Dates we visited: October 12th - October 18th 2020
Where we stayed: Green River KOA
Our fifth and final stop in the Utah Mighty 5 was Canyonlands National Park. Like Arches, this park is near Moab, however it is far less well-known, and much less visited. As it turned out, this was also our favorite of the five Utah National Parks. As its name implies, there are many canyons to be explored here. While it may not be as grand in depth and length as the Grand Canyon, we found this area to be very interesting. As you can see in some of Kristy’s photos, there are canyons within canyon’s which are joined by other canyons. It’s basically canyons all the way down.
Mesa Arch
Surprisingly, one of our favorite features of Canyonlands was the Mesa Arch. This arch was a striking example of this unique rock formation, and it was a bit more accessible than some of it’s brethren over in Arches National Park. We took a short hike to this Arch at sunrise, and even though there were a few other folks in the area, everyone was friendly and took turns capturing photos from the prime locations.
Grand View
The main road at Canyonlands enters the park on the north side, and offers a scenic drive up Grand View Point Road to it’s ending at Grand View Point.
The 1.8 mile out and back trail at Grand View Point is spectacular. The trail winds along the rim of the canyon, offering different vantage points of the multiple canyons. It was a little nerve-racking with Owen since there are no guardrails on the trail, but he did a great job sticking close to us and holding hands at the narrow sections.
If you haven’t heard of Canyonlands National Park, consider yourself informed. There are a number of hiking trails around the park, along with what appeared to be a pretty intense 4-wheel trail down into the canyons. Next time you are in the Moab area of Utah, make sure to take a day or two to explore this park.