doing devil's garden

What's even crazier than hiking at Canyonlands National Park on Memorial Day weekend?  Hiking at Arches National Park on Memorial Day weekend!  Yes, friends, for some reason we decided to hike Devil's Garden on Sunday.  Never mind that we haven't hiked at ANP for years because it's so often so crowded - let's do it on the busiest weekend of the year!

Landscape Arch

So we, and hordes of other people, got up at 5:30 and pulled into the Devil's Garden trailhead parking lot at 6:45 a.m.  Cars were literally pulling in one right after the other and we shared a laugh with the 20-somethings next to us, relieved that we'd gotten a spot.  After snarfing down tailgate PB&Js, we were on the trail at 7:15, heading out to do the primitive trail.

Partition Arch

The trail is well-maintained until Landscape Arch, then gets markedly more rugged on its way to Navajo Arch, Partition Arch, and so on to Double O Arch.  Foot traffic lessened after we passed Landscape Arch but we kept seeing the same hikers over and over again as we hit each of the viewpoints.

Sandstone fins

 There was some confusion out at Double O Arch where a number of us missed the cairn marking a turn; other park visitors had put up unauthorized cairns - don't do that, please.  After that, the trail is described as "primitive" but was much more worn in than when we had done it the first time in 2014.

Twisty tree

Because this loop is longer than most Arches hikes, we thought we'd have it to ourselves.  We were shocked at how many people we saw out there, as well as the levels of unpreparedness (little or no water, fitness levels, non-hiking footwear).

Fins with the La Sals in the background

When we got back to the car, the parking lot was a madhouse.  Park rangers were patrolling it, moving people along, and there was no way we could have our traditional snacks and beers there.  We found a pull-out a little ways down the road and pulled out our camp chairs there, soaking in the view of the Salt Valley and appreciating the fact that no one was around us (except for the few cars on the road).  We actually were surprised at how few cars were on the road - until we got to the entrance and realized that they had actually closed the park for several hours because it was too crowded.  They re-opened the entrance just as we were leaving and the cars were already lining up, waiting to get in. 

For the record, it was even pretty busy at Woody's Tavern later that afternoon (heckin' Memorial Day weekend!).