Yoo 606 - Arches 2

We woke up super dark and early after our night in Arches. The plan was to hike to a sunrise at Delicate Arch and it was executed brilliantly. We were the first car at the trail head and had made most of the climb before we even saw any other headlights approaching. The morning was crisp and cool but we warmed up pretty fast. I personally love hiking in the dark because I feel like it's easier to focus. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

There's no getting discouraged when you look up and see how far you still have to climb.

We laughed and joked and huffed along, arriving just as light was beginning to seep thru the horizon. Delicate Arch was entirely ours and did not disappoint.

We stayed until the arch was golden and our exclusive access was revoked by arriving hikers. It was so cool to have that landmark to ourselves for a while. Such a stunning place to spend any amount of time! Then we trekked back to the car, fully aware of our surroundings this time...

Typical situation hiking with dad. He's as close to the wall as possible while we like to see over the edge.

^^ pat on the back ^^

There were a bunch of shorter hikes to see other arches on our way back to breakfast.

 ^^ morgan was hiking in shorts. meanwhile, i was sporting my mid-weight thermals, sweat pants, a down vest, a fleece jacket, and mittens...not ready to take any of it off. texas has left me without even a hint of cold tolerance. ^^

^^ i'm surprised runner's world hasn't noticed me yet ^^

^^ fake egg burritos and protein shakes and oatmeal ^^

Not long after the sun had taken claim on the sky, we were done packing up camp and starting our second hike of the day: Devil's Garden.

Spoiler alert, there were more arches.

 

The sandstone fin. It was more exposed than it looks in the picture but still not as exposed as it felt actually being up there. Then the wind was hitting like a hurricane when in all actuality it might have been 2 mph "gusts". Nevertheless plenty of colorful comments escaped my mouth while crossing.

^^ i wore the wool mid-calf socks all morning because i so selflessly gave my low-cut socks to morgan, who had none. not that the low-cut socks would have saved my outfit...but i was a really nice sister that day. ^^

 ^^ more sandstone fins ^^

This group of older hikers let us pass them right when we were getting really tired. It was bad timing because suddenly we felt like we had something to prove. Don't let the old hikers pass us! No rest for the weary.

^^ more fin crossing ^^

 ^^ not there yet. we'd hiked at least 12 miles and it wasn't even lunch time! ^^

Devil's Garden was gorgeous and fun but we were so ready to find the car the last couple miles. Every few minutes we'd run into another group of hikers starting out in reverse and it hurt to think about how far they had to go. Once we finally made it to the car, it was a smorgasbord of bagels loaded with peanut butter and creamed honey, string cheese, protein bars, and anything and everything. So hungry!

After a sufficient period of gluttony and sprawled-around-the-car rest, we set off on a road trip to Capitol Reef. On our way out we realized that we'd missed one arch in the whole park so now I officially have to go back at some point. Not a problem though, I now love Arches.

Have a great day :-)