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Show - . H'T. I I Mill l'llWllipmill. IWItTP..'."1 .' " ' 1 v- - .---- " '-:rr-- 7;M ft i y l ? Xy . ' V-":--' f 9 jmj jfi y ill : viJ . . ' : - ' 4, - . rr"" ' - - - ci.-' c - . ... - - Popular Oclicaie Arch is amust for visitors to Arches National Park near Mob. Arches National Park Near Moab Is Intricate Design of Nature Arches National Park, a 73,546 acre expanse of salmon sal-mon colored sandstone and gracefully sculptured arches located about five miles north of Moab along U. S. 163, contains con-tains the largest assemblage of natural stone arches in the world. More than 90 have been discovered in this park that is a tribute to the artistic artis-tic talents of wind erosion. There are undoubtedly others tucked away in the : more rugged and less easily penetrated pen-etrated regions. There's quite a differnce between a national park and a national monument occor-ding occor-ding to the U. S. Department of the Interior. The former must be scenic and inspirational; inspira-tional; the latter is generally set aside for its educational value. But every now and then there is a national monument mon-ument that combines scenic beauty with educational importance im-portance and eventually becomes be-comes a national park. That's just what happened to Arch, es, the nation's newest nat- ional park. The park is divided into six distinct sections with roads and hiking trails twisfc ing throughout each area. The main park road leaves the Visitor's Center, located just off U. S. 163, and winds to the top of the slick-rock plateau then enters the Courthouse Towers area'. Park Avenue, a narrow corridor cor-ridor where sandstone walls rise vertically 150 to 300 feet is the most awesome spectacle here. It is best viewed by taking a relatively . easy one mile hike through the eerie canyon. Other rock formations in the area boast of such self-descriptive titles as, "The Organ," and "The Three Gossips." Nine miles from the Visitor's Visi-tor's Center along , a paved road is The Window's region, one of the most accessible and picturesque sections of the park. In this area is Balanced Bal-anced Rock, a 50 ft. block of sandstone leaning precariously precar-iously over its base; Double Arch, North and South Wk-" Wk-" dows and .Turret Arch. From Balanced Rock the park road heads 2.5 miles northeast to a junction with a graded road leading to viewpoints of Delicate Arch, the most famous landmark in the park. At Turnbow ca- bin, a relic of log and mud architecture, a short hiking trail winds toward ,the park's main attraction. Delicate Arch derives its name from the precarious balance that holds the arch on top of its base. Early Moab area cowboys cow-boys thought it looked more like a local "Schoolmarm's Bloomers." About six miles northwest from the Delicate Arch turn-off turn-off is the intricate maze of narrow passageways called the Fiery Furnace and further furth-er on the Devil's Garden area ar-ea with Skyline and Broke Arch near its entrance. A two mile hiking trail from Devil's Garden campground leads to Pine Tree, Partition, and Double O Arches. Landscape Land-scape Arch, the longest natural nat-ural stone span in the world at 291 feet, is also along this trail. The last of the park areas, the one lying in the most rugged rug-ged country, is Klondike Bluffs. There's a parking area ar-ea eight miles by graded road from Devil's Garden, where visitors can follow a one mile marked trail to Tower Arch. Visitors should check with park rangers before be-fore an exploration of Klondike Klon-dike Bluffs or other rugged and undeveloped areas of the park. |