Arches National Park – Moab Utah

If I were forced to name a list of my “Top 10 Most Beautiful Landscapes” right now, Utah’s national parks, desert and canyon lands would be a strong contender for that number one spot. Growing up in Michigan with its lush pine forests surrounded by the Great Lakes, home to the largest freshwater system in the world, we are used to the exact opposite of this almost alien landscape. I never thought I would fall so quickly and madly in love with this strange beauty that is completely devoid of any familiar features. Eric also fell hard for these exotic lands and has said on more than one occasion that he “thinks about the desert every day”. Another fella who had an affinity for this special place was Edward Abbey and if you haven’t read his book Desert Solitaire, we both would highly recommend it.

In April of 2024 after being sufficiently frozen at the Grand Canyon we drove on in search of warmer temps and a free campsite in the Valley of the Gods which is situated on BLM land near Monument Valley. For anyone not familiar with this acronym BLM stands for the Bureau of Land Management which is a U.S. government agency that manages approximately 245 million acres of public land, much of which is open to camping for stays of up to 14 consecutive days for free. Many of these camping areas can be found using apps and tips from our resource page like ioverlander. Along the drive we stopped to check out some dinosaur tracks from the early Jurassic period (202-200 million years old). Some Dilophosaurus skeletons were excavated here by archaeologists in the 1940’s and you can tour the tracks and remains of the dig site which is situated on Navajo lands near Tuba City. We were unaware that there would be people of the Navajo Nation there showing folks around expecting tips, so be sure to have a little cash on hand ($20 seemed the expected going rate, we literally only had $8 cash with us and felt like jerks). We also drove by Monument valley which was featured in the cross country running scene in Forest Gump, and finally arrived in the dark to Valley of the Gods where we devoured a couple PB&J’s while gazing at the stars. We then hopped into the front seats in the car in lieu of setting up the tent for just one sleep and zonked out in our much warmer climate.

We awoke to a breathtaking landscape and drove back to some port-o-potties we saw on the way in. Finding ourselves without any WAG Bags or other means of waste disposal, this was a really nice perk. Especially since typically BLM land is just literally open land with no established facilities. After a quick camp breakfast of oatmeal and coffee we drove the 17 mile loop that winds through Valley of the Gods before continuing on our merry way towards Moab. Fun fact: It was on this fateful morning while driving this loop, seeing vans and campers dotted around, as well as a few cyclists/hikers, that we actually had our first serious conversation about drastically changing our life and leaving behind the “normal” daily routine, selling the 20 acre farm in Michigan that has been our first home together, and embarking on full time life on the road. As I sit here writing this ten months later in said home, two days after showing it to prospective buyers, those dreams are well on their way to reality. I did mention that this region is at the top of our list of beautiful places, right? It’s literally the spark that lit our nomadic fire.

The rest of the drive to Moab consisted of a few more stops including some cliff dwellings called the five kivas near the town of Blanding, UT. We hiked into a small valley and then up into the cliff dwellings with literally nobody around and no entrance fees. We also stopped at the sand lake petroglyphs as well as Newspaper rock and Wilson Arch which was not even in Arches National Park, it was just on the side of the road! When we stopped at the arch there were climbers repelling down from the top of it. It was very impressive since just climbing up the steep slick rock to get closer to the arch was a bit of a challenge. We reflected on how special a place we must be in when just the drive to the next “place” had all of this to offer and I am sure so much more.

So let’s get into the park now yes? Like other parks we have encountered, to help alleviate traffic jams and overuse of these national treasures Arches uses a timed entry system. We experienced this at Rocky Mountain National park as well which you can learn more about here. At Arches the timed entry runs from 7am-4pm. This mean that no timed entry pass is needed before 7am. Since we are naturally early risers these days and didn’t have camp to pack up after staying in a little motel the night before, we just got up early and headed into the park around 6am to catch sunrise.

With sleepy smiles and full hearts we clambered up into double arch to watch the sun come up on our second national park in three days. There were hardly any other people around at double arch that morning. After sunrise we enjoyed an easy walk around the “windows” arches which was a great introduction to this amazing park.

By the time we finished walking around the “windows” area, timed entry had begun and cars began to trickle in. The timed entry did work remarkably well at this park, keeping the flow of traffic moving and areas available for viewing without feeling overcrowded. We planned to do a big hike through Devils Garden which is at the end of the road that goes through the park, so we travelled on to find a place to set up our dirt bag car camper breakfast shenanigans and fuel up for the day. Since it was going to be a longer hike, 7.9 miles per prior research (turned out to be a bit longer after getting lost and taking side quests), we had a proper breakfast of potatoes, and sausage all cooked in one pot on our single burner camp stove set up. This is the kit we have used for all of 2024 and into 2025 and aside from replacing the folding flatware (there’s nothing worse than your spoon collapsing in on itself halfway to your mouth) with some better titanium, it has served us very well at a bargain price.

After a hearty breakfast and a nice chat with a lovely couple and their young baby who were completing their own morning routine next to us in the parking area (only a little jealous of their hip Scout truck bed camper) we continued on to the trail head. There are vault toilets, a water source and signage with map route options at the trailhead in the Devils Garden area. I highly recommend taking a picture of the map with your phone to have as a back up if you do not have a paper trail map or in case you lose cell service. I did not heed this advice on the front end and had to stop and take a pic of a nice older couples map while already on the trail, thanks new pals.

As you can see on this map (which I actually did remember to photograph), the trail starts right from the parking lot and there are several options of where to go next. We saw quite a few people of varying skill levels. From ambitious young parents with little ones strapped to their backs to sulky teens trudging along to a lovely grandma and grandpa from across the pond in full safari gear and walking sticks (these are the adorable pair that let me snap a pic of their map). There is definitely something that works for everyone’s ability level in Arches. I bet you can guess which route we took from the “you are here” spot on this map. The choices are main trail and primitive trail…you guessed it, we went primitive. We cannot resist a good challenge and tend towards the more comical icons of rock scrambling and apparently falling down a hill. I’ll take the more treacherous route for $200 Alex (RIP Mr. Trebek).

The primitive trail started out pretty tame with easy to follow sandy paths. It escalated quickly though and was true to the disclaimer that it would require some “route finding” and would have fewer markers. More like no markers. We stumbled upon a park ranger deep into the primitive trail who popped out and said we were not on the route anymore and going the completely wrong direction and down a random wash. We turned around and tried to find the way and happened across another slightly lost adventurer named Brian. We quickly formed a temporary party of three to locate a way onward and after a couple more dead ends and wrong turns we could hear some voices coming from the other side of what seemed like an impassable steep rock wall.

With a boost from our new “single serving friend” (without pain, without sacrifice, we would have nothing – Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club) my stubby legged body was boosted up onto the wall we would need to scale to get back on track. Where my hands are is the direction we went, side stepping on slick rock to amble up and over this big rock wall. I believe I saw it on a sign somewhere, but it seems very likely that the primitive trail would not be passable if it had recently rained. Slick rocks time to live up to its name is when it wet!

Obviously this place is lousy with arches and it is so super rad. Additionally a unique feature of this parks formations are the “fins” you can see here in varying gradients of reds and browns. Some of these fins are even large enough to walk on which is a sort of trippy trek as you can see a sheer drop down on either side while walking atop these geological wonders.

This super cool arch is “Double O” and the perfect weather and big blue sky this day made for some fantastic pics. Reminder on hiking or even just walking in the desert: always be sure to bring sun protection and water/snacks. We had our 2 liter backpack bladders with us as well as all the normal things we take like beef sticks, pretzels (peanut butter filled are the best) clif bars (I LOVE the chocolate mint flavor) and nuts. We also take electrolyte tablets with us on hikes or bikes because as you sweat your body is depleted of its salt and so these are a quick way to replenish your salt and other electrolytes. They actually help with hiker hands too, aka your fingers swelling from swinging at your sides and having all your blood rush to them. What also helps with hiker hands is walking around with your arms up in the air (like you just don’t care!) and kind of shaking them around at random. Give it a try, its really fun and doesn’t make you look insane or anything…

On the way out we drove back towards the entrance and popped off on a little side quest walk to look at Delicate Arch from afar. This is THE iconic arch that is on basically all promotional materials for the state of Utah. While we didn’t choose to hike up to Delicate Arch this time around (gotta save something for next time right?) we thoroughly enjoyed our adventure through Devils Garden and have no regrets. We also got another look at balanced rock on the way out, this time in the daylight. This little rocky wonder is clearly visible from the road that winds through the park, no hiking needed for this one. All said and done we did about 14 miles of hiking between double arch, windows, devils garden and delicate arch lookout. Again though, even just a drive through the park will offer stunning views so don’t let big hiking miles scare you away if that’s not your jam.

Whew, if you made it this far, congratulations, we covered a lot of ground, literally. Now go to Utah! A drive through this beauty and a stop at the visitor center is definitely an amazing alternative if hiking and rock scrambling are not in the cards for you. Although Mr. Abbey would likely disagree, the accessibility that the National Parks have to offer is a truly amazing gift. They really do a fantastic job of making these wonders accessible to people of all different capabilities and it is worth noticing and appreciating that effort. Everyone should be able to experience these rare and breathtaking natural environments on our planet. It was a full, fantastic day of hiking in one of the most amazing places we have been. We knew even before the day was over that we would be back and we are counting the days until we return.