| That thing that looks like a rock
balanced on another rock is called Balanced Rock. That's a bit on
the nose. I am going to write what was on a sign that is more
complicated it should be. The caprock of the hard Slick Rock Member of the Entrada Sandstone is perched upon a pedestal of mudstone. This softer Dewey Bridge Member of the Carmel Formation weathers more quickly than the resistant rock above. Eventually, the faster-eroding Dewey Bridge will cause the collapse of the Balanced Rock. That could have just been "The bottom part is made of softer rock than the top part and will erode to the point that the top part falls off." |
 |
| Finally, an arch! This is Delicate Arch. There is a short trail to view the arch, a lot of it uphill. Because of the sun and heat, I avoided long trails. That meant there were some I did not see. |
 |
| The map says that you can see much from a car. |
 |
| But mostly you need to take a hike of some length to see most stuff. |
 |
| Like the short trail heading into these rocks to see... |
 |
| Sand Dune Arch. |
 |
| Or this much longer trail to... |
 |
| Broken Arch. It's not really broken, at least as far as I could tell. |
 |
| The trail actually goes through the arch. |
 |
| Here's some stuff along the trail, like cacti, |
 |
| wildflowers, |
 |
| and a hole that some animal probably lives in. |
 |
| In 1940, a dramatic geologic change occurred here when a large boulder fell out of Skyline Arch, doubling the size of the opening. |
 |
| Tunnel Arch looks more like a hole in the wall. |
 |
| Pine Tree Arch. |
 |
| There are more arches, some famous, farther along this trail. It is almost eight mile long though. I was not about to hike that one at this point. Maybe if it were cooler weather and if I were better prepared. |
 |
| I try to match my picture against ones I find online to see if I can find a name for this stuff based on where I think I took it. I came up empty, so we'll just call these Big Rocks. |
 |
| North Window. |
 |
| This is the last of the rocks, well at least for today. There are more rocks to come tomorrow. |
 |
| Dinner at the Moab Diner. Just a good burger and fries. |
 |