On my way back to California from my storm chase trip, I decided to take a slightly longer route. Instead of heading up to Nebraska and catching I-80, I went west through KS and Colorado on I-70. The goal here was to visit Arches NP, in eastern Utah. I had been there a couple of times, but my last visit was in April of 2005, so it had been a while.
Garden of Eden, Arches NP
I arrived at the park around 5 p.m., heading up the serpentine entrance road onto the plateau. For those that have not been to Arches, the entrance road leaves US 191 at the bottom of a canyon, then climbs the sandstone canyon wall for a little bit before topping out on a large, elevated plateau of red rock.
Since I had limited time, I only stopped at the better-known viewpoints to take pictures. One of my favorite spots is one that most visitors overlook. It is called the Garden of Eden, and it is a group of whimsically-shaped rocks along the Windows road. I stopped here in April 2005 and snapped a photo that has always been one of my favorites. As was the case in 2005, the wind was howling during this trip, and it made photography a bit on the tough side.
After spending some time in Eden, I found some more interesting compositions near the Windows parking lot. I then headed back to the main park road and drove to the Devil’s Garden area, which is at the end of the main road. From this trailhead, you can hike for a few miles amongst the rock fins and sculptures of the Devil’s Garden. The park campground is also in this area (where my car broke down during my visit in July 2004).
After getting my Arches fix, I headed to Green River, UT and found a hotel room for the night. A visit to Goblin Valley State Park was planned for the next morning, which will be covered in another blog post after I get the film developed.
