No one had any inkling that Wall Arch was about to go.

It was the first outright collapse of a named arch in the park in anyone's memory and the first significant erosion at Arches since a chunk fell off 306-foot Landscape Arch in 1991.

Of the more than 2,000 arches in the park's boundaries, Landscape is generally considered the most vulnerable, but, again, that's mere speculation. It could outlast them all.

Periodically, well-meaning people will suggest that arches, especially the iconic Delicate Arch, ought to get some man-made help to make sure they keep standing. But as Henderson pointed out, "That runs really counter to what the National Park Service is all about. We're not trying to preserve a snapshot in time. We're trying to protect and preserve the natural processes."

The flip side of the equation, as Henderson further noted, is that new arches are constantly being made even as old arches are crumbling.

"All it takes is a relatively thin strand of sandstone, one good freeze-and-thaw cycle that leaves an opening, and that's an arch."

And no one can hear that.

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Lee Benson's column runs Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Please send e-mail to benson@desnews.com and faxes to 801-237-2527.