Day 15 - Thursday 7/14/2005 -  Lots of Arches and more excitement

Knowing that it would be a hot day, we got an early start.  The sun was already burning down on us by 7:30 am, and we wolfed down some pancakes and headed out to Arches National Park.

Arches is truly unique among the canyons.  The soft, layered sandstone has eroded at different speeds in different places, causing the arches.  Many of them are a walk from the car (through high temperatures).  We hiked to North Arch, South Arch, Turret Arch, and took a long afternoon hike to Landscape Arch.  Landscape Arch is a magnificent example of an arch in the process of collapsing.  It seems to defy gravity, and it was the scene of a huge section collapse in 1991.  We attempted to hike to Double O Arch, but the temp was 110 in the shade (and no shade).  After about an hour of hiking on the hot rocks (almost burning our hands) we turned back.

We went back to the campsite and had a swim.  We cleaned up and decide to go into town for coffee and maybe some Internet.  Key in ignition...start car...no sound.  Try again...no sound, no lights.  dead car #2.  Impossible to say at this time how the car could perform so strongly all day and then just suddenly die.  It seems to defy logic, but I'm just glad it picked a more convenient place than the Utah backcountry.  I'm on the phone with Sears (their battery), the Pontiac dealership in Farmington, NM (answering service) and my wife.  The campground can jumpstart it in the morning, so we'll see where we go from there (no pun intended)