Last night's foray into astrophotography wiped us out, and our plans to shoot sunrise in the Windows section of Arches were quickly forgotten. We finally rolled out of bed about 10:00. By that time the light was dead, so there was no point in trying to photograph. Instead, we just hung around camp and relaxed. We've been coming to this campground since the early 90's. The cottonwoods that were scraggly saplings when we first starting coming here are now 30 feet tall and providing welcome shade. Today, it's in the mid-90's, but in the shade of the cottonwoods, we don't even need air conditioning. Enjoying such a relaxing day makes it feel like a weekend camping trip instead of a major vacation.
At 4:00, we drove back up to Arches to shoot our favorite golden light places. We started with Park Avenue, which is always a favorite. Queen Nefertiti and Queen Victoria watch over Park Avenue from the ridge above.
We drove toward the Windows section, and started a "movement" as other cars stopped to shoot "our" sunset
light on the formations in the distance. From there, it was a
quick dash to Delicate Arch Viewpoint.
We made it with about
20 minutes to spare before sunset. We normally do the 3-mile
hike up to Delicate Arch to shoot the classic image of Delicate
Arch in front of the La Sal Mountains. This year, we were looking
up at the crowds at Delicate Arch from the valley below. It was
like a circus with people everywhere trying to photograph Delicate
Arch. I'm sure it was that crowded on previous trips when we
had hiked out to Delicate Arch, but we had always gotten there
very early to grab our favorite spots on the ridge. The view
looking up at all these people was a bit comical.
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