Chasing Rainbows (and a Wild Goose)

Since Dan has been on vacation all this week while I was at work, he spent a lot of time on the computer. On Google Earth, he found a picture of an arch east of Belfrey. It piqued his interest, so he figured out the coordinates for future use. 

With warmer temps and clearer roads today, we decided to try to find the arch. While we frequently use the GPS to trace our track or identify BLM or state or private property, we have never tried using it to find a specific point. We got as close as we could on the road, then set out on foot.

As we worked our way up the draw, we were keeping an eye on the sky. The clouds were right for fire rainbows, and before long, we spied a faint one. The fact that it was right next to the sun made it hard to see, let alone photograph.  

At some point, Dan pointed out that as far as the arch was concerned, we might be on a wild goose chase. Sure enough, as we stood on top of the ridge, on the "X" so to speak, it became apparent that the "goose" got away. There was no arch in sight in any direction.

But we were not as disappointed as we might otherwise have been, because at that point, the sky was a veritable kaleidoscope! We kept switching lenses and handing the camera back and forth in an attempt to get the best cloud pictures possible. 

The way down...

By now, we concluded that we were not going to find the arch, so we turned back toward the truck. We could see the truck below us, as well as the road, so it didn't make sense to back-track the way we came. The only problem was that the hillside between us and the road was pretty steep. We cautiously started down, and though most of the descent was a "controlled slide," we made it to the bottom without incident. (I keep saying that I want to go sledding, you know.)

Even once we were back in the truck and heading for home, we kept stopping for one more picture. (You are indeed lucky that I don't post them all!) But, hey, "hungry" trumps "pretty"! Oh well, there will be another day.