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

While visiting Moab, we decided to take a short detour to see the Mill Canyon Dinosaur Tracks, and…read morewe're so glad we did! The drive down the dirt road and the short walk to the tracks added to the adventure. The walk was easy and absolutely worth it--the surrounding scenery was beautiful, especially the massive red rock formations in the background. We enjoyed seeing the real dinosaur footprints and learning how they were preserved and fossilized. My niece especially loved looking at the tracks and learning more about the dinosaurs that made them. This is definitely worth the trip, particularly if you're traveling with kids. I highly recommend it as a fun, educational, and scenic detour while visiting Moab!

Crossed another thing off my bucket list. This was the first time I've seen dinosaur tracks. It's…read moreso amazing that these tracks were made millennia ago, and they were only found in 2009. Signs show a picture of the animal and where to look to see the tracks. I was highly impressed, my husband not as much so. The site is free and spots for RVs next to it. A 20 mile drive from Moab makes it convenient to see. Walking is easy and a short distance from the car to the site.

This is one of the more underrated hikes in Canyonlands National Park. Mesa Arch and Grand View…read morePoint draw all of the crowds. But I think Whale Rock Trail is just as cool. It is a short hike and there are very few people on the trail. The trail climbs about 100 to 140 feet from its base. I like that you get great panoramic views of the park once you are on top of the dome. It is less than a mile round trip from the parking lot to Whale Rock. They call it Whale Rock because this long sandstone dome resembles the back of a whale from afar. You want to wear shoes with good traction if you want to walk up the side of the dome. It is a steep drop-off if you slip. We came up here before sunset and enjoyed the view of the surrounding canyons and the cool breeze. There is a lot of room to walk around and explore while on top of this mesa. The Upheaval Dome Trail is a short drive from here if you want to check out another part of the park. Whale Rock is part of a large outer ring of sandstone that surrounds the Upheaval Dome formation.

Absolutely stunning views of the valley from the top of Whale Rock! Although this trail is right…read moredown the road from Upheaval Dome, it doesn't seem to get as many visitors. I basically had this entire trail all to myself and literally only passed 2 people (one on my way up and another on my way back). The trail itself is super short at just one mile long roundtrip and features some of the most picturesque views of the Green River Valley and its' incredible geologic landscapes. The trail starts of pretty easy via a flat path through dry terrain and desert foliage. Soon after, the trail switches from a flat paved path to a scramble up slick rocks. The trail actually becomes a little harder to follow at this point, but there are several cairns that will help lead the way. You'll basically scale up the large rock until you reach a dead end. This dead end is what provides the 360 degree views of the most stunning mesas, buttes, and canyons in the park. The views are just simply breathtaking here! What makes it even more enjoyable is that there aren't many people on this trail. Like, at ALL. Mesa Arch and Upheaval Dome are a lot more popular, but this baby deserves some praise as well. Aside from the amazing views of the valley, the view of Whale Rock itself ain't too shabby. It gets its' name because the long curving spine of this rock resembles that of a whale. At first I couldn't really see it, but then it started to grow on me. It is reminiscent of a whale. It's a super short hike, but it gets really hot up there! Make sure to bring water with you as there aren't any water stations in the park aside from the visitor's center. Since this trail is far less trafficked, parking is pretty must a breeze! There isn't a restroom at this trailhead, but if you need to use one, there are some just up the street at Upheaval Dome. If you're planning on hiking Upheaval Dome, this is a great mini hike to add either before or after since it's so close. Definitely worth a stop for the views and solidarity.

Free, fun, and worth the easy mile hike in. A new Moab tradition for our family! Top 5 places to…read moreexperience Moab! Deep pools.

This lesser-known hike is perfect! It has rocks, trees and water. There is plenty of shade to…read moreshelter hikers from the hot summer day and a beautiful river that will cool you off. And it's dog friendly! At the trailhead, there is a small parking lot with a sign that tells visitors to come back later if the lot is full. We arrived just after 8am on a Sunday and found only 3 other cars there. The trail is very clearly marked so you know right where to go. Be sure to stop at the bathroom on your way up if needed. There is also a dog waste station to get poop bags, but you'll need to carry it out with you as there are no garbage cans along the way. The first few minutes of the hike are out in the open-lots of sun and no shade. But quickly you'll find yourself along the river with trees all around you. There is sandstone that you'll hike through-it can be a little slippery. A little further in you'll find that the trail crosses the river. Plan on getting wet even though there are rocks that you can walk across. Keep going and you'll end up at a beautiful waterfall and pool. I'm told there is another further on, but we turned around after this point. We will come back again and see what surprises await us beyond this point.

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.

The delicate arch is probably the most famous of the arches in Arches national park. There is a…read moreshort walk to the "viewpoint" where you can see the arch from a few miles away, but there is a longer hike where you can actually get up close to the arch itself. I went to the viewpoint because I was short on time and couldn't do the whole hike. Even from far away you can see pretty clearly what it is, and that there are points on the arch that are skinnier than the rest so it looks like it could easily fall (hence the name "delicate arch"). I think it's worth it to at least go to the viewpoint if you don't have time to do the full trail! It's just a short drive off the main road to get to the parking lot that leads to the viewpoint, and the walk takes about 10 min or less (there is a pretty good sized hill though -- be mindful if you have mobility restrictions that getting to the top of the viewpoint could be difficult). Of note, there are a couple national park bathrooms at the lot (the kind with sanitizer that don't flush). They had just been pumped out when I arrived (saw the staff undoing the pumps and leaving) so they were actually very clean and didn't have any smell. I don't know if they're usually like that but it was one of the cleanest experiences I've had involving a national park bathroom!

Delicate Arch is the face of this national park, maybe for the entire park service, Moab, UT, and…read moreeven the American West. The first known photo of this arch was taken in 1906, and it appeared in LIFE magazine in 1953.  We climbed up to the top of the hill, which is opposite the arch. The Green Rock signifies the change of time. The green sediments come from a humid era in Archer's Jurassic past, which included braided rivers, floodplains, and a nearby volcano. Volcanic ash full of iron settled atop clay, silt, and other sediments here.

Moab Cliffs and Canyons delivered an unforgettable experience for our whole family, including our…read more10-year-olds. The scenery was breathtaking, and the rappelling was genuinely thrilling -- scary in the best way, and a real confidence builder for the kids. Our guide Devin was fantastic -- especially when one of our kids got nervous. Devin stepped in with calm encouragement, and that kid ended up having a blast and walking away so proud of themselves. We felt safe the entire time. Highly recommended!

I reserved the 3/4 Chamisa Canyon slot canyon and rappelling tour with this company for our family…read moreof 4 which consisted of 2 adults (age 50) and 2 high-school boys. We had an amazing guide who was fun, engaging a knowledgeable about local wildlife and vegetation. After a vigorous but doable 1.5 mile hike we descended thru the canyons. We completed 3 or 4 smaller obstacles that required some roping / tethering then then culminated in the final rappel descent which is exhilarating for newbies to this sport. 100 pct highly recommend.

Permit difficult to obtain. If you don't get at 8 am try 14-15 minutes later when the computer bots…read morerelease what they grabbed. March was great, weather good, perhaps not as crowded, no ranger hikes. Still saw at least 4 groups. Enjoyed meandering and feeling like we discovered things. Assure that you do actually walk down the posted "dead end" areas because although they are dead ends there are great features to see.

Wonderful hike within the Arches National Park. It is a…read moreunique opportunity to "Get lost" This hike needs to get a permit, pick it up on a day of hike in the morning and attend a small lecture from rangers at the visitor center. There is not an official trail in the area and literally wander around the wonderland. Great! More detail I wrote in my blog. https://himebackpacker.blogspot.com/2025/05/fiery-furnace-arches-national-park-utah.html