The Geologic Story of Arches National Park: Geological Survey Bulletin 1393 — John Shaqi
The Geologic Story of Arches National Park: Geological Survey Bulletin 1393Lohman, Stanley William
Science
The Geologic Story of Arches National Park: Geological Survey Bulletin 1393
Lohman, Stanley William
Arches National Park (Utah); Geology -- Utah -- Arches National Park -- Guidebooks
According to Breed (1947), Harry Goulding, of Monument Valley, in a
specially equipped car, traversed the rugged sand and rocks of the
Arches region in the fall of 1936 and, thus, became the first person to
drive a car into The Windows section of Arches National Monument. Soon
after, a bulldozer followed Harry’s tracks and made a passable trail.
When my family and I visited the monument in 1946, the entrance was
about 12 miles northwest of Moab on U.S. Highway 163 (then U.S. 160),
where Goulding’s old tire tracks led eastward past a small sign reading
“Arches National Monument 8 miles.” This primitive road crossed the
sandy, normally dry Courthouse Wash and ended in what is now called The
Windows section. At that time there was no water or ranger station, nor
were there any picnic tables or other improvements within the monument
proper, and the custodian was housed in an old barracks of the Civilian
Conservation Corps near what is now the entrance, 5 miles northwest of
Moab.
Former Custodian Russell L. Mahan reported (oral commun., May 1973) that
soon after our initial visit in 1946 a 500-gallon tank was installed
near Double Arch in The Windows section and connected to a drinking
fountain and that two picnic tables and a pit toilet were added. At that
time the only access to Salt Valley and what is now called Devils Garden
was a primitive dirt road which, according to Breed (1947, p. 175), left
old U.S. Highway 160 (now U.S. 163) 24 miles northwest of Moab, went 22
miles east, then followed Salt Valley Wash down to Wolfe cabin (fig. 1).
According to Abbey (1971), who served as a seasonal ranger beginning
about 1958, a sign had by then been erected at the crossing of
Courthouse Wash which read:
WARNING: QUICKSAND
DO NOT CROSS WASH
WHEN WATER IS RUNNING
The ranger station, his home for 6 months of the year, was what Abbey
described as “a little tin housetrailer.” Nearby was an information
display under a “lean-to shelter.” He had propane fuel for heat,
cooking, and refrigeration, and a small gasoline-engine-driven generator
for lights at night. His water came from the 500-gallon tank, which was
filled at intervals from a tank truck. At that time there were three
small dry campgrounds, each with tables, fireplaces, garbage cans, and
pit toilets. By that time an extension of the dirt road led northward to
Devils Garden, and some trails had been built and marked.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account