We visited Canyonlands in April 2016 during Big Trip #1.
As we surveyed the vista at the first overlook at Canyonlands National Park, we said to each other “this is my new favorite park.” Canyonlands is enormous; we were in the main Island in the Sky section, with arches, domes, and the canyons, the magnificent canyons. We ran up the slickrock to see the Mesa Arch first thing before the crowds, but for some reason this park didn’t seem to get nearly as crowded as its neighbor Arches. The other hike we did was Whale Rock, and then we spent the rest of our morning driving the scenic drive and gawking at the overlooks.
Next time we visit, if we are Bug-less (shhhhh) we’ll drive the no-dogs-allowed White Rim Road, a 100-mile drive on old dirt roads along the lower rim of the canyon. What an experience it must be to spend the night down there. We also have dreams of visiting the farther-afield Needles section of the park, which we planned to do when visiting Monticello on Big Trip #2, but didn’t realize it’s still a long drive from there. Someday we’ll figure it all out.
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