Landscape Arch

Landscape Arch is considered the longest natural arch in the world, and it doesn't take too much effort to experience and see. This arch is on a trail the is part of a larger loop called "Devil's Garden" and during the summer it lives up to its name, easily topping 100 degrees, the beautiful sandstone only intensifies the heat and keep radiating that heat well after sunset. As with most southern Utah hikes bring lots of water. There is a large parking lot, but this is a popular hike and the lot can fill up easily.

You start out winding through amazing sandstone fins, after just 0.25 miles you'll encounter a spur trail leading to Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch, beautiful arches in there own right and worth the short detour. Keep going on the main trail just over a mile further and you'll reach landscape arch. You can drop down to a view point just below the arch, or go up and get a higher view point from above a near by fin. This amazing arch is 300 feet across and at is just 11 feet thick at its thinnest.

On September 1, 1991, a 73-foot slab of rock fell out from underneath the thinnest section of the span, reducing the thickness of the span from 16 feet to 11 feet. On June 5, 1995, a 47-foot mass of rock fell from the front of the thinnest section of the arch, followed by another 30-foot rock fall on June 21, 1995. Because of these falls the park closed a path that used to go underneath the span. This has also lead to the worries of a complete collapse of this amazing formation, all the more reason to make sure and experience it first hand.

From Landscape arch you can scramble up on top of the fins and follow the primitive path to many more amazing arches and formations, I opted to save those for another, cooler day, and went back the way I came.