Canyonlands National Park - patchwork&pebbles

Overview

Canyonlands is located in the Moab area, 30 miles from Arches National Park and next to Indian Creek (Bears Ears National Monument).

Most visitors stay in the Island in the Sky area at the north entrance, which is closest to Moab. However, if you take an hour to drive to the Southern entrance to the Needles District, you drive through Indian Creek and can see gorgeous canyons without tourists.

Island in the Sky District

The Green River and Colorado River merge in a “Y” at the center of the park and divide the park into 3 distinct areas. Island in the Sky, in the northern part of the “v” shape, is the easiest to access for short trips and has the most well-known views of sheer cliffs upon cliffs. It’s the closest to Arches NP and has numerous overlook pullouts, including Mesa Arch.

canyonlands national park view from mesa arch — East view at Mesa Arch, just a 0.7mi walk. The Colorado River runs in the background.

canyonlands national park mesa arch — Mesa Arch. It was surprisingly small for how it’s photographed. It’s only about 10ft tall!

canyonlands national park upheaval dome — View from Upheaval Dome, a 2mi there-and-back flat hike. On the right side of the fingers you can see an unpaved road that you can drive on.

canyonlands national park upheaval dome hike — View from Upheaval Dome hike.

canyonlands national park buck canyon after storm — Storm rolling through from Buck Canyon viewpoint. It rained in patches, always with some blue sky.

canyonlands national park green river lookout at sunset — Sunset over the Green River Overlook. You can see the Green River in center photo. The Colorado River runs to the left and joins the Green River in a “Y,” continuing to flow south.

White Rim Trail

There’s a 100-mile offroad trail that makes a “U” through the northern part of the park, following a canyon rim like the photo above. You need permits for access and for camping. It’s on our top 5 list of things to do next.

Needles District

The Southeastern part of Canyonlands, or the right side of the “Y,” is the Needles District, which is characterized by tall spires. You need to drive back outside the park, south through Moab, and then west through Indian Creek to enter the Needles. There’s quite a bit more hiking in this district and a lot of backcountry camping.

Indian creek UT climbing — The drive through Indian Creek / Bear’s Ears National Monument on the way to the Needles District.

canyonlands national park needles district hike — Hike to Chesler Park, Needles District, 6mi there-and-back.

canyonlands national park needles district — The Needles from Chesler Park viewpoint. You can continue with permits for backcountry activities.

canyonlands national park biosoil — The biological soil crust of cyanobacteria that covers most of the Canyonlands area. Hikers are urged to stay on existing trails, as walking on the crust damages the ecosystem.

Maze District

The third district, the Maze, is in the Southwestern part of the “Y” and only accessible to 4WD vehicles. We didn’t get to see any part of it. Legitimate rock-hopping 4WD is needed.

Camping

There’s only a single campground in the Island in the Sky district, Willow Flat, with a handful of sites. It was pretty empty in the mid-week in late fall, but will fill up. The Needles district is much less crowded and may be easier to nab camping. Indian Creek is another option, since you drive through it on your way to the Needles–it’s all BLM land, primitive camping with no water and only pit toilets, but very well maintained. There’s a ton of other camping and RV parks in the Moab region.

Amenities: Showers, Cell Service

Check out http://discovermoab.com/shower.htm to find a shower.

We got spotty cell reception in the park. We picked up Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile at the Island in the Sky visitor’s center and almost no reception at Willow Creek Campground or anywhere else in the park. The Visitors Centers have free Wi-Fi.

Nearby

Check out my other articles on destinations in the Moab area:

Indian Creek (Bears Ears National Monument)
Arches National Park

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