Utah’s national parks are popular spots for both locals and visitors, and it’s easy to see why – all five parks offer stunning beauty and tons of recreational opportunities. The Big Five: Zion, Canyonlands, Arches, Bryce Canyon, and Capitol Reef National Parks received more than 10.5 million visitors during 2017, but there’s one park that has way fewer annual guests than the others, and it’s well worth the journey: Canyonlands is the most underrated national park in Utah.
Canyonlands National Park is Utah’s least-visited park, with 742,271 visitors in 2017. Utah’s most-visited park, Zion National Park, had 4,504,812 guests – more than six times more.
Why does Canyonlands have fewer visitors that the other parks? It’s certainly every bit as beautiful, but it is a little more remote, and much of the park is difficult to access for the typical visitor.
The Park has five districts: Island in the Sky, The Needles, The Maze, Horseshoe Canyon Unit, and The Rivers. To see most of The Needles District, shown here, you’ll need four-wheel drive, or be willing to hike in. The Maze is so remote that most visitors must plan a 4-7 day trip in order to reach the area and explore it, and they must be fairly experienced with backcountry travel.
The Great Gallery, in the Horseshoe Canyon Unit is accessible with most cars, by taking a dirt road from Goblin Valley State Park or from Green River. The road from Green River will get you there the fastest – in 1.5 hours. It’s a long time to drive on a dirt road, but the Native American rock art you’ll see here is among some of the most impressive in all of North America.
The easiest way to get a good dose of the stunning scenery that Canyonlands National Park has to offer is to visit the Islands in the Sky District, which is the most easily accessible spot in the park.
Mesa Arch is most well-known feature of the park, and people come from all over the world to photograph sunrise through this arch. It’s easy for just about everyone to reach the arch with a short stroll, but if you want to photograph the sunrise, get there early.
Grand View Point is a must-see during your trip to the park. It’s a short, 15-minute walk on a paved trail to the overlook, and as you can see, the view is spectacular.
If you want to experience the vast beauty of Utah, but you don’t want to fight the crowds, consider putting Canyonlands National Park on your travel list. Even if you only see the most accessible sites here, it’s still one of the most magical places in the Beehive State.
If you’ve visited Canyonlands National Park, we’d love to hear about your trip in the comments! Tell our readers about your favorite spots in the park.
Learn more about the Islands in the Sky District in our previous article here, and check out details about Mesa Arch here.