The Windows Section: Turret Arch

Turret Arch, named for the rock tower to the left. The towering spire is a giant sandstone fin.

The castle like free standing Turret Arch in the Windows area of Arches National Park, an easy walk from the North and South Windows. I particularly love the porthole window next to the main arch.

Using people in our photos to remember the scale of these windows!

Arches as windows: all about the angles

 

North and South Window from this angle look like a single structure, the pair of glasses on the horizon from many viewpoints in Arches. They are in fact two separate and enormous windows.

Arches are windows when they have glorious views across the landscape and particularly at The Windows Section in Arches National Park.

The easy, short trail up to North Window.

The vast scale of North Window.

The approach to South Window.

Windows and endless views

The development of an arch

 We have seen so many arches! Here is a snapshot of how we have experienced them.

A 'recent' arch forming at the base of a sheer cliff face.

A small opening peeping through this sandstone monolith

The arch starts to erode, opening up more and interesting shapes emerge.

Eventually a monumental arch has been formed and the next phase will be the collapsing of the arch.
I an fascinated by this arch which is called Broken Arch - can you also seeing the two dinosaurs touching noses!

And perhaps this would have been an arch! Sheer walls of the canyon along the Park Avenue Trail

We are not the first at Delicate Arch

 

A geologist pointed out these Jurassic era dinosaur footprints along the trail!

American Indians have been here for thousands of years. Petroglyph panel on the trail to Delicate Arch

The weathered log cabin 'Wolfe Ranch' settled in the late 1800's. A peep into the past when explorers came looking for minerals and ranchers found grasses for cattle and sheep

The many attitudes of Delicate Arch

 

Fred clambering up the slippery sandstone to get an unusual angle to Delicate Arch.

The classic angle.

Delicate Arch from a window in the rock along the trail, another climbing moment from Fred and patiently waiting for a people free moment.

The Kersten's at Delicate Arch

A magical moment, taking in the magnificence of Delicate Arch.

In planning our stay in Moab, I figured we would use the 4 night stay to to do a whole lot of different outings. Once we spent our first day in Arches, it was not even a debate, we would spend all our time in this one park. We have travelled extensively all over the world and into many natural wonders and hands down Arches has completely captured our souls. 

Our return to Delicate Arch was along a fabulous trail, rated as difficult because of the 5 kms with a steep 150m elevation gain and the exposure to heights. 

We relished being on the trail. 

There is no sign of the Arch until you round the exposed cliff path and then there it is. 

Delicate Arch floats high above the valley on the brink of a canyon, with the dramatic snow-capped Le Sal Mountains as a backdrop. 

Fred at the Arch in what we called the TikTok generation pose.
It's what most of the youngsters do, whizz down, take a photo and leave.