must-do hike in Arches is Delicate Arch, the most iconic arch in Utah, if not the world. If you have any time and energy remaining, head to Devils Garden and pay a visit to Landscape Arch—quickly, before it collapses. This seemingly razor-thin span of rock continues to defy gravity and delight visitors.
Park Avenue
1 Park Avenue
Trailhead Location: Park Avenue Viewpoint and parking area
Trail Use: Walking, hiking
Distance & Configuration: 2.0-mile out-and-back or 1.0-mile point-to-point with shuttle
Elevation Range: 4,550' at Park Avenue Viewpoint and Trailhead to 4,230' at Courthouse Towers Viewpoint
Facilities: None
Highlights: The perfect introductory hike in Arches National Park—a downhill walk along a canyon floor with towering walls and balanced rocks on both sides
DESCRIPTION
The Arches experience gets off to an impressive start as you leave the Arches Visitor Center and ascend a road carved below sandstone cliffs. Arriving at the Park Avenue Viewpoint and Trailhead, you’ll need to decide whether to do this hike as a one-way—in which case you’ll need a shuttle driver to meet you at the Courthouse Towers Viewpoint—or as a round-trip. If you have limited time and hope to pack as much hiking into your day as possible, do this as a one-way hike.
Park Avenue is a good introduction to desert hiking in general, where you’ll discover sandy washes, slickrock, and immense sandstone cliffs. You’ll encounter cacti and other desert plants and learn to recognize and avoid stepping on biological soil crusts. You’ll learn to navigate by watching for cairns (small rock piles). The hike also exposes you to full sunlight, so you’ll want to quickly establish the habit of packing water and staying hydrated. It’s best to learn the ropes of desert hiking on a short and easy stretch such as Park Avenue, so you’ll be prepared for bigger adventures deeper in the park. From observation points at either end of the trail, you’ll be able to view most of the towers and walls of Park Avenue. But nothing can match the experience of hiking Park Avenue dwarfed by these monuments on all sides.
ROUTE
The observation deck at the trailhead captures a panorama not only of the canyon you’re about to enter but also of the frequently snowcapped La Sal Mountains, in the distance to the east. Walking down the paved sidewalk to the Park Avenue Viewpoint, you descend far enough into the canyon that the view and perspective of the Courthouse Towers and the canyon walls become even more dramatic.
From the observation deck, backtrack several paces; take the well-worn trail that veers left as it descends steeply into the canyon’s wash. You will be on a slope dotted with Utah junipers and cacti. Continuing on, you’ll find blackbrush, wavyleaf oak, Mormon tea, cliff rose, and single-leaf ash.
Once you reach the canyon floor, you’ll be walking on dirt and sand on a bedrock layer of Navajo Sandstone. While the scenic beauty draws your eyes upward, you’ll need to carefully watch your step, as potholed slickrock and sand can disguise parts of your route. To stay on the trail, watch for the occasional cairns, footprints, and a trail surface already compacted by other hikers.
To the north, an immense fin of Entrada Sandstone called the Tower of Babel rises 300 feet above the wash. There also, the Three Gossips—clustered pinnacles topped with head-shaped boulders—are so lifelike that you can almost hear them talking about you. Approaching the end of the wash, the trail ascends to meet the main park road. Cross Arches Scenic Drive at the crosswalk to the parking area and the Courthouse Towers Viewpoint, where you have fine views to the south of a 250-foot spire called The Organ.
Although there are no prominent arches along Park Avenue, you will notice several sandstone fins with deep erosion and fractures—arches in the making. From the Courthouse Towers Viewpoint, you’ll spot a large pinnacle at the north end of the Sheep Rock fin to the northeast. This was once the abutment of a now-collapsed arch, leading us to wonder what the park will look like 50, 5,000, or 50,000 years from today. What arches will collapse, and what new arches will form?
The Three Gossips
If you have a shuttle vehicle waiting for you at the Courthouse Towers Viewpoint, continue on into the heart of the park. Otherwise, retrace your route back to the Park Avenue Trailhead.
TO THE TRAILHEAD
GPS Coordinates: Park Avenue Trailhead: N38º 37.463' W109º 35.977'
Courthouse Towers Trailhead: N38º 37.471' W109º 35.974'
From the Arches National Park entrance station, continue on Arches Entrance Road (the main park road) for 2.5 miles to the Park Avenue Viewpoint and parking area, on your left. If you plan to do this hike one-way, drive another 1.4 miles to Courthouse Towers Viewpoint, where you can leave a car in the lot on the right.
BIOLOGICAL SOIL CRUSTS: WATCH YOUR STEP
Biological soil crusts, also known as cryptobiotic soils, consist of cyanobacteria, lichens, and mosses. They act symbiotically as a kind of nursery for other desert organisms by binding loose soil particles to prevent erosion, providing nutrients to plants, and holding water. In high desert piñon-juniper and grassland ecosystems, biological soil crusts are the dominant nitrogen source. They cover nearly all desert soil surfaces and are almost invisible in their early stages, but in maturity have a lumpish black appearance.
Please avoid walking on biological soils, as such pressure can do irreversible damage. Lichen recovery takes about 50 years, and moss recovery can take up to 250 years. You can protect these fragile soils by walking only on designated trails, bare rock, or streambeds.
2 Balanced Rock
Trailhead Location: Balanced Rock Parking Area
Trail Use: Walking, hiking
Distance & Configuration: 0.5-mile balloon
Elevation Range: 5,042' at trailhead to 5,070' at the loop’s extension
Facilities: Vault toilet and picnic tables on Willow Flats Road, 0.2 mile north of trailhead
Highlights: A loop hike around one of the world’s most-visited and widely photographed balanced rocks
DESCRIPTION
You’ll see Balanced Rock in the distance and may even be tempted to drive right by as you head down the road in search of the more spectacular arches in the park. But this red-rock monolith is certainly worth a short stop, if for no other reason than to stretch your legs. In return you’ll be rewarded with an up-close 360-degree view of this natural wonder that seems to defy gravity. The short walk gives you a chance to become familiar with the natural forces that created the arches farther down the road.
The general term balanced rock or balancing rock can be applied to any geologic formation in which a large boulder appears to be balancing on top of a pedestal or base. In reality, they are firmly attached to the pedestal (for example, the Entrada Sandstone’s Dewey Bridge formation).
Balanced rocks are classified into different categories: glacial erratics, perched blocks, and erosional remnants. The balanced rock before you, along with the other balanced rocks and hoodoos throughout the Colorado Plateau, is clearly an erosional remnant, a formation