CLASSIC AT MESA ARCH - 24 January 2015

Sunburst on Mesa Arch - Canyonlands National Park, File# 1515034

Link to Full Sized Image: http://www.tom-hill.biz/Galleries/Scenics/Utah/i-vnrL5tc/A
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I've been to Mesa Arch many times. Seems every time I'm there, it's more and more crowded. Even though I arrived an hour and half prior to sunrise, I was the fourth person on the arch. I kind of felt like I was losing my edge by not being the first.

I have to admit, the photographer I saw later this particular day--described in my blog post from a couple days ago--up on Delicate Arch was the first photographer there this morning. By the time the sun hit the horizon and I shot this picture, there were about 15 people clustered around the arch trying to get their iconic image.

Among the group at the arch were these two young Chinese women shooting with their phones and point and shoot cameras. They were quite giggly when talking each other waiting for the sunrise. On cue with the light hitting the arch and I making this image, the girls directly behind me gave a loud exclaim, then immediately really started to talk between each other. Of course, I didn't understand a single word they said, except once. Being they were directly behind me as I shot this image and saw what I had on the camera's display, one of them said in good english, "beautiful." I nodded approval of her observation. It was precisely that, beautiful.

Cheers

Tom

ArchSunrise