8 October 2017, Sunday

Goose Island, Fiery Furnace

Today is our Fiery Furnace hike day. When we signed up for this hike a week ago, today’s hike was the first available. The Fiery Furnace isn’t really hot. In fact, it is one of the coolest places in Arches National Park because the maze of tall rock fins supplies ample shade. It actually gets its name from the fact that the setting sun lights the top of the fins a glowing red, making the rock formation look like the glowing embers of a furnace fire.

O and I arrive at the trailhead about 10 minutes before the hike is to begin. Although our hiking guide book recommends doing this hike on your own, O and I have always enjoyed ranger led hikes. Our rangers are quite knowledgeable about local geology and natural history and they are very safety conscious. Our leader for this hike, Glen Reynolds, continues this tradition. (If one elects to do this hike alone, one must watch an instructional film about the area and take a test in order to get a permit.)

There are 14 of us in today’s group. We Americans are outnumbered by a group of Canadians and two Australians. Glen leads us through the maze of rock fins, up narrow crevasses to dead ends where we can view hidden arches and rare plant life, and along narrow ledges. At one point there is even a little pool inhabited by a type of tiny shrimp whose eggs can survive in a cyst-like state for decades without water.

Along the path of our hike we traverse slick rock ledges, squeeze through narrow passageways and learn to “chimney” across a gap by having feet on one side of a ledge and using our hands to press against the opposite wall as we side step along. We see Walk Through Arch, Crawl Through Arch, Skull Arch (an upside down skull) and Surprise Arch (found at the end of a narrow passageway and only seen if you think to look up.) At the end of the hike we also view Kissing Turtles Arch.

Glen is also a natural storyteller. We learn that Delicate Arch has in turn been called Cowboy Chaps Arch and Bloomers Arch before its name was changed to something more appropriate for a state symbol. I am so caught up in Glen’s stories and climbing instruction that I forget to have palpitations on the narrow ledges. After three hours we arrive back at the trailhead. The wind has kicked up as we finish the hike and our sun-screened faces are gritty from blowing sand.

Back at camp we see that the wind was strong enough to blow our neighbor’s tent over. Wglwof stands firm, however. The wind is blowing so vigorously now that the usually smoothly flowing Colorado has steadily breaking whitecaps trying to push their way upstream! Into Vincent we go, after eating our peanut butter pasta meal, to escape the wind and the grit and to type up more blog.