2014 Trip Across the US & Canada

Day 253

2011 Trip across the US
2012 Trip across the US
Other Trips

Thursday, June 19, 2014, Natural Bridges National Monument, UT, 35 - miles, 10,844.4 For the Trip

I got an early start for a short drive to Natural Bridges National Monument. I found the campground pretty empty - had my choice of a number of sites. Even now at 10:00PM there are empty sites. While the entire campground is dry, I can't complain about the price - $5.00 with the Senior pass. I'm here for two days, although you won't read about it until I find an internet connection. No AT&T & a 1X non data signal on the Verizon side. Among the RVs in the park is a French "Unimog" type vehicle. They are pretty impressive - I suspect they can go just about anywhere!

After setting up in site 9, I drove the loop to photograph the "bridges". These are arches made by water rather than wind like those at Arches National Park. Not as striking, or colorful.

After making the loop, I headed to Butler Wash to photograph some ruins. They were located across the wash, and unfortunately, I only took my 24 - 70mm lens, so I had to do enlargements to show the ruins. One of the more impressive parts of the ruin were the foot holds carved into the face of the sliprock used to travel up the sheer wall between the different sections of the ruins.

After shooting Butler Wash I headed back into Blanding to fill up the RAV4's tank. I stopped at the Edge of the Cedars State Park, which has a wonderful museum filled with native American bowls, photographs, and other artifacts. Well worth the $5.00 entry fee. Outside the building is a Kiva that you can climb into, as well as a few Pueblo ruins.

After getting back to the campground I made an early dinner of grilled chicken breast & mixed vegetables, then read for a bit. I made another round of the loop hoping for better lighting conditions around 7:00PM. I'm including both images so they can be compared. While late evening warm light is usually beneficial, the bridges were in shadow, and appeared much cooler than during the morning. On the other hand, the detail, particularly on the ruins was better in the evening. I also shot a panorama from the bottom of Owachomo Bridge in the evening.


Site 9, Natural Bridges National Monument	French "Unimog"	Sipapu Bridge AM	Sipapu Bridge PM

Sipapu Bridge Sign	Interesting Rock	Horse Collar Ruin AM	Horse Collar Ruin AM

Horse Collar Ruin AM	Horse Collar Ruin PM	Horse Collar Ruin PM	Kachina Bridge Sign

Kachina Bridge AM	Kachina Bridge PM	Owachomo Bridge AM	Owachomo Bridge PM

Butler Wash Ruins	Foot Path at Butler Wash	Butler Wash Ruins	Sign For Butler Wash Ruins