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WHAT IS IT?75,000+ scenic acres of red. Red dirt, red sandstone, red rocks and one of the world’s largest concentrations of natural arches. They are red, too.
BEAUTY (8/10)
The density of amazing rock formations and sandstone arches is a little overwhelming. The freakish beauty and unknown geology blossoms in all directions. We had only ever seen a few arches prior to our visit. Once you are inside the park, they are commonplace and we became desensitized to the wonders. Do you want to stop at the next overlook? What’s there? Another arch. Let’s keep going. It is a horrible thing to let cynicism creep into any National Park, so we are sorry Arches NP.
HISTORICAL INTEREST (2/10)
Utah features the Delicate Arch on its license plate. We think it is a terrific design.
CROWDS (4/10)
We started out from out from our delightful Moab motel at 8:30 and arrived at Arches NP soon after. Most Parks do not let people into their campgrounds until the 11:00am checkout. Arches NP is not one of those places.
People line up for spots at the 52-site Devils Garden Campground early. Star Wars tickets early, Duke Basketball game early. On April 18, spots were gone at 8:00am. On the day of our visit, April 19, campsites filled at 7:35am, 25 minutes before the park actually opened! Did they spend the night camping at the Visitor Center hoping to get a real campsite for the next day? We will never know.
The problem with the Arches NP crowds is that the Park is ill prepared to handle their large number. A new Visitor Center is opening this summer which should alleviate the inadequate number of current VC area parking spaces, the crowded theater and the stifling bookstore.
EASE OF USE/ACCESS (3/5)Arches NP entrance is 30 miles south of Interstate 70, Exit 180 along U.S. Route 191 or only 5 miles north of the six-lane-wide mad streets of Moab, Utah. A popular local bumper sticker reads NEW YORK·LONDON·PARIS·TOKYO·MOAB. And we agree, Moab is about as close to a “city that never sleeps” as Utah gets.
Moab only started to see life about 15 years ago, when it announced itself the mountain biking capital of the world. Mountain bikers, restaurants, motels, hummer tours, bars and coffee shops have invaded ever since. Moab’s resident population might not be huge, but you will definitely find something here to keep you occupied.
The Park itself is easily traversed. Over 20 miles of paved road leads to innumerable overlooks. The trails can get hot in the noon day sun, but for the most part they travel along slickrock, one of the easier and most fun surfaces to hike on.
CONCESSIONS/BOOKSTORE (3/5)
Currently the bookstore is housed in a trailer. The store’s tight quarters hamper its large selection. We bumped into a few people while browsing. The store stocks the requisite Edward Abbey books and a dazzling array of Arches NP posters. Once the new Visitor Center opens the shopping experience with surely improve.
COSTS (2/5)
Entry is $10 per vehicle, free with the National Parks Pass. If you are able to procure a campsite, it is $10 per night. Guided Ranger tours of the Fiery Furnace are $8 a person. The only way you can visit this area of the Park is via Ranger tour. Make your reservations well in advance.
RANGER/GUIDE TO TOURIST RATIO (3/5)Three Rangers man the ersatz Visitor Center poised to tell you about the best hikes, the best viewpoints and alternative camping options (for the late arrivals). The need for more Rangers was still apparent, given the large crowds and the multi-day wait for Fiery Furnace tours.
We asked a Ranger if they were excited about the new Visitor Center. The response was odd, “we like it here. It’s a smaller space and its easier to keep track of people.” Would more Rangers, more guided tours and a new VC have made our trip better? Definitely.
TOURS/CLASSES (3/10)
The introductory film is such a snooze fest that we snuck out three minutes into it. Those three minutes were painful. Luckily, there are a number of non-celluloid options. Two different Ranger walks and an evening program are offered each day.
The Fiery Furnace is the only section of the Park that requires a Ranger escort. The rest of Arches NP can be seen via the Scenic Drive. Want a better view of the arches? Self-guided trails get you up close and personal with the Park’s namesakes. Walks range in difficulty and length from 0.3 miles roundtrip to over 4 miles. They are all listed in the park brochure.
FUN (6/10)
Scenic drives make us lazy. The fact that so much can be seen from the road and the knowledge that we needed to find some place to sleep that night may have hastened our visit.
When we did park the car and embark on some trails, we found them worthwhile. Arches are definitely more impressive when you are standing underneath them. Hundreds of other visitors agreed. Trails were crowded and getting a pristine photo sans people is nearly impossible. We decided to include oblivious hikers in the shots and use them for perspective. Those are some big arches!
The trails themselves are primarily sand and slickrock. Arches NP can get pretty windy, kicking up dusty bits that are painful to contact-wearers like Gab. We decided that we prefer hiking in canyons, like the ones at Natural Bridges NP.
WOULD WE RECOMMEND? (7/10)Delicate Arch is much smaller than Gab imagined. At least that is what we think.
The Delicate Arch Viewpoint Trail is poorly named. This trail will take you to a point where you can see the arch IF you stand on your tippy toes and have binoculars. A whole bunch of people were walking up the slickrock, so we did our best lemming impression and followed them. 500-foot altitude change up and we were still no closer. The wind whipped us around and the Delicate Arch still seemed small in the distance.
If you want to see Arches NP’s most famous denizen, take the 3-mile long Delicate Arch Trail. Maybe then its grandiosity will become apparent. As for the other arches, they are all really cool. Check the map to see which ones face east and which ones face west. Take your pictures accordingly. Noon is not a good time to be in the Park.
TOTAL 41/80
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