Up early (5:30 am) to beat the heat. I wanted to get inside the park and to Delicate Arch by 6:30 am. Ate a granola bar and drank plenty of water on the way there.

This is what part of the trail looks like on the hike up to Delicate Arch. The camera doesn’t do the drop-off  on the right justice. The trail is about 3 miles round trip, with of course the first part being very much an up hill slog.

Here is Delicate Arch in the morning light. There is a person standing on the bottom left to give you a perspective on the size. Apparently quite a few others had the same idea I did about getting up early…

Here is the crowd that beat me up to the arch. So much for originality, being the early bird and all that.

This is a view of the parking lot from about half way up the hike.

And the obligatory selfie.

This cabin was part of a homestead from the early 1800’s. This cabin was built in 1906.

Some of the original fencing still remains.

This is the entrance to Sandy Arch. It was surprisingly cool inside.

A narrow entrance, but the way it sits, there was a nice breeze the entire time.

Sandy Arch, aptly named. The kids in the photo were having a great time. There was a Ranger here who said I should go up above and take a look around. So I bouldered (sp) up a little higher to get a few shots of the area.

In case you are wondering, there is only a 10 second timer on my camera, so sometimes these shots can be challenging.

This is the area above Sandy Arch. Neat terrain and out of the sun.

There was a trail across the desert floor to Broken Arch, you can see it in the distance. Back out in the sun it was hot and I didn’t see anyone on the trail, so why not, off I went.

I didn’t see anyone coming or going, just the way I like it.

So when I finally made it to Broken Arch, I was the only one there. Sweet.

Perspective shot.

From the other side with the sun.

This guy was unafraid along the trail back. I tried to get a couple of lizards but they were too quick.

Lots of cactus along the way; this is where the reptiles were darting around but I couldn’t get any of them.

I can’t remember what this formation is called but I would call it precarious.

All in all, Arches NP is a must see if you are travelling to Utah. Of the places I visited, this was my favorite. Go early, drink lots of water and you won’t be disappointed. Next stop: Colorado.

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