September 23, 1941
Travel this month, 296 Travel for the year, 3786
WEATHER
September, ushered in by high, hot winds, was unpredictable from one day to the next. The weather has been cool for this time of the year and high winds were prevalent a majority of the days. Five rain storms brought the season’s total in Moab Valley to 17 inches—9 inches above the average rainfall for this section.
ROADS
The rains came, the winds stayed with us and much of the road is now somewhere between Arches and Boulder Dam. I don’t like to “cry” about the road to the Windows, but now and then, after filling the same washout 3 times in 6 days, I sort of “holler” at myself, often producing a fair-sized echo that re-echoes until it dwindles down to a sigh. The CCC maintenance project has been inactive because of lack of man-power. Much of my time has been spent during the month on road maintenance and in spite of the elements the road has been kept open all month.
The road down Salt Valley is now hidden by a thick growth of Russian Thistle and so much of it washed out that travel is difficult even in a pickup.
VISITORS
Two hundred ninety-six people visited the Arches during September, bringing to a close the travel year of 1941 with a total visitor count of 3786 people. This is an increase of 50% or 1286 visitors over the total count for 1939-40. This count represents the number of visitors who signed the register at the end of the road in the Windows Section and those whom I have guided to other sections of the monument. There have been many others, I know, who did not register and were not contacted but those visitors whom we did not have a definite of were not added to the count.
Forty-one parties with 246 visitors were guided through the Windows Section and 11 parties with 40 people were contacted at the Willow Springs Ranger Station.
California again heads the list in number of visitors, with Utah, Colorado, Massachusetts and Michigan next in order named. The total travel was made up of visitors from 27 states, France, China and England.
NEWSWORTHY VISITORS
Mrs. Helga Janza, her two children and companion, of London, England, spent one day in the Windows Section. Mrs. Janza is the wife of the Consul of the Czechoslovakian delegation to Great Britain, and is in our country for the duration. They are very much interested in our National Parks and Monuments, and it was a pleasure to show them the wonders of the Arches National Monument.
Frank D. O’Brien, Director of the Department of Publicity and Industrial Development for the State of Utah, made a brief return visit to Arches enroute to Mexican Hat. He plans to return the first week in October to make a kodachrome movie of the Windows, Devil’s Garden, Delicate Arch and Courthouse Towers sections of the monument. The film will be used by the newly organized State Department of Publicity etc., to publicize Southeastern Utah.
Fifteen members of the Mineralogical Society of Utah stopped at Arches for one day while on a field trip to Southeastern Utah.
On August 30, forty-seven of the visitors to the monument stayed in Moab overnight to attend an illustrated lecture on National Monuments of New Mexico. They were impressed with our monuments shown in this film and many of them stated they would plan to visit the New Mexico monuments soon.
On September 4th the National Monuments of New Mexico reel was shown to 76 enrollees at Arches CCC Camp. These men are from the Southern states and expressed themselves as having enjoyed the movie very much.
PROGRESS ON PROJECTS
Visitor contact was carried on throughout the month.
Road maintenance on the Windows Section road demanded a great part of my time during the month. Temporary loss of the CCC crew, plus the recurrent damage by several rains and wind storms made this work imperative.
Reports and correspondence were brought up to date.
Patrols were made in all sections of the monument except to the Delicate Arch.
Cleanup of the area surrounding Willow Springs Ranger Station was continued.
PROJECT PROGRAM FOR THE ENSUING MONTH
Patrols to all sections of the monument will be made as often as practicable.
Continuance of maintenance of the Windows Section road.
Completion of cleanup of Willow Springs area.
Routine office and guide and contact work.
A trip to all sections of the monument with Regional Biologist McDougall is in the offing. Information gathered by Mr. McDougall will be incorporated in the Arches Museum prospectus.
Respectfully submitted,
Henry G. Schmidt,
Custodian
CLICK HERE TO READ THE PREVIOUS INSTALLMENTS OF HANK SCHMIDT’S MONTHLY REPORTS…
* NOTE: Thanks to former Arches NP superintendent Paul D. Guraedy, who gave me access in 1988 to the old monthly reports…JS
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