Arches and Canyonlands National Parks in Utah
(Click on any picture to see the full-size image.)

Arches National Park is located in southeastern Utah. The park is marked by its tremendous collections of natural land bridges and arches, hollowed out of the sandstone over time by wind and water erosion. For more information about the park, visit the Arches NP web site at http://www.nps.gov/arch/. There is one drive-in campground at Arches National Park, out near the Devil's Garden Trailhead. Here are some pictures of our small Walrus tent. Just a tip to anybody interested in camping at Arches in the summer months: don't put your sleeping bag and camp mats out until after dark. We put ours out around 2pm and they didn't cool off until around 4-5am the next morning, making sleeping very uncomfortable and difficult!
Wide-angle view of Hanna at our camp site. The picture was taken from near our car, next to the camp site picnic table. Note that there are no designated camping areas. The sand is very, very fine and gets into everything!	A zoom-in similar to the previous shot. The sign in the background simply says that no camping is allowed outside the perimeter it establishes.
Yet another shot of our camp site. I don't know why it was so fascinating to me. It just was. You can see the picnic table, grill, and our car. Very baren area. Definitely did not use the grill - too hot!	Maybe I was fascinated by the surrounding rock formations. I don't really remember anymore. Nonetheless, I still felt compelled to make you look at all these camp site pictures! Haha!
The Delicate Arch is perhaps Arches NP's most famous arch. This arch was featured on the 2002 National Parks Pass as well as on new license plates in Utah. Several pictures surrounding the 2002 Winter Olympics also featured the arch. Though we didn't stay later, we were told that the best time of day for colorful pictures is around sunset. Pop Quiz: Do you see the person in the middle of the arch? Can you tell who it is? It's Hanna! If she's approximately 5'6" tall, then how tall is the arch?
Another view of Delicate Arch. Note the bowl in the foreground and off to the right, formed by natural erosion. Yes, there is some guy down a the base of the arch, and no, he's not with us.	This picture is taken from under Delicate Arch. You can sort of make out the shape of the arch in the shadow.
Hiya cutie!	So, as you're walking the trail up to Delicate Arch, there's a stone wall. In the wall is a hole. We scampered up to the hole and another guy on the trail took our picture. Through the hole, in the background, is Delicate Arch.
Hiya cutie!	This photo struck me for a couple reasons. In the foreground is the description sign for Fiery Furnace. The sky is a deep, deep blue. And, embedded in that blue sky is the moon. Kind of neat, eh? See directly below for a picture of the Fiery Furnace canyons.
Skyline Arch was an easy hike from the parking area. It's not completely clear, but there is a rock formation in front of the arch, angling up from left to right. I climbed most of the way up that formation on the back side and had a nice view. Hanna was very nervous. I was so hot, I almost passed out a couple times while climbing. Hot rocks!	A shot of the canyons that mark the start of the Fiery Furnace trail. Because there are so many canyons, trail hikes are only allowed with paid professional guides.
Along the Devil's Garden trail, a picture of the Wall Arch.
Hanna's enjoying the hike along the Devil's Garden trail. You see the trail, don't you? The culmination of this hike was so remarkable that I didn't take any pictures. ?!? I could have sworn I took a bunch of pictures on this hike, but I can't find them, and there don't appear to be any gaps in my index numbers.	We did not have much time to visit Canyonlands National Park, and in fact concluded later that we probably should have spent more time exploring. However, having already been on the road for nearly 2 weeks, it was time to go home. You can find more information about Canyonlands NP at http://www.nps.gov/cany/. This photo shows one of the many offroad/4x4 trails that people frequent.
A wider shot of the previously-mentioned offroad trail. The canyon is much bigger and deeper than it seems in this picture.	A different view of Canyonlands. The park seems endless from this northern perspective. There are other entrances to the park that are associated with much more interesting terrain.