Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
12. Canyonlands National Park
About 60 miles from Monticello by way of Rtes. 191 and 211, Canyonlands is the largest
yet least developed of the national parks in Utah. It encompasses a vast expanse of me-
sas and canyons surrounding the muddy confluence of the Green and Colorado rivers—a
landscape characterized by explorer and surveyor John Wesley Powell as “a wilderness of
rocks…with ten thousand strangely carved forms in every direction.”
The rivers divide the park into four unique districts: the Island in the Sky, the Needles,
the Maze, and the rivers themselves.
Among the strangest of these districts is the Needles, a surreal jumble of stone turrets,
towers, and minarets fashioned from Permian sandstone that is banded in shades of cream
and rust. Here awed visitors gaze at giant spires—some up to 30 stories high—that have
been standing at attention for millennia—long before there were humans to see them.
Historic people of many cultures have visited Canyonlands over a span lasting more
than10,000years—relyingonandexploitingtherichresourcesthathideinthedesertland-
scape. Many prehistoric campsites exist within the park's boundaries.
For several miles after entering the park, Rte. 211 snakes by sites with such names
as Wooden Shoe Overlook, Squaw Flat, and Pothole Point and reaches a dead end at Big
Spring Canyon. Four-wheel-drive roads and trails lead deep into the Needles backcoun-
try—amongthemtheharrowingElephantHillRoad,whereoneparticularturncanbemade
onlyafterbackinguptotheedgeofasheerprecipice thathasnoguardrail.Shorttrailslead
to an ancient Anasazi granary and to an abandoned cowboy's camp that features century-
old wooden and iron handmade furnishings.
Did you know…
Most of Canyon Country's annual precipitation falls during summer monsoons.
These storms usually last less than 20 minutes but can cause powerful flash
floods.
13. Arches National Park
Returning to Rte. 191, the drive heads north to Moab, then crosses the Colorado River and
arrives at the entrance to Arches National Park. Given the singularity and variety of the
rock formations here, it's not surprising that early explorers mistook them for the ruins of
an ancient civilization. Within the park are more than 2,000 named arches, as well as other
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