Arches National Park 
I had never heard of the town of Moab, Utah until I camped inside of it, and even then I was somewhat skeptical of its existence. We had pulled into the sleepy town so late the previous night that every campground was booked and we had to camp in the children's playground. This did not seem like a big deal in the late evening, but when morning dawned the children were screaming and shouting and cackling and shrieking and making all kinds of delightful noise as they swung over our tent. But man were they cute. 
I was very excited for Arches because this park was not on the agenda until quite recently, when my glorious college adviser encouraged me to travel longer and apply for colleges whilst on the road. Even I had seen pictures and heard whispers of the glory at Arches.
Even the mere car ride was staggering. Virtually everywhere one looked was a rock formation of note, with a hitherto unseen hue or shape, size or angle, many rock faces punctured by arches and windows, testaments to the power of water in the desert. 
We hiked the North Window, South Window, and Turret Arch section, stopping to gape at the sheer size of these enormous arches, the results of rock buckling and cracking and eroding over the thick layers of salt remaining from oceans long ago. I read at the Visitor's Center something like in the past 15 million years, the area has been covered by an ocean 29 times. Unbelievable. 
The day was hot and the park was busy, the sun beating down on us crawling on the Earth's surface, the tourists and hikers and photographers all intermingling on the trails. We hiked to a view of Delicate Arch, the famed archway of the Southwest, and were startled by how frail and miniscule it seemed from our vantage. 
Our favorite hike that day was by far the hike to Landscape Arch, the longest natural arch in the world. This long, thin arch stretches elegantly over a span of roughly 290 feet.
On this longer and more rewarding hike, we mucked through the sandy, rocky desert, following the trail that snaked in between boulders and cliffs, leading us closer and closer to the beloved arch and presenting a glorious view of the colors of sunset painting the rocks below. 
We even saw the gaping gibbous moon overhead for much of the time, continuing our hike into twilight.
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