommend enough visiting these parks early in the morning or late at night.  First of all, there are hardly any other people, so you can always find a parking spot.  Second, you will always get amazing pictures because there aren't a lot of tourists in your frame, and the lighting is spectacular!  And thirdly, the day time temperatures are harsh in Utah.  It is so much more comfortable hiking in the coolest part of the day.

The picture below shows the famous "Balanced Rock" as the sun rises and hits it.  If you want to read more about this easy trail, check out THIS POST from 2016.  You will also see a big difference in the photography as those pictures were taken during the heat of the day.


After viewing the Balanced Rock, we then headed to show our son "Windows Trail".  I also wrote about this trail in 2016 HERE,


"Windows Trail" is an easy 1 mile round trip trail to North Window, South Window, and the Turret Arch.  I believe the photo below is the Turret Arch.  It is opposite of the Window arches.  My son is standing with his arms outstretched in front of it.  Can you see him?



It was such an amazing experience to sit underneath this arch and watch the sun rise.  The beauty was unbelievable.









Hubby walked around both sides of the arch (no easy feat) to get these stunning photographs.  On one side he captured our shadows, and on the other side (next picture), he captured the arch and us all lit up by the sun.






This picture shows the North and South Windows together.


After showing our son all the highlights of our first visit to Arches in 2016 we were off to explore some of the arches we missed the first time!  And wow!  Were we glad we did, because we sure found some beauties, but more on that next week.

Have A Great Day!  Amy

Linking Up with these Fabulous Blogs HERE!


28 comments:

  1. Utah was already on my list of places to travel, but your photos make me want to move it up a notch or two! Beautiful!

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  2. Beautiful sunset and sunrise photos.

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  3. Awesome pics, looks like a lot of walking! I pinned this! Thanks so much for linking up with me at my #UnlimitedMonthlyLinkParty 8, this party will be open until January 26.

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    1. Thanks Dee! Yep, we walked a lot on this trip. I should have worn a pedometer, it would have been fascinating to see how many steps we took.

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  4. I never tire of seeing the arches, yet in all my years living in Utah, I never made it there.
    Thank you for sharing on #ohmyheartsiegirl be sure to stop by next week to keep us updated!
    Have a great week!

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  5. More spectacular scenery Amy - you're going to have so many lifelong memories from your trip.
    Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I've shared on my SM 😊

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  6. Wow, such amazing photos! It's hard to imagine the size of the rock formations in an image, and seeing how small you looked in some of them was incredible. Thanks so sharing your experience (and all those steps!) with us. #MLSTL

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  7. These pictures are absolutely amazing, Amy. You went to so many great places on this trip and honestly I cannot even pick a favorite park you visited. They all have something so unique!
    Please do tell in a future post which one of the parks was your favorite and which trail was your favorite (if you can choose :)

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    1. Thanks Ellie! That’s a great idea! I’ll be sure to do that.

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  8. WOW! Incredible photos! The rock formations are awesome!

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  9. Absolutely stunning photography! This area is just amazing to me. As much as I love the desert and arches, I've never visited this area. Someday!!

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    1. Thank you. It never ceases to amaze me as well.

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  10. I need to add Arches National Park to my bucket list! There are so many amazing rock formations! Your photos are stunning!

    Jill - Doused in Pink

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  11. What a beautiful arch and I love the silhouette/dusk photos!

    Carrie
    curlycraftymom.com

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  12. Wow! No other eords! Wow, and I should plan a trip there once my youngest is older!
    www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com

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  13. This is God's handiwork and you have captured it beautifully on camera! Would be a dream to go there sometime, in the meantime, I can enjoy your magnificent photos!

    ❤️carmen

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    1. Yes, it’s definitely God’s handiwork! I hope you can visit it sometime.

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  14. What a magical part of the world! I love the textures and shapes so much, so thanks for sharing your awesome photos :)

    It's delightful to see you at 'My Corner of the World' this week!

    My Corner of the World

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    1. Thanks Betty! There’s is so much interest in a desert landscape, isn’t there?

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