Arches National Park — Trail to Delicate Arch

The day we took this hike was a relatively cool autumn day. Snow had fallen the night before on some of the peaks east of our campground. Even so, we ran short of water by the time we got back to the truck, having only taken one bottle of water each. In the summer and hot days in other seasons, it is imperitive that hikers take adequate water. Every year, several people have to be rescued on park trails simply because they didn’t take enough water.

Hiking to the Arch

Delicate Arch is located at the end of a moderately strenuous, 1.5 mile (2.4 km) hiking trail from the parking area at Wolfe Ranch. Taking more than an hour each way, the round trip is slightly more than 3 miles long and the Arch is completely hidden from view on this trail.

The first third of the hike is through rugged, brushy terrain and gains slightly in elevation. The middle third of the hike is along the face of an exposed slickrock outcrop and is strenuous due to the gain in elevation, but offers better views of the geology in the salt valley. Cairns (piles of rocks) have been placed by visitors and park staff to roughly suggest the otherwise unmarked trail to the top, yet visitors tend to wander all over the huge expanse of completely exposed sandstone. The latter third of the trail is the most rugged, as hikers have now nearly reached the “top” of the plateau. The Arch is still invisible, and the trail runs around outcrops, through washes and between stands of twisted brush and trees. The trail may be easier to follow, but meanders as parts become muddy and difficult to walk through. During the 2004 fall season, the trail clearly followed the left (northern) side of the plateau, and brought visitors along a narrow shelf nearly 150 feet above a dry wash.

The arch comes into view suddenly around a corner in the trail and frames the La Sal Mountains to the southeast. The immediate area around the Arch offers views of the southern expanse of the park, and has unguarded cliffs plunging one hundred feet or more. (from Wikipedia)

Slickrock

So-called “slickrock” sandstone, which is a significant portion of the trail, is not slick at all, but has a surface much like sandpaper. The sandpaper texture is notorious for inflicting severe abrasion injuries. The name “slickrock” was given by early settlers of the area because their horses’ metal shoes had difficulty gaining traction on the rock’s sloping surfaces. Slickrock also becomes very slick when wet. (from Wikipedia, edited for use here)

More images of the trail are at my Haw Creek Out ‘n About blog, in a post called The Trail to Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah

Photo information
September 24, 2007 at 2.00pm CMT
Camera: Pentax K10D
Exposure: 0.004 sec (1/250)
Aperture: f/9.5
Focal Length: 55 mm
ISO Speed: 100