Existing comment:
Edward Abbey:
Edward Abbey once said there will always "be something worth fighting for an something worth fighting against." In his book, Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness, Abbey recounts his experiences as a seasonal ranger at Arches in the summers of 1956 and 1957 while living in a "little tin government house trailer" near Balanced Rock. The book has become standing reading for environmental activists and all who enjoy the solitude of the desert.
Abbey interspersed eloquent descriptions of the natural history of the park with warnings about "industrial tourism" and personal opposition to the planned development of Arches. Through Desert Solitaire, millions of people get a glimpse of Arches at a time when it was still a little-known monument at the end of the little-used dirt road. The road is paved now and Abbey's trailer is gone, but his spirit lives on in the people who continue to search for the feeling of personal freedom evoked by this desert landscape. |