| Arches National Park | |
Things to Do:
Arches National Park offers opportunities for a variety of activities depending on your personal interests. To make the most of your visit, stop at the visitor center first, which is located along Highway 191, 5 miles north of Moab. A park orientation program is shown in the auditorium every half hour. The visitor center is open daily from 8am to 4:30pm, with extended hours spring through fall.
Plan on spending at least a few hours in the park, exploring the scenic drive and several of the viewpoints and short trails. If time permits, longer hikes lead to many spectacular rock formations, including Delicate Arch, and the Devils Garden Campground provides an excellent base camp for multi-day trips. Also, consider attending an interpretive program. Guided walks, short talks and campfire programs are offered daily March through October.
Arches contains a number of hiking trails. Ranging in length and difficulty, these trails provide access to outstanding viewpoints and many of the park's famous features, including Balanced Rock and Delicate Arch. In many cases, trails travel under arches, affording quite a different perspective than what is visible from a car.
Other
activities
Arches offers great opportunities for both road and
mountain biking. Though there are no bike lanes and traffic can be heavy at
times, biking the scenic drive is a great way to see the park. The Salt Valley
and Willow Springs roads are less traveled but are more suited to mountain bikes
due to washboards, deep sand and other obstacles. The
rock at Arches offers excellent climbing opportunities, despite its sandy
nature. Most climbing routes in the park require advanced techniques. Permits
are not required, unless the trip involves an overnight stay in the backcountry.
In addition to guided walks and campfire programs offered by the National Park Service, there are also a few privately operated tour companies authorized by NPS to provide visitors with guided trips into the park.