Entrance sign
Arches National Park:
Park Avenue Viewpoint and Trailhead
Park Avenue Trail is the first major attractions within the park, and it is also the first hiking opportunity. Once we passed the entrance, we soon arrived Park Avenue. The entire hike was 2.0 miles round trip. It only took a few seconds of walking to the viewpoint from the parking lot. Many visitors are satisfied and stopped at the viewpoint, but it requires one to actually hike physically to understand how this attraction was named after Park Avenue. In comparison, the real Park Avenue is a wide boulevard in NYC, with skyscrapers on both side of the avenue.
Park Avenue
When I saw an entire wall of monolith of Park Avenue right in my face, the view was spectacular. Although my friend and I didn't walk all the way down to the bottom, I would highly recommend spending some time and going to the bottom at the very least, and shooting some pictures from the bottom toward the sky. It will show you a different perspective.
Courthouse Towers is a collection of colossal rocks that stretch 4,800 feet high. In this area, you will find Baby Arch, The Organ, Three Gossips, Ring Arch, Tower of Babel, and many more. I found it extremely odd that the entire parking lot was empty when I got here. It seemed like either nobody cared about Courthouse Towers or it just happened to be a coincidence at that moment. A few seconds was all it took to capture a great shot with our sports car along with The Organ behind it without having any stranger in sight.
Our car in front of The Organ
When you finish taking picture at The Organ, make sure you also spend some time to enjoy Three Gossips and Sheep Rock as well as many other arches right across the road from the parking lot. These two are quite easy to miss if you only care about Delicate Arch, Double Arch, and other relatively more popular sites.
Three Gossips is approximately 350 feet high, and its name comes from the formation to three heads gossiping to each other. The rock is climbable all year round, but I would definitely suggest not to do so unless you have any related experiences.
Sheep Rock on the far right, and Three Gossips on the left
Petrified Dunes are a series of rock formations located in the park, and it was once covered by vast sand dunes. Million years ago, winds from the northeast carried fine-grained sand into this area, creating a massive desert. Slowly, the sand drifts were covered by other layers of quartz and calcite, which eventually turns into Navajo Sandstone. Honestly, I wasn't impressed with this spot even knowing its history, but it was still interesting to learn its past.
Sand dunes are no longer easily visible as the map shows
Apparently, you can still set off and walk to examine as well as explore around this area even though there was no trail leading into the dunes according to online information. Nonetheless, I took a shot and moved on to the next attraction.
Before we drove toward Balanced Rock, I realized the map indicated there was The Great Wall on our left-hand side. The Great wall is a "drive-by panorama" of sandstone showing the effects of million years of erosion and weathering, and at the end of the Great Wall will be the location of the Balanced Rock. My first thought was "The Great Wall of China?"...I simply wasn't drawn to it.
I just couldn't connect the name "The Great Wall" to this view...
Balanced Rock is 128 feet high, and it's also one of my favorite locations in the park. Not only did it have a unique shape, this particular location was also one of the best places to stargaze at night. I was fascinated. This rock is also the largest of its kind within the park, weighing approximately the same as 27 blue whales according online. If you enjoy hiking, there is a short loop trail leading around the base of the rock, which will take you no more than 30 minutes at most.
Great location for stargazing at night
We were lucky enough to capture Milky Way here, but unfortunately the direction of Milky Way was on the opposite side of the rock, which meant my foreground would be the parking lot instead of the rock. Since this was a popular spot, a lot of people tried to climb up to the rock, so I had to be patience to get a perfect shot.
Milky Way!!!
Stargazing at Balanced Rock
Double Arch is a close-set pair of natural arches, and it is another one of my favorite spots. For some reason, we were exhausted even though it was only a 0.5 mile round trip between the arches and the parking area. The entire area was wide open without any fences to prevent visitors from exploring directly beneath and through the arches, and that was exactly why everyone wanted to climb to the top under the second arch.
Full view of Double Arch from distance
Double Arch was formed differently from most of the arches in the park. It is known as a pothole arch, which means the arch was formed by water erosion from above rather than erosion from the side.
You should definitely expect to spend at least an hour here, and that's still a generous estimate. When I got here, I didn't think there were many people, but I still ended up spending a lot of time. Everyone had to line up and wait for his turn to climb to the top of the second arch, and it wasn't particularly easy for child or elder people. BE CAREFUL if anyone in the party decides to go up there for a photograph.
Not a particularly easy climb for child or elder people
Windows located on the other side of Double Arch, so you can just walk there or drive around and hope you find a parking spot. The trail was only 1.0 mile round trip, and it was fairly easy to hike around. Additionally, we also saw Turret Arch on the way because it was nearby. I would suggest skipping Windows hiking trail if you are short on time and simply take a quick picture of both windows in your view, which means DO NOT loop around to the back of it. However, this was also another great spot to stargaze at night.
Back of Windows
Front of Windows
The Windows Trail with primitive loop around the back is 1.7 miles, and it will take approximately 1.5 hours to complete, subject to one's condition physically.
End of the primitive trail from Windows hiking route
Turret Arch was a MUST visit. It was a beautiful stand alone arch in the same area as both Windows. One of the best ways to photograph this arch would be to stand at the North Windows and look at the entire Turret Arch and its surrounding through the window. If you like to photograph sunrise or sunset, I would also recommend coming here.
Best shot would be looking at this exact angle through the Windows
Garden of Eden
The area is more of a look out than a trail. From the research I did before the trip, this was an underrated viewpoint. It had an open trail where everyone can explore on his own to truly feel the unusual sandstone up close here. Again, according to what people say online this place would be another spot to stargaze as well. Due to lack of time we had, we only stopped on the road for a few seconds, so I could take a panoramic shot of it.
My first impression was not that great at Panorama Point. I mean...it wasn't bad either, and I can understand the reason why this spot was named Panorama Point. However, I just wasn't too fond of it. Oddly enough, I started to like it a lot more after I looked at the picture I took here over and over again while I was going through editing my photos. We came here very late at night trying to photograph the star trail, but I didn't put my camera far into the open area, so a vehicle drove into the parking lot with its high beam on...completely ruined our effort of staying there for an hour...Don't position your camera anywhere near the parking lot and make the same mistake I did.
I found Salt Valley very interesting, vast slightly greenish rocks lined up one after another one. You are able to see the Fiery Furnace from here as well since it's located on the left-hand side. These two attractions were just under 5 minutes driving distance away.
Crows in this park are not afraid of human at all...
On the way to Salt Valley Overlook but could already see Fiery Furnace from distance
Fiery Furnace is a natural labyrinth of narrow passages between sandstone walls. According to the official site, you need to obtain a hiking permit at the visitor center or accompany a ranger-guided hike in order to enter the area. If I had enough time, I would have obtained a permit and gone into the Fiery Furnace. But even if it was just from the viewpoint, it was still amazing nonetheless.
There are many paths within Fiery Furnace, so it is certainly a possibility of getting lost in there. GPS does not work well due to the surrounding sandstone walls. If you are interested in hiking here, please refer to the complete detail here 👈.
I tried to time myself correctly, so I would have enough time to hike the Delicate Arch. As a result, this was the furthest point I got to in Arches National Park. Unfortunately, I didn't get to visit any other arches beyond this point, however, I would like to come back again in the future.
The most famous landmark in the park. There were two choices to view the Delicate Arch: one was to view them from either lower or upper Delicate Arch viewpoints, and another one was to actually hike to the top, which was 3.0 miles round trip. Be sure to save enough time and plan accordingly if you aim to view the sunset right next to the Arch at the top. The hike was not particularly difficult if you come prepared. That's being said, it will be if you're not prepared. It was very brutal for us because we didn't have water (don't ask me why) or snacks...and I was also afraid of heights near the Delicate Arch.
When you hit this platform, you are only half way to the top
If you plan on coming here to view the sunset, be sure to carry a flashlight with you as well because everything was very dark and difficult to see especially since the route was essentially an open hiking area. I wouldn't be surprised if someone gets lost here without a flashlight at night time (phone flashlight works well enough). Just a reminder, there were many photographers that wanted to capture the sunset here, so if you plan on taking some pictures during sunset you might run into a huge crowd.
My friend, Li-De
Delicate Arch is 46 feet high and 32 feet wide, making it the largest free-standing arch in the park. You should know the trade off between taking the actual hike to the top versus going to the viewpoints. Weather conditions should also be considered if you decide to climb this uphill trail.
Photo Credit: Matt Hayes
Mesa Arch
Since Canyonlands National Park was only 45 minutes away from Arches National Park, there was absolutely no reason not to check out this popular attraction, Mesa Arch, within the park. I tried to time myself to get to the Arch just 20 minutes before sunrise, and I didn't know exactly what was going through my head expecting that I could get a decent spot arriving there so late. As expected...when I arrived, all the best spots were already taken, so I had to move around and even held my camera right on top of someone else to get some nice shots. GET THERE AT LEAST 90 MINUTES BEFORE SUNRISE if you are serious about capturing one of the best shot possible.
Photo Credit: Matt Hayes
Photo Credit: Matt Hayes; That's me in the scene haha!
First night: Provo Marriott Hotel & Conference Center - Category 4
Our flight arrived at Salt Lake City around 11pm. Considering the fact we still needed to drive over three hours SE next morning to reach Arches National Park, I decided to book this property because its location was already on the way to the park, and it was nearly an hour away from the airport. Did you notice that this was one of Marriott's Category 4 properties? Therefore, I was able to redeem the free night using Chase or/and AMEX Marriott/SPG credit cards' benefits. The redemption value wasn't fantastic, but as long as the cost was higher than the annual fees on the credit cards, then it's totally worth it.
- Fitness center opens 24/7
- Swimming pool closes at 11pm
- Lounge is on 9th floor, and it doesn't open on the weekend. For platinum members, you will get a breakfast voucher to use for the restaurant on the first floor on the weekend instead.
Look at the map below: did you see that this property is literally located right outside of Arches National Park!? This location made it convenient for us because I planned to capture the Milky Way, which means we would probably return to the hotel quite late at night. Moreover, Canyonlands National Park is right next door, so we could visit there next morning as well. In terms of price, it was not great to use the points to redeem, so I used cash to book one night directly.
I found this property pretty interesting
There was certain order to determine whether I should use points and/or miles to redeem a flight or just use cash. Like always, I didn't want to take an extra day off, so I needed to find a flight that departed after work on Friday but also arrived in Philly as late as possible on Sunday.
- Looked up how many miles I would need to redeem a flight between SLC and PHL using Best Award or AwardHacker, and the result showed that the most economically efficient way was to use Avios (British Airways), which it would require 20,000 miles. However, the timing was not ideal. Moved on to the next step...
- Used Chase Travel Portal to look up the cash price, and it turned out to be quite expensive for a quick weekend trip.
- Finally, I decided to use one of the benefits on the Chase Ritz Carlton credit card, Visa Infinite. $100 discount on domestic flights with minimum of two travelers, and card holder is included. As a result, my friend and I paid $336.10 per person for the airfares.
- Rental car is located right across the street from the airport. Our rate on the sports car was totaled of $117 from Friday night to Sunday afternoon.
On national park service website, it outlines the daily vehicle traffic throughout entire year, although the data is based on 2016, but the change should be minimal from year to year.
Generally speaking, the busy season runs from March to October as well as Thanksgiving. If you want to avoid the crowded, you should avoid the months mentioned above, especially in these four holidays and weekends: weeks surrounding Easter, Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Utah Education Association break.
Tips & Precautions:
- Arches National Park Hiking Routes - Link
- Canyonland National Park Hiking Routes - Link
- Research and have a plan before you go! Don't overreach especially in the summer.
- Wear appropriate footwear for hiking...obvious enough.
- Don't expect to see arches everywhere because most of the famous ones require hiking.
- DFW airpot has AMEX Centurion Lounge. You can enter if you have AMEX Platinum credit card. It's located near Gate D12 right next to Applebee's. If you are short on time with connecting flight, you can use Skylink train. I felt comfortable with the time I had, and I went between terminals C and D via Skylink.
- Use Skyridge to reach airport rental, avoid unpleasant weather, at SLC.
- If you want to climb anywhere in the Arches National Park, you need to get permits from the visitor center.
Q&A:
What are the entrance fees for Arches National Park?
$30 per vehicle. Note that I entered Arches National Park at night again for photographing the Milky Way, and it was essentially free because it was very late. It applies to Canyonlands National Park too if you are aiming to go after the sunrise at Mesa Arch, which you would want to enter early morning.
Where should I stay to minimize the cost?
Honestly, if you enjoy night photography like me, I would seriously suggest you to sleep in the car for one night because the sky was full of stars in the Arches, and it's perfect location to capture the Milky Way, play with time lapse, or do star trails photography between Spring and Fall. Alternatively, I like the city Moab a lot, so I would probably stay there next time, either Airbnb or any hotel brands.
Which arches would you suggest to visit or not to visit?
If you ask this question, I would assume you are very short on time, otherwise, you should visit all of them! Given that you have to skip some spots, I would say my top five spots were Delicate Arch, Turret Arch, Double Arch, Balanced Rock, and Mesa Arch. However, many of them would not take you more than a few minutes to grab a nice picture at the very least.
Do you have any recommendation on local foods?
Yes! I loved Spitfire Smokehouse in the Moab. At night time, they actually serve it inside of World Famous Woody's Tavern, but options are limited simply because most of population options were sold out already. When I got there at night, they only had brisket and pulled pork left. I liked the brisket.
I was going to get sausage and brisket, but sausage ran out...
How many days do I need for this trip?
I mean...this is a very subjective question. As some of you may think my schedule was very tight on time, but that's simply personal preference and choice to make. I think a full day would be well enough for the Arches National Park, however, if you want to photograph the sunrise and sunset at multiple different locations, then obviously you need more than just one day. On the other hand, I only went for sunrise at Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park, but I liked the scenes just as much when I was driving through the park.
Why are you only doing this trip for 2 days?
Travel and photography has now become part of my life. Additionally, I utilize the points and miles from banks and airline programs, which I earned through multiple credit cards, to minimize the cost of traveling. If you would like to learn more details about how to travel in luxury for free or lower cost, you can find me on FB and sent me a private message, then I will respond ASAP.
Why are you only doing this trip for 2 days?
Travel and photography has now become part of my life. Additionally, I utilize the points and miles from banks and airline programs, which I earned through multiple credit cards, to minimize the cost of traveling. If you would like to learn more details about how to travel in luxury for free or lower cost, you can find me on FB and sent me a private message, then I will respond ASAP.
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