Like seven inches from the midday sun

We spent most of today at Arches national park. We should have known that we would have an interesting day when we heard from several people that summer is definitely the "slow" time around here in Moab. After spending the day at Arches, we can tell you that it is "slow" because 95% of people spontaneously combust upon stepping outside or attempting to go hiking. The sun makes people explode, and they turn into hot boiling puddles of their former selves. Ok, that's kind of a gross mental picture, but you get the idea. It's really, really HOT. The hikes in the park involve mostly rock and sand, with no trees and no shade. We survived, though, and we're back at our camp.

Here are some pictures from the day:
This is landscape arch, which is the longest arch in the park. It spans over 100 yards, and you can no longer hike under it because a big, 60 foot chunk fell off of it 20 years ago and they're not exactly sure how stable it is.

This is called the "fiery furnace". They say it is called that because the red rocks look like the flames of a furnace in the evening sun, but we know it's called that because it is about a bagillion degrees inside. This is basically a big, hot series of canyons. You need a special permit to hike in here, or you need to go with a park ranger. We were satisfied today just looking at it from an observation point.

This is a pair or arches called the Windows. These are much larger in person:

This is a pair of arches called double arch. You can just make out the tiny people underneath the arch.

We climbed up underneath the arch for some shade and relaxation:

This is a formation called the Three Gossips, I suppose because it looks like three people huddled together, gossiping.
In the late afternoon, when it was a bit cooler and there were more clouds, we hiked up the trail to see the most famous arch in the park: The Delicate Arch. This is the one you always see in photos depicting Arches NP. It was ridiculously hot, and Robbie kept having to pour water on Jenny's head so she didn't spontaneously combust. It was cloudy when we got to the arch, but the sun peeked out for a moment so we could get a good shot:


Robbie and Jenny in front of the arch. Hmm...it doesn't look so big...
Until we went and stood directly underneath. It was HUGE.


The scenery was amazing, and thank goodness for Kit's air conditioning for our breaks. Tomorrow, we are headed to Canyonlands National Park, which is right up the road.