Back in June 2022, I went to Canyonlands National Park (NPS). I dropped by their visitor center to…read morepick up some magnets as I always do. It's a very nice visitor center with tons of souvenirs. The center wasn't that big, but organized and clean. Staff was friendly and very helpful. Tons of people looking around and shopping. They have lots of goodies and souvenirs. Restrooms are outside... they have actual little potty stands in a building. So do drop on by and check them out when you're at Canyonlands NPS. You may find something nice to bring back home as a remembrance of your lovely visit. Happy Canyon'ing!

Beautiful hike just outside of Moab. The hike was not overly hard for someone who hikes regularly…read more If you are not active the start of this hike does have incline. At one point around mid hike it switches from a trail to green marks on the rocks to mark the trail. When you get close enough you can see both bow tie and corona arch in the distance, there is a ladder you need to climb and then rocks with a rail on them to get up. Seems like some dogs struggle with this, while others can get up. Another group seemed like they were struggling with getting down in this area. Bowtie arch and corona arch are both lovely and worth visiting if you are in the area.

Absolute highlight! 3 miles round-trip, some chains and a short ladder section that the 8- and…read more11-year-old handled with fun. The arch itself is massive and way less crowded than anything in Arches NP. Do this one, 100% kid-approved. Nap under arch was

Went in for a map but they only have maps for purchase. Restrooms available. Informational items…read moreand souvenirs offered. You can also donate to the public lands in the state of your choice. That was cool. Some nice flexible metallic, UV resistant stickers. Walking staff accessories. Fun stop.

Super friendly and helpful people staff this place. Inside, you will find dioramas and displays…read moreabout points of interest, as well as a small shop selling hats, postcards, toys, and various sundries. The bathrooms are clean. It's worth a stop!

We planned our full day at Canyonlands NP around a bunch of shorter hikes because of the heat, and…read morethis one was perfect for that list. At approx 1.2 miles roundtrip to hit both the first and second overlooks at Upheaval Dome, it took us about 1 hour to complete including time spent at the overlooks. Located in Island in the Sky district, the access point to this hike is on paved road and easily accessible without an offroad vehicle. There is a parking lot nearby, but it gets full easily so just plan ahead. Beautiful views of the geographical wonder that is Upheaval Dome with surprisingly different views at each overlook. More of a moderate hike, it's more difficult between the first and second overlook than at the beginning. But I found that portion to be a more enjoyable hike than the first second. Go figure. There is next to zero shade cover on this trail (especially when hiking from the first to second overlook), so make sure to bring your hat and wear sunscreen. And it gets so incredibly hot, so bring lots of water. The hike is shorter, but with that sun glaring down, you will get hot, thirsty, and tired quickly. Overall, a good hiking choice to introduce yourself to Canyonlands National Park.

Loved this short little hike up to Upheaval Dome! There are so many wonderful little hikes that you…read morecan do while in Canyonlands National Park. Instead of doing one longer hike, I decided to switch it up a bit and do several smaller hikes to really take in the diversity and different scenery of the trails here. Upheaval Dome is just one of many shorter hikes located within the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands National Park. It's not too far of a drive from the Island in the Sky visitor's center, and it provides an incredible view of the Upheaval Dome Crater and beautiful geographic landscapes between the Colorado and Green Rivers. The trail is moderate and only about 1.3 miles long in total. Its' rocky terrain, steepish inclines, and hot weather is what pushes this hike rating from easy to moderate. The trail starts off inclining up several steps until you reach the first overlook of the Upheaval Dome Crater. It's so amazing to see this crater up close. Scientists have predicted that it got here from either a meteorite or from a salt dome uplift. Either way, the geologic features of this crater are very unique and really fun to view. From here, you can continue for another .5 miles until you reach the second overlook. The terrain changes a bit from rocky to slick rock here. In fact, there are some pretty gnarly parts of the trail where you'll be doing some light rock climbing up slick rocks. Had to get on my bum to get down some of these slick rocks, but it wasn't too bad. I'd still recommend it with caution of course. After you make it to the second overlook, you'll be rewarded with sweeping views of the many canyons, mesas, and colorful buttes in the distance. The views are truly amazing up there! One thing to note is that although this is a short hike, you shouldn't underestimate the amount of water that you'll need to bring. It gets so HAWT out there, and there are no water stations in the park (with the exception of the visitor's center). Make sure to pack enough water and some food while you're at it as there are no amenities here except for restrooms. And of course, lather up on the sunscreen and bring sunglasses and a hat because you're gonna need it. Hiking shoes with good ankle support would be best and will also work for the majority of the other hikes in this park. If you're planning on hiking Upheaval Dome, I'd also recommend the short hike at Whale Rock as it's located right on the same street right before this stop. Upheaval Dome is also the start of the strenuous 8 mile Syncline Loop Trail. Parking is limited, but since this is a shorter hike, people don't tend to stay here for very long. I'd say this was my favorite mini hike within the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands National Park. I'd highly recommend it for the views and quick workout.

Easy hike, just 2.3 miles. The arch is really unique and amazing. The arch is combined consecutive…read morearches. You can go under the arch and can see the canyon in front of it. Great view. When we did this hike in the evening, there was nobody else. The solitude in the orange evening light with the vast Utah view was surreal. There is dispersed campsite at the lot. Priceless time.

Poison Spider Mesa in Moab is home to multiple recreational activities. The trailhead and parking…read morelot are located approximately 6 miles west of Moab. Most people come here for the 16-mile 4×4 and mountain bike or ATV loop trail that has arches and cliffs with beautiful scenic views. If you are a hiker and want a shorter hike, there are one-mile hiking trails that branch off the trailhead like the Longbow Arch and Poison Spider Bench. Parking is free at Poison Spider Mesa but can be tight for larger vehicles. There is additional roadside parking leading up to the main lot. We had just hiked the nearby Corona Arch Trail and were too tired to do another hike. We decided to come here to Poison Spider because there is a short side hike to see some petroglyphs and dinosaur tracks. The Poison Spider Mesa dinosaur track site has some theropod footprints preserved in limestone blocks. Around ten carnivorous dinosaur footprints formed 190 million years ago can be seen here. There are also some nearby petroglyphs that depict human and animal figures. We did this short hike and took pictures of the footprints before heading back to Moab. We enjoyed the view overlooking Moab Valley while on this short trail. Poison Spider Mesa got its name from a local legend about a girl named Mary Jane Francis who died here from being bitten by a venomous spider in the late 1800s.

This is part of Devil's Garden Trail. first you go to tunnel arch, then pine tree arch, then…read morelandscape arch. Landscape Arch is the thin and longest arch in this NP. we found lot of cute creatures here: deer and squirrels. after the landscape arch, the trail to Double O Arch is primitive, it looks like a difficult trail, so we stopped at this arch.

Landscape Arch is within the Devils Garden area of Arches National Park. It's about a 2 mile hike…read moreroundtrip on Devils Garden Trail. The entire Devils Garden Trail is around 8 miles roundtrip if you keep going past Landscape Arch. You can also see the Double O Arch along the way. My buddy and I did this hike to Landscape Arch and found it easy and enjoyable. The only bad thing is that we visited during the winter season and found ourselves slipping on the ice on the trail. Landscape Arch is pretty long at 306 feet and is the longest in North America. It is pretty narrow at the center (only 6 feet) due to large segments of rock breaking off over time. But the arch is still hanging in there. They don't let anyone get near it anymore to try and preserve it. I really enjoyed the beautiful views of this hike and seeing this massive arch in person.

Island in the Sky is the most popular/visited part of this massive national park (Canyonlands)…read more This is because it is the most easily accessible part for most people traveling in regular cars/RVs (whereas other parts of the park e.g. the needles require high clearance/AWD). This visitor center is clean, nice, and well equipped. The NPS staff are friendly and helpful and the info video is very interesting (that's where I learned about the other three main sections of the park!) and runs often. The gift shop is located here too, and there are water fill stations. Do note that the bathrooms here are all the "glorified portapotty" kind where you don't flush/there is hand sani but they are not air conditioned and do have that classic outdoor bathroom smell. Nevertheless, they were fairly clean/well taken care of. The parking situation is decent; there is one main row of spots that do fill, but there is a lot of turnover so I did get a spot quickly and most folks behind me did too while others were leaving. Of note, the overlook just across the street from the visitor center of the monument basin is one of the best views in the park -- definitely stop here for pictures before you go!

This visitor center is on the smaller side, but packed with information about points of interest…read moreand great hikes. There is a small gift shop area that is standard through all the NPS visitor centers. The parking lot is small and many people had to park on the side of the road. Pit toilets - as this is a water scarce area, I can see why they would want to avoid the water usage from all of the visitors they receive. If you need potable water they do have a spigot out in front to refill water bottles. It's the only place to get water in the park.