Arches explicit
arches explicit
Everything you need to know about Arches National Park in fewer words
About:
Arches National Park sits in the high desert plateau along the Moab fault. Right outside of Moab (10 minutes), it’s extremely easy to access and most hikes are flat. While its relatively small, there are a lot of arches to see, and some take a bit of a walk to get to. The park has over 2,000 natural stone arches and has some beautiful sun sets and the La Sal mountain range always looms in the distance. Take some time to read the signs they have posted, the history of these formations is very impressive, and is ever-changing. Never climb on arches.
Important Notes:
1. Arches can also be busy sometimes especially around 10-11 am, and if there is a long enough line, the NPS may even ask you to turn around and come back in a few hours. Visiting in the afternoon around 2 or 3pm shouldn’t be a problem. Your best bet with only one day would be to get to arches right at open to see all the major arches.
2. If you’re asked to return in a few hours, book it to Canyonlands. Everyone and their mothers will be headed there and it’s a great place to kill some time. It’s only about 35 minutes from Arches.
3. If you have the rare opportunity of having a 4 wheel drive or fairly rugged vehicle for your trip to arches, you may have access to Tower Arch and Marching Men, two neat features worth checking out.
4. You’ll see several arches without even needing to leave your car. They’re everywhere.
Hikes
Double Arch, The Windows, and Turret Arch
(1.5 miles, round trip)
These are the first major arches you will come across in the park. There is a parking lot with bathrooms and such right in the middle of these arches.
A relatively flat trail leads to the base of two giant arch spans that are joined at one end named Double Arch (0.5 miles roundtrip)
In the opposite direction, you will hike a gentle climb up a gravel trail that leads to the massive North and South windows, and Turret Arch. Return via the same trail OR take a slightly longer primitive trail around the back of the arches. You can climb up into the arches from here. (1 mile roundtrip)
Delicate Arch
(3 miles, round trip)
Some geologists predict the fate of this arch is drawing near so do not make the same mistake I made my first time here and only see it from the lower viewpoint. You simply do not understand the scale of this arch until you are right next to it.
Take the Delicate Arch trail at Wolfe Ranch. This trail climbs 480 feet up a steep slickrock slope. The trail has no shade, and you will be exposed to sheer cliffs and narrow rock ledges with no railings. (3 miles round trip)
Landscape Arch and Double O Arch
(6 miles, round trip)
Do not sleep on Devil’s Garden. It’s got some hidden gem arches that will be well worth the reward if you’re willing to put the steps in.
You will notice that Devil’s Garden is a loop, but it’s not necessary to go around the whole loop to see some cool stuff. Double O arch is a must see and it’s just about as far into Devil’s Garden as you need to go. The trail beyond Landscape arch climbs steeply over sandstone slabs. There are uneven surfaces and narrow ledges with steep drop offs. Spur trails lead to more arches and Dark Angel (a spire with ancient petroglyphs) is about 0.5 miles past Double O arch (4.2 miles round trip)
Landscape arch is about a mile along the same trail as Double O arch and you’ll pass it as you hike to Double O Arch. A spectacular ribbon of rock which recently faced some serious erosion in the 90s.
Near Landscape Arch, there are Navajo and Partition arch. I personally haven’t visited those two arches yet, but it may be worth it check them out.
Pine Tree Arch and Tunnel Arch
If you can’t take any more hiking, these may be worth it to skip as well as broken arch and tapestry arch. Either way, these are extremely close to the trail head if you’re feeling eager to see more.
Fiery Furnace
This hike is quite different from the rest, and I have been very interested in taking this hike since I learned about Arches several years ago. You need a special permit and a guide to even go on this hike, and with the pandemic they haven’t been issuing those permits. If you have the opportunity, and the agility, this hike takes you through narrow passages of sandstone canyons.
