A trip to Utah's five national parks will give you the feeling that you've landed on Mars. Known as the Mighty Five, these parks pack fantastical natural wonders. On a recent 10-day road trip from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas, I got a chance to visit each, which includes Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National Parks.
From hoodoos — tall, thin towers of rocks — to deep canyons, the surreal landscape in each park is something you must experience in person. And being national parks, they include adventures and educational moments accessible to people of different physical abilities and financial means. Considering such spectacular and protected land is right here in America, you must add these parks to your travel bucket list. To get you started, here are 16 sites you won't want to miss when you visit Utah's Mighty Five.
After a day visiting Salt Lake City's Mormon cultural sites, including the Family History Library, we hopped in our rented SUV to drive four hours to Moab, a dusty home base for exploring both Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. As you get closer to Moab, red rock formations and mesas (plateaus) begin to emerge in the distance before surrounding you.
Arches National Park has 2,000 natural arches, which are formed from erosion. Double Arch, located in the Windows area of the park, consists of two arches that share the same foundation. Take them in from every angle to experience new sensations of awe.
After just 10 minutes in Utah, chances are you'll recognize this arch from the state's license plate. In person, the scale is much more impressive — see how tiny the people look next to it? The Utah icon can be reached by a three-mile round-trip hike. Go early, since there isn't much shade.
On your walk to Delicate Arch, you'll pass the Wolfe Ranch Rock Art, a hunting petroglyph panel created by the Ute or Paiute Indians in the 1600s. They're easy to spot and in excellent condition.
You'll want to see Landscape Arch before it falls down. In relatively recent times — we're talking the past few centuries — large chunks of the arch have fallen down. Geologically speaking, Landscape Arch is reaching the end of its life. While it's still here, it reigns as the longest arch on earth.
Look up 128 feet and you'll see a 3,600-ton boulder being presented like baby Simba in The Lion King. You can get a good view of the massive balancing act, which is accessible from the park's road. No hike required.
More than 1,000 feet up in the sky sits the appropriately named Island in the Sky mesa. The Grand View Point hike is two miles round-trip and will give you sweeping views of the canyons as you walk along the edge.
Halfway through a short 30-minute loop, you'll reach a cliff and the Mesa Arch straddling the edge. Through the arch, you'll see river-carved desert and perfectly framed mountains in the distance.
Capitol Reef is the least-known national park in Utah, but don't pass it up. After taking in canyons from above at Canyonlands, here you can walk the floor of the Grand Wash gorge. The walls of the canyon stretch 80 stories high and provide much-needed shade.
After days spent among hot, red rock, a bit of greenery is a welcomed sight — and easily found in Capitol Reef. Early Mormon settlers planted fruit orchards in the 1800s, and the National Park Service still maintains them today. Visitors can pick ripe fruit, like apricots and apples, and eat it for free as the warm juice drips down your hand. There is a small fee per pound for whatever fruit you plan to take away. Be sure to check the park ranger program schedule and try to catch an engaging lecture on the history of Fruita and the park.
Bryce Canyon's hoodoos — tall, thin rock formations — seem to go on forever. You can take in panoramic views from the many lookouts in the park, including Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, and Sunrise and Sunset Points.
Once you've seen the Bryce amphitheater from above, venture into it. Combine the popular Navajo Trail with the Queens Garden Trail to get a moderate loop that will bring you past some of the park's most iconic spots, like "Wall Street." There, you'll take a series of narrow switchbacks with rising red, orange, and magenta rock surrounding you.
The hike to Emerald Pools has something for everyone. You can keep it easy and just walk 1.2 miles round-trip to the first pool, or go a steep three miles there and back to the upper pool. As you experience Zion's contrasting dry red mountains and lush green vegetation, stop to cool off near the water.
This two-mile hike is paved and easy to navigate. On a hot day, chances are it will be about 15 degrees cooler than the rest of the park, thanks to its proximity to the water. You'll see hanging gardens and wildlife like deer. Before turning back, you can decide whether to walk through the Gateway of the Narrows or even continue on for the Zion Narrows trail that takes you through water as sheer walls close in.
Ready to get your feet wet? After you reach the end of the paved Riverside Walk, you can venture into the Virgin River and experience The Narrows, an iconic portion of Zion National Park. Be prepared to wade — or even swim.
Often considered the best day hike in America, the five-mile, five-hour round-trip trek will have you hanging on to chains as you traverse the steep landscape and climb almost 1,500 feet into the sky. You'll negotiate a series of 21 switchbacks, with spectacular views as your reward.
