Arches National Park (In Progress)

Highlights

Slideshow

This trip focused on just a few locations in Arches National Park, namely the Delicate Arch at sunset, and the Window area at sunset and sunrise. A primary intent of the trip was to capture the full moon inside the Delicate Arch, but the lack of research made this a bust - something to learn (see below in the trip journal). On the other hand, opportunities arose to photograph the arches in moonlit sky and artificial lighting conditions.

Some photos are included in the slideshow to the right, with more to be added later.

Trip Journal

Delicate Arch: I timed the arrival at the park a day before full-moon with the intent of capturing the Delicate Arch framing full moon in the middle, inspired by a photo seen in a magazine. After capturing some decent sunset photos, I found the moon behind my back from the vantage point I was hoping to photograph the arch. Disappointed with my lack of research, I wandered around looking for other angles, including silhouettes of the arch. Just by the time I accepted defeat as night fell and about to head down, I spoke with a couple of guys (Tom and Ted as I learned the next day) who lingered on, I learned that they were waiting for total darkness to photograph the arch in artificial light. They graciously let me tag along for the experiment. I wound up with a few images of the Delicate Arch lit by spotlight. Here is the slideshow of Delicate Arch.

Scouting The Windows Section: Having learned the mistake from the previous night of inadequate research, I spent an afternoon looking for the position to frame Turret Arch inside the North Window. By doing so, I also found additional photo opportunities along the trail, especially the primitive trail leading back to the parking area.

Turret Arch: This arch received the most emphasis during this trip, also inspired by photographs of the arch being framed inside North Window. I found various angles to photograph the arch from backlit afternoon sun to sunset, moonlit, spotlight, and sunrise. Here is the slideshow of Turret Arch.

Rock climbers at Garden of Eden: On the way to The Windows Section, I spotted rock climbers at the Garden of Eden. This seems to be a spot where rock climbers typically gather, potentially for training since the rocks are not particularly high.

Around Courthouse Tower Section: Park Avenue, Courthouse Wash

Photos from previous trips:

Getting There

Getting to this park is simple - it's right on Highway 191, just a few miles North of Moab. However, it's important to allocate time for travel inside the park to get to specific photo destinations, given distance and speed limits, and parking. There are no restaurants in the park that I know of, thus allocating time for getting food during the day should also be factored in.

Additional Considerations

Delicate Arch Trail: The trail is rated as strenuous for good reason since it involves a steady climb of almost 500 ft over 1.5 miles distance. It would be prudent to allocate ample time for the ascend. Even better, scout ahead to time duration of ascend, descend, optimal photo spot and potential hazards. Bring water. Bring headlamp or flashlight with extra batteries. Bring extra clothing.

Spotlight for photography: Appreciating the experience of using spotlight at night for photography, I drove out of the park to get a battery-powered spotlight and found one at True Value. As I learned, my spot light was not particularly powerful, and too narrowly focused. As of this writing, I'm researching for a good spot light that can be taken along hikes.

Camping/Lodging: Due to late planning, all hotels in Moab that I checked were full. The park's campground at Devils Garden was also full. I finally found a primitive camping site on Highway 128, about 15 minutes from the park entrance. There are some 6 campgrounds along Colorado River, with the ones near the park naturally filled up early. However, I was able to find a camping spot by driving further. These campgrounds are primitive, without drinking water, electricity or flush toilets. There are some vault toilets and even open-air pit toilets which I mistook for fenced trash containers - a good idea I think!

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