Sara

DH and I will be in Arches NP in mid-April, and would like to take the ranger-led Fiery Furnace hike. It's now possible to book this online, and the two times it's offered in mid- April are at 10:00 AM and 2:00 PM. Can anyone here advise me which would be the better time to do this hike at this time of year? Thanks for any insight.

Myer

I was there in mid-May and we took it at 4PM. It was a great time of day but I don't see where either of your choice would be bad.

Either way you have a half day to see other areas of the park. I'd probably go for 10AM as it breaks up less of the day.

It's an excellent, easy hike.

spirobulldog

I think either time would be fine. It won't be that hot. The FF does offer shade depending on where you are at.

Myer

You really cannot linger during the FF hike. There are about 25 people on the hike and you've got to stay with the ranger.

You're not permitted in that part of the park without an authorized person. The ranger or a few tour guides are permitted. There are no real trails there and they don't want you getting lost.

The Windows section is a very good area as there are a few really good spots; North and South Windows, Turret Arch and Double Arch. And no hard work to get to each.

spirobulldog

WAI has posted every Utah/Arizona/Colorado trip-today only and has never posted a question on this forum. Could it be because he likes to plug his own agenda by placing a link to his website that sells his goods and services? Myer is 100% correct. You can't linger in FF or you pose a real risk of getting lost.

Myer

I've misplaced the Fodors complaint email address to request having a blatant advertisement removed.

Anybody have the current email address?

WAImages

I may place a link, but I live in Utah and travel extensively around the desert. You don't have to listen to my advice. If any of it was bad advice let me know. I will be posting more frequently regarding Utah trips as I think I have useful knowledge for people coming to the area. As for my having an agenda, I think all I have done is provide information to people. Lighten up.

Myer

WA, there are many people who make a living doing various things. If we all started to advertise the forum would disappear.

If you have something to offer, by all means it would be much appreciated. But if you insist on advertising, you'll have a problem here.

Sara

Thanks for the replies. I'm glad to know that the time of day won't matter too much at that time of year in terms of comfort - I was also wondering about the best lighting for most enjoyment of the scenery, and taking pictures (we are both fairly avid photographers).

I did consider that the morning hike would have the advantage of giving us the rest of the day to do something else, and that might be the best plan - my only hesitation is that we have to check in at the visitor center an hour ahead of time, so that would be 9:00 AM - we're not morning people, so I hate to put pressure on us to get up, eat breakfast, and be somewhere early - this is a vacation, after all- but it might be worth it in this case. I'll have to consider the pros and cons there. Any idea how long it takes to drive from the visitor center to the trailhead for the hike?

I'm sorry there seems to be a perceived issue with WAI using this as an opportunity to promote a business. WAI, you say your intentions are just to provide info and help folks with their planning, and that's great, but including the link to your business makes your posts somewhat suspect. I think it may violate Fodor's policies, so if you intend to post here more frequently, as you say, you might take a look at the policy, and think about removing your link. If you do have useful knowledge to share, I'm sure it will be very welcome and appreciated, as long as you're not here only to advertise your business.

Myer, you don't need an email address to register a complaint to Fodors. At the top and bottom of each thread there is a gray triangle with an exclamation mark inside of it (next to "add a reply"). If you click on that, a window will open that will allow you to alert the editors that they should take a look at the thread and decide whether there's something that requires their attention. It's a very useful feature.

Myer

Sara,
I have several photos taken on the FF hike. You can see my photos of the trip at:

www.travelwalks.com

Select the 2008 Utah trip.

I'm assuming you're staying in Moab. That's about a 10 minute drive to the Arches entrance and the visitors' center.

From there it's about a 15 minute drive to the parking lot for the FF hike.


If you leave Moab by 9:30 you should be fine.

spirobulldog

If you hike past Landscape Arch and stay on the Devils Garden Trail, it is somewhat similar to FF. Not exactly the same, but there is a trail on DG. In FF there is no trail. If you get off the trail on the Devils Garden you could easily get lost there as well. I liked the DG trail because of the number of arches on the trail. We hiked it early in the morning on Memorial Day weekend and only saw one other person until almost the very end of the hike. We did FF on a canyoneering adventure with Desert Highlights in Moab. The only authorized concessionaire for the park. They also do a regular hike in the FF, but of course, the ranger hike is free(I assume it is anyway), although DH is inexpensive. We did only a portion of the hike that the rangers do. Every hike we did in Arches was really neat. I hope to go back sometime and drive the dirt road out to the Whales Eye area. Plus, my daughter went with me, but my wife didn't get to go. So I need to take her back to see everything as well. There is a place in Moab that serves only breakfast that we thought was pretty good(cafe jail or something like that). Also we liked Hogi Yogi for their subs, smoothies, and asian bowls.

Myer

spiro,

Unless they changed things there is a charge for FF. I think it was 7 or $10.