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By Jacob
By Jacob
Canyonlands National Park is located in southeast Utah, southwest to the town of Moab. Canyonlands is located at the confluence of the Green and Colorado River. The park is similar to Grand Canyon National Park but not nearly as visited. There is much to do in this national park, these are a few things that are more easily accessible by trail or short hikes. To really experience Canyonlands National Park you have to get farther from the parking lot and off the paved roads to understand what this park is about.
1. Visitor Centers
There are two visitor centers in Canyonlands National Park, each one is located in the two most accessible areas of the park. The most visited park of the park, Island in the Sky, and the Needles District have visitor centers. Be sure to stop at one of these visitor centers for information about the geology and human history of the park. You can also talk to rangers on duty about trail conditions and any other questions about the park you might have.
2. Needles District
The Needles District is one of the accessible districts by paved road. To get here from Moab you have to go south on Highway 191 until you hit highway 211 going west. Highway 211 takes you straight into the park and to the Needles District. The district is named for its colorful pinnacles of red rock that are prominent throughout the area. The district also contains many arches. There is much to choose from in this district from trails to off-roading. The Needles has four shorter trails that are considered to be easy to moderate. Roadside Ruin and Cave Spring lead to human history in the park such as petroglyphs, a cowboy camp and ruins from indengneous people. The Cave Spring trail has two ladders so if that scares you then I would advise against this trail. Pothole Point and Slickrock lead to incredible views and geologic features with views of the needles. There are much longer trails in the Needles District as well. A good one to do is the 11 mile round trip trail to Druid Arch, one of the most spectacular arches in the world. A tall rock wall with a massive arch carved into its center.
There are many off road tails in this area that are not easy. You are required to have four wheel drive and may need a permit for some of the off road trails. Stop at the visitor center for more information.
3. Mesa Arch
Mesa Arch is located in the Islands of the Sky district of Canyonlands National Park. The arch is located not far from the main road of the park before the upheaval dome junction. Mesa Arch is the icon of Canyonlands National Park and if you look up pictures of it you will see why. The arch sits above the canyon with nothing below it, the arch provides an excellent photo with the canyon and the distance to Las Sal mountains. Be warned though, this is the most popular spot in the park and is always crowded. It can be difficult for people to get a picture of the arch because of some idiot walking on it or even sitting on it. Getting here early does not even help, photographers with thousand dollar cameras will be up early in the morning getting the sunrise and the best lighting possible. You should still see this site but do not let it be the only thing that you do in Canyonlands.
4. Shafer Trail
The Shafer Trail is located just across the main park road from the Islands in the Sky Visitor Center. The trail is an unpaved road that you can drive down a canyon wall down closer to the Colorado River. The road is 18.3 miles long and is an alternate means of arriving or exiting the park, the road leads to a paved road back into the town of Moab. This is one the more trafficked roads in the park and easier to navigate because of the wideness of the road. It is a unique way to get up close to the canyon and really understand its true size.
5. Grand View Overlook
At the end of the main park road of the Islands in the Sky district is a parking lot for the best vista in the park, the Grand View, from here you can see down to the Needles and Maze Districts. You are surrounded by a deep canyon flanked by the Colorado and Green Rivers. Take the short trail along the Grand View to get more amazing vistas with less people. From here you can see why the area is called the Island in the Sky. Mom is of the opinion that Canyonlands and this view is more spectacular than the Grand Canyon. This is an excellent finale to your trip to Canyonlands National Park.
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