Well I didn't get out as earlier as I wanted but it worked out Ok. I was anticipating that Arches would have a lot of picture opportunities so I took advantage of my Motel surroundings and loaded more film. Since I just did this two days ago I only had a few to do but still it took close to 2 hrs. I also had some other things to do so I didn't get to sleep as early as I thought I would. Still, I was out and in the park by 10am. Once I got there I just drove around a lot and took video. The area is full of balancing rocks and natural bridges.

Next I  headed for Landscape arch, the longest at 309 ft. in the park. You have to hike in about 1 mile to see it. It's not a bad hike even with the 100+ degree weather, that is unless you've got a 35+ pound camera strapped to your back. It's been well over a week now since I've actually had to backpack the camera any further than a couple hundred feet or so and I had forgotten what it was like. Anyway I got there in around 25 minutes and spent the next hour setting up. It wasn't really the right time of day to be there, I should have gotten there a few hours earlier but it still should make for an interesting picture.

After this I took a rest for a while and once I got into my car and started to drive out I noticed a cool area of sandstone fins. Arches has many unusual sandstone structures, among them are these fins. Picture a 1950's American car with big tail fins. Now make them (just the fins) out of sandstone a few hundred feet high and place a group of them all oriented the same direction together in the desert and you'll know what these areas look like. In some places, most notably the Fiery Furnace, there are hundreds of these together in one place. The Fiery Furnace by the way is a really cool place but it has one and only one way through it and it is an unmarked trail. It is only advised that you go into there on a guided tour with a ranger.

Anyway, back to the fins in front of me. I got out and I noticed that there was a really cool dead Juniper tree right on the side of the road framed by these fins. I got the camera out and got a shot. It wasn't until after I had put everything away that I noticed that the moon had risen right above where the tree was, in perfect alignment. I'm sure it's in the picture as well I just don't know how printable it will be since I didn't plan the exposure for it. 

After that I drove around some more and decided to go back into town and get something to eat. Sunset was a few hours away and I needed to wait until then to get the next couple of shots I had planned.

About a hour later I was back in the valley and setting up for a panoramic shot of the Fiery Furnace. Right as I got all ready to go though a big mass of clouds came in and blocked the sun. Since the sun was setting I just decided to wait the 20-30 minutes or so it would take for the sun to dip below these clouds. While waiting though I started thinking more about the next two shots I wanted to take. One of Delicate Arch, the most famous and also one of the tougher hikes and the other of Balanced Rock, also very famous but an easy hike. After thinking about it for a while I decided not to get them. Partly because pictures of these are so common and partly because I just wasn't very enthused about getting them anymore.

I've learned a few things on this trip. One is that I really do like camping (it's been ten years since I last did any), even for extended periods of time like this. I feel like I could go on just traveling for another month or so, although a day back in Seattle would be nice. Secondly, I learned that camping and large format photography doesn't really work for extended periods of time. The logistics of taking care of the camera and film just doesn't mesh with camping. If you've been reading along you have probably noticed that as this trip progresses that I have been doing less and less camping. I don't think I've set up the tent now since before S.F. I would have liked to do more, but without the camera next time.

The next time I take a camera trip I'm going by RV. I think this will work out the best. No more spending 3+ hours every 2-4 days in a motel room loading film, instead just 30 minutes a night. And no more changing ice to keep film cool, etc... A lot of the maintenance will get much easier if I have a stable environment to go to each night. Plus I wont' have to worry about trying to find a place to stay late at night once I've finished with sunset. And when I sleep in the car like I've been doing so much of lately, the car will have a bed.

And lastly I've learned that I can only stay really enthused about getting out and taking the time to set up the camera for about two weeks at a time. The effect recently has been to pass up the ordinary and only take the effort for the more extraordinary shots. I know I have been passing up what could be very good shots, but the recent realization of my limited remaining time vs. where I still want to go and the fact that I'm now a little burned out on Utah deserts (6 days here) has left me a little weary. Sure I still do get excited about the really cool things I've found and I haven't stopped noticing things, I just haven't been taking as many pictures as I was in the start of the trip. This may be partially good as I am now much more selective, but I'm also sure that there were a few good things that I have passed up. I do have video tape though, I haven't stopped surveying so I do know where these places are. Perhaps with the change of scenery that Arizona and New Mexico will bring I will again be gung-ho with the camera for my last 6 days of exploring the west.

That all said, once the sun poked back out I got a great shot of the Fiery Furnace and with that I passed a milestone. I have now taken pictures at 50 distinct locations. I have taken way more pictures than that however, since I sometimes take both B&W and color (as well as doubling up on the important B&Ws). After this, I head south for Arizona.

And now after a few hours drive I am staying in Monument Valley, in the Navajo Nation (on the Arizona side). Tomorrow I look forward to getting some great shots of the giant buttes and towers here and then moving on to the north rim of the Grand Canyon.

After that, which should be about 2 days, it's off to New Mexico for something really different. In New Mexico I will do some landscape work but I will also hopefully being doing some architectural work around some of the old adobe churches and buildings. And if I get the time I will drop down to White Sands for what are probably the coolest sand dunes anywhere around here. After that I should have about two days to make it back to Seattle and still have a day or so to rest before I return to the real world again.

So I have one last observation on Utah. Like Oregon had junk shops, Utah has rock shops. I mean a ton of rock shops. I've past places with several huge tables outside which must have contained hundreds of pounds of rocks each. I find it really hard to believe that anyone can sell enough rocks to sustain a business but these shops are all over the place, sometimes several per small town.