FIERY FURNACE- BWAHAHAHA

Forrest's Thoughts:

Fiery Furnace, Arches National Park. 

Or a labyrinth. 

Ranger Lee Ferguson described it to us as a "head-scratchin', rock-hoppin', back-trackin' [trail]." And boy, it was. This is a trail without a trail.  

That's just one of the many, many narrow gaps. Pretty crazy, huh? You go in, unable to step on anything but rock and washes, and hike through randomly. It hurts your head when you take about six turns and then find a dead end. Bleh. 

If you ever plan to hike Fiery Furnace, outside of a tour, you need to go through the annoying process of getting a backcountry permit. Mind you, it's only annoying here. Anyway, the annoying part is that they try to scare you out of it. And this is with good reason, cuz it's easy to get lost amongst the tall rocks, run out of water, or injure yourself. But with care it's not too bad. Just make sure you can use a compass and map. 

It's a beautiful world. Fiery Furnace shows this perfectly. The parallel masses of eroded rock loom above you, inspiring awe and wonder at creation. The floors and walls are covered in greenery that's made use of every available space. Here is a desert landscape that barely resembles it's normal sandy self. It's stunning. 

Since the hike has no trails, there aren't really any stats, so I haven't really got much else to say besides it's good. As long as you are an experienced hiker, it's pretty easy!