Petroglyphs on the way to Delicate Arch
Delicate Arch is another little piece of Mars that god accidentally misplaced at the end of a 1.5 trail outside of Moab, Earth. It’s a striking photo location because you’re high up on a sandstone mountain looking down on the valleys, with the distinguished La Salle Mountains framed in the window of Delicate Arch. The La Salles are most notable from Fall through Spring when their snow-capped peaks contrast against the surrounding red country. The hike is easy because it’s short, but all uphill. Near the beginning of the trail you can make a short detour to see some well-defined Indian petroglyphs. I came to shoot Delicate Arch at sunset, and later with the moon and stars.
Not delicate at all, documents to christen Delicate Arch and nearby Landscape Arch got mixed up, leading to today’s nomenclature.
An unexpected composition after a fiery glow developed to the Southeast
There didn’t end up being a sunset because dull clouds cloaked the sun, but I wouldn’t have been able to get the shot anyway. Unlike Thanksgivings past, there were so many people hanging around the arch that it was like a football arena. In my visits to Delicate Arch over the years, it was considered bad manners to stand beneath or around it because everybody was there to photograph it, but this crop of tourists had no regard.
Once the sun had set, everybody cleared out. Unexpectedly, the clouds lifted in a few short moments, leaving a fiery afterglow. I got my sunset shot after all, just not the one I had previsualized.
I waited a another few hours for the sky to become dark, and the moon to brighten. I photographed Delicate Arch under the glow of the Moon and light painted the arch.
After Arches National Park, my next stop was Canyonlands NP. See the rest of my Moab, Utah Photography here.
Delicate Arch at night with a bright moon
