Canyonlands National Park:
Our next stop is Canyonlands National Park, the last park in Utah we visit before we travel to Arizona. We have visited Canyonlands National Park many times and still love returning to this park when we are in the Moab area. From Moab, Canyonlands is only 32 miles away on highways US191N and UT313W. It will take you around 40 minutes to drive to the park. We always extend our stay at the Best Western Plus-Canyonlands in the Moab area when we plan on visiting this park.
Canyonlands consists of four (4) separate units. Two of the units are very remote, located more in the park's backcountry area, and require 4 x 4 vehicles to access the areas. We have only hiked two of the four units: the Island In The Sky Unit (the most popular unit located very close to the Moab area) and the Needles Unit. Both units are totally amazing areas to visit. We hike the Island In The Sky Unit when we are staying in the Moab area, and we hike the Needles Unit when we leave the Moab area on our way to our next destination (which is usually Monument Valley). We do this because the Needles Unit is located around 1.5 hours (drive time) South of the Moab area (40 miles away).
As far as we are concerned, "Mesa Arch" is a must-see at Canyonlands in the Island In the Sky Unit. It is a very short hike on an easy trail leading you to fantastic scenery. The hiking trail does not look like much as you approach Mesa Arch; however, upon closer inspection, the scenery of the "mesa" through the small arch is completely breathtaking. You will be astonished at what you see as you approach the low-looking arch and look at the scenery through it! Make sure you also step a little to the right of the arch so you can actually see how thick the arch is and where it is attached to the cliffside. It is totally awesome! Just do not get too close because it is a very long way down to the canyon floor! We have hiked to Mesa Arch many times, and each time, the pictures we take of it are some of the best in the entire State of Utah! And let me tell you, that is saying quite a lot because the Southern part of Utah has some pretty unbelievable scenery!
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Another great hiking trail in the Island In The Sky Unit is the "White Rim Overlook Trail." This trail is 1.8 miles roundtrip and will take you around 1.5 hours to hike. The hike is fairly easy until you get a little closer to the White Rim Overlook area. As you approach the overlook area, you will notice that a part of the overlook juts out into the canyon more than the rest of the land mass. You will then have to hike down over some small boulders to your right (you can use them as steps like I do) and then climb up over some other small boulders (some more steps) so you can continue your hike onto the "jutted out" portion of the White Rim Overlook Trail. If you have a hiking partner/buddy, this is a great time to ask for a little helping hand (if you need it)! You will then be able to hike a little farther out onto the point so you can see close to a 360-degree view of the White Rim Overlook canyon area.
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It is totally worth your effort to stand out there and see it for yourself! On this hiking trail, you will be able to also see some very deep canyons, rock pinnacles, the Colorado River, Monument Basin, and the La Sal Mountains.
This is an outstanding hiking trail, with spectacular panoramic views at the end of the trail! You may want to take some video of the area so you can keep the scenery forever in your picture archive! We took our tablet with us on one of our trips and did just that! The only bad thing about this hike is that parking is limited near the trailhead entrance, which means parking spaces can be tough to get.
The Grand View Point Trail is another wonderful (fairly easy) scenic trail. On this trail, you will walk along the edge of the canyon rim for a 1.8-mile roundtrip.
This hike will also take you around 1.5 hours to complete. It also has very spectacular panoramic views of Canyonlands National Park. (When we visit Canyonlands, we always hike all the trails mentioned above in the park.)
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2024 Fee-free Days
No entrance pass required on these days:
- Monday, January 15 — Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
- Saturday, April 20 — First Day of National Park Week
- Wednesday, June 19 — Juneteenth
- Sunday, August 4 — The Great American Outdoors Act
- Saturday, September 28 — National Public Lands Day
- Monday, November 11 — Veterans Day
None of the units at Canyonlands National Park have any restaurants available, so remember to eat before you visit the park. Or, as an option, pack your own food/snacks (and, as always, make sure you pack plenty of water) when you plan on visiting the park. Remember that the Visitor's Center only has a few snacks available for you to buy. The closest lodging/dining options are available in the towns of Moab, Monticello, Green River, or Hanksville.
Mesa Arch
Mesa Arch
Mesa Arch
White Rim Overlook Trail
White Rim Overlook Trail
White Rim Overlook Trail
Colorado River
La Sal Mountains
Grand View Point Trail
For your information, Canyonlands National Park is also an "International Dark Sky Park" destination and was awarded a "Gold Tier" by the program because of its pristine dark skies at night. At times, it is said that you can see up to 15,000 stars throughout the night.
There are "Night Sky Ranger Programs" available at the park. Please check with the Park Rangers at the Visitor's Center (or online) for more information regarding this program.
Check out the DARK SKY App Here
Canyonlands National Park may be the last park in Utah we visit before moving on to the great State of Arizona, however, it is worth every minute of your time.
Make sure you hike to see Mesa Arch and another trail or two in the Island In the Sky Unit. And, if you have any additional time, make sure you also stop to visit the more remote Needles Unit of Canyonlands. You will never forget the incredible scenery in this beautiful National Park. So, do not just drive by Canyonlands National Park without stopping for at least one day. You will be very glad that you took some time to visit this National Park!
To get to the Needles Unit, take Hwy. 191S from the Moab area and then turn West onto Route 211. We always enjoy stopping for at least half a day so we can hike some trails in the Needles Unit. We love the lack of crowds and some of the less traveled (more rugged) trails in this unit. Most of the trails in the Needles Unit are on "slick rock" and are marked with stacked rocks called "cairns." The Slickrock trails are pretty easy to navigate. Just remember to keep looking for the stacked rocks while you hike the trails so you do not get lost. Important Note: We have only lost sight of the Cairns trail once while we were on a hiking trail in the Needles Unit. It was totally our fault because we were busy taking pictures, and we veered a little too far off the beaten path before we realized it. (Honestly, we only had a few moments of panic until we found the cairn trail once again!) That is when we quickly learned to keep the "cairn trails"(a/k/a stacked rocks) within our sight at all times. So, if you decide to hike in the Needles Unit, please keep this in mind so you do not get lost straying off the main trail.
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The Needles Unit of Canyonlands National Park is full of colorful spires of Cedar Mesa Sandstone. The frustrating thing about visiting this unit is that you cannot drive into the park's Needles section. If you are willing to hike over 10 miles (one way) to get into the actual Needle formations you see in the distance, then go for it. (Or, you can do what we do. Just take some incredibly beautiful pictures of the Needles in the distance with the zoom lens on your camera)! I have some great pictures of the Needle formations in the background in a lot of my pictures. Even though this unit is less popular than the Island In The Sky Unit, it is still worth your time to stop and see it.
Spires of Cedar Mesa Sandstone
This unit of Canyonlands National Park has a couple of great hiking trails and a beautiful scenic drive within the park. The Visitor's Center is open daily, from Spring to Fall, so you can stop by, get a map, and talk to a Park Ranger about the best trails for you to hike. Personally, we love to hike the Slickrock Trail because it is an easy 2.4-mile loop trail that will lead you to multiple viewpoints and different canyons in the park. Another easy loop trail to hike is the Pothole Point Trail. This trail is only a little over half a mile, with little potholes all over the slickrock areas. It also has some great views of the Needles area in the distance.
Pothole Point Trail
Most of the National Parks also have newspapers available for your use.
The newspapers are complimentary and can be very informative regarding current events happening at the park. So, pick one up with your National Park Map when you are at the Visitor's Center.
We buy a 24 – 32 pack of bottled water after we get our rental car and leave the airport. We keep the bottled water in our car and take out bottles every day that we think we will need hiking the next day. We cool the bottles in our hotel refrigerator overnight and then pack them in our backpacks in the morning before leaving our hotel. That way, we always have enough water in our car for our entire vacation trip and cool water bottles in our backpacks for a day while hiking trails.
You may want to join some hotel clubs like Best Western, IHG (Holiday Inn), Choice Hotels, Bonvoy (Marriott), etc. to start accumulating points so that you can get some free nights at hotels the next time you travel. We have been able to stay at some hotels for free using the points we racked up from previous trips.
Alma's Photo Album
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