April 26 – May 5, 2026
I stayed a whopping 10 nights at the Spanish Trail RV Park in Moab. Moab is a destination for hikers, bikers, and outdoor enthusiasts. There are also hundreds of miles of Off Highway Vehicle Trials nearby.
Moab is the closest town to Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, and several popular Utah State Parks.
Arches National Park
At the visitor center the ranger recommended the Devil’s Garden area as well as several much shorter hikes. He warned me that trail heads, especially Devil’s Garden, fill up early and suggested saving that for the next day.
Park Avenue
The first trail head I came to was for Park Avenue. There was parking available so I went for it. I expected to see arches everywhere but that is not the case despite there being over 2,000 documented arches in the park.
Not one arch on my first trail but the sandstone formations are incredible none the less.
Sand Dune Arch
The next trail head I could easily park at was for Sand Dune Arch. This was a very short trail and my first arch.
Broken Arch
From the same trail head you can reach Broken Arch.
Another nice cactus flower along the trail.
Skyline Arch
Another arch just off the side of the road is Skyline Arch. There is a trail that you could hike to the arch, actually stand under it, but I just took a picture from the trail head.
La Sal Mountains
along the park’s scenic drive you constantly see the La Sal Mountain range in the distance and there are several pullouts just for the mountains.
Devil’s Garden
The next day I headed out early to get a parking spot at the Devil’s Garden trail head. As you hike in you first pass the Tunnel Arch –
And then the Pine Tree Arch –
And then the highlight of the tail is the Landscape Arch. This is the longest arch in the park at about 100 yards.
I hiked about an hour in the area but that was all the arches.
Delicate Arch
Delicate Arch is probably the most famous in the park. It is also a state symbol – pictured on some Utah license plates. It is listed is a strenuous hike. Here’s the trail to get there.
But it is worth it.
You do pass one other arch on the way – the Twisted Doughnut Arch.
A short excursion off the main trail to some even more petroglyphs.
The Windows
The next day I headed to The Windows Trail. This is another popular short trail and the parking fills up quickly. First you pass the North Window –
You can see how popular it is but if you wait long enough you can get a picture without the people.
Then you pass the Turret Arch –
And then the South Window –
If you take the “primitive”, unmaintained (and longer) trail back to the parking area you are rewarded with a view of both North and South Windows together –
The Double Arch
The Double Arch Trail head shares the same parking area as the Windows. It also shares the crowds. There are people in this picture but barely visible. I was getting sick of people polluting the pictures.
The Balanced Rock
Next up, another very short trail the the Balanced Rock. This is massive, I don’t think pictures really give it justice.
The Ring Arch
I wanted am arch to myself. To reach The Ring Arch it is a 2-3 mile (round trip) hike over primitive, unmaintained trail. There really is no trail head, you park on the side of the road. I was the only one parked and the only one on the trail. I had Ring Arch to myself. Granted it is not as impressive as some of the other Arches.
As I was leaving another hiker arrived and we chatted for a bit. She too was sick of people and had done some research to find this arch.
That was it for Arches National Park.
Canyonlands National Park
Canyonlands is a huge National Park and is divided into four Districts – Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, and The Rivers. The Maze is very remote with no paved roads and no services. The Rivers include the Colorado River and the Green River. You need a permit all River District access.
I spent first day exploring the Island in the Sky.
Mesa Arch
Mesa Arch is a few hundred feet off the Scenic Drive. As you look at the arch you are looking east and it is a popular sunrise arch.
Upheaval Dome
Upheaval Dome is actually a crater in a dome about 3 miles in diameter. There are two theories on how the crater was formed – A Salt Dome or a Crater Impact.
There are trails to two view points. I went to both the lower and upper view points. Lower first –
and upper –
Grand View Point Overlook
At the end of the Scenic Drive there is the Grand View of the Canyon. They say the Grand Canyon in Arizona is twice the depth of this canyon but the this canyon is multiple times wider.
The next day I drove the 60+ miles to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. The ranger at the visitor center suggested several short hikes with view points to a few items of interest.
Stone Storehouse Trail
This trail takes you to a Stone Storehouse the indigenous people used to store grain (or possibly for ceremonial purposes).
Cave Spring Trail
This short hike takes you to an abandoned Cowboy Camp and a Cave Spring.
Not much of a spring but in the dry desert any water is a great find.
The Needles
There are several view points to see the Needles.
Pothole Point Trail
This was an interesting trail – you’re waling along a rock surface full of potholes. The signage said that after a rainfall snails, beetles, worms, and shrimp hatch from eggs or emerge from dormancy. The potholes made hiking somewhat difficult.
The Pothole Point Trail also led to a nice overlook for the Needles.
Slickrock Trail
The Slickrock Trail was my last and longest (at 2.4 miles) hike in the Needles District. The trail follows smooth sandstone to several viewpoints.
Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs
The drive to The Needles District takes you through the Bears Ears National Monument. On the drive in I passed the Newspaper Rock Petroglyphs and stopped for a look on the drive back to camp.
Dead Horse Point State Park
I had one more thing on my list to do while in Moab and that was Dead Horse Point State Park.
From the visitor center I hikes the East Rim Trail to the Point and then the West Rim Trail back to the visitor center for a total of about 5.5 miles.
East Rim
The Point
The Colorado River snakes below.
West Rim
I got Flamingoed
The Pink Flamingo is the unofficial mascot of Airstream culture. It represents retro 1950s style, fun, and travel. I’m sure the Airstream that was parked next to me gave it to me as they left.
