Wheatfield wrote:
"Arches is pretty laid back....If you are going to hike off path, be
aware it is a desert, it gets bloody hot, and you will need a lot of
water if you plan to stay ambulatory. Take some time to learn about the
local ecosystem so you don't kill anything that has taken a couple of
millenia to grow, and have fun."
The local ecosystem. Do watch out for the squirrels and other fauna.
When we last camped there (1988, I believe), a fox came into our camp
during the day (while we were away) and made off with my wife's bar of
Pears Soap. But it is the squirrels that are truly diabolical. We made
the mistake of leaving out a new, never opened jar of peanut butter. It
was a glass jar with a plastic lid. We came back to find the lid off and
the contents about 1/4 eaten. There were tooth marks all around the rim
of the lid. The squirrels had worked so long and systematically at
getting into the jar that they had actually unscrewed the lid. If you
see one of these squirrels, treat it as you would a grizzly bear at
Yellowstone.
Joe
