Dead Horse Point & Canyonlands National Park

The only research I did before hitting Canyonlands National Park was looking at stuff on AllTrails. I didn't find a ton outside of the fact that I'd only need one day there so I figured I'd go and see where the day took me. What I learned was, you do only need a day here and most of the spots in this park are overlooks so it's a VERY easy to see almost all of the park with little to no walking. This was good because I went on a hike around Dead Horse Point State Park before hitting Canyonlands, and I was a little tired.

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Big Horn Overlook Trail

I met up with some fellow nomads at Dead Horse Point State Park and hiked with them and their pups. We saw lots of rocks and cool rock formations before making it to the vast canyon view. There is a fee to enter this park of $20- very steep in my personal opinion, but we chose to hike here rather than all going to Canyonlands because state parks are dog friendly (national parks are not). This park was listed as a "must see" when I googled "things to do in Utah" but overall I'd say it's just about the same as Canyonlands National Park, if you're short on time I'd say to skip this spot, but if you have plenty of time it's still a cool place to check out!

3.1 miles

236 feet elevation gain

1 hour 10 minutes

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Canyonlands National Park

Shafer Canyon Overlook & Shafer Trail

Although I had seen a canyon at the state park, I was BLOWN AWAY by the canyons here. There were crazy steep drop-offs, rocks jutting up everywhere, and a beautiful backdrop of the La Sal mountains. Photos cannot do this place justice. I was incredibly pleased that there was parking at every overlook I wanted to check out, and the parking spots were big enough not to stress about parking my truck. There were a lot of history boards here sharing what old roads were used for, and I found it incredible that people used to herd sheep and cattle down through these treacherous rocks (some of them fell off the cliff). There are very few plants throughout the park, but you can spot a shrub here and there which made the land feel desolate.

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Shafer Trail Overlook - 0.9 miles past the visitor center and my first "oh my gosh look at that!" moment of the park.

Mesa Arch- 0.6 mile walk and this spot gets busy! This arch is at the edge of a cliff and is one of the most photographed arches in southeast Utah.

Grand Viewpoint Overlook—There is a trail here (1.8 miles), but I didn't do it because I was tired. From this spot you can see the La Sal Mountains (not captured in the photo but to the far left), Colorado River Canyon, Abajo Mountains (right side of photo), The Needles (not captured in the photo but right of Abajo Mountains).

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Overall, Canyonlands is a must-see park. It has so much history and, in some places, looks like another planet. If you are not planning on doing any strenuous/long hikes, you could spend 3-4 hours here and see most of the park. The beautiful colors of the rocks and crazy views will not disappoint!