I knew this stop would be quick, but it was worth it for a bucket-list hike in a bucket-list park. Hiking in Arches has been on “must do” list for ages, but it’s just so far out of the way! When we road-tripped the Grand Canyon in March, I thought of adding Arches in, but it really just wasn’t doable. I thought about adding it on to a future trip to see Mesa Verde cliff dwellings (another huge bucket list item for me!), but it doesn’t fit neatly in that trip either.
So, this was the trip.
Arrive After 4pm: No Lines!
I didn’t have a reservation for Arches, so I knew I needed to arrive after 4pm. The plan was to leave Park City between noon and two. I planned to get to Delicate Arch before the sunset crowd, and get in one more hike before dark.
The jaunt to Olympic Park (totally worth it!) meant that I left Park City just before 2pm and arrived at Arches around 6. There was no line to get in, just a few other cars coming and going. There was a good crowd at the Visitor’s Center, but because I had grabbed a map at the closed entrance booth, I just pulled over for a minute to orient myself.
The drive itself is gorgeous. The road goes straight up after the visitor’s center and you are immediately surrounded by pretty sheer walls, cool rock formations and an atmosphere that just promises that there’s more around every corner. I passed the Windows/Turret Arch turnoff of my way to Delicate Arch, noting it for the return.
Delicate Arch before the Sunset Crew Arrives
I was a little nervous pulling up to the Delicate Arch parking lot, but it wasn’t full at all. I pulled into a spot, gathered my stuff and headed out. Everything about the start of the trail, from the trail itself to the toilets, to the historic cabin are well maintained. You hike towards the rocks, over a dirt trail and a small bridge. There are two different turn offs for petroglyphs that I would have loved to have explored but just were not in the schedule for the day.
The real hike to Delicate Arch begins as you hit the switch backs over the first set of rocks. You head down a bit into a sort of valley, and then back up. Eventually, you find yourself walking up a pretty smooth rock face. It’s not terribly steep, but you are glad for shoes with sticky tread. I was tremendously grateful to be wearing my new hiking shoes and not my old sneakers which tend to slide.
Slight Detour About Hiking Shoes…
(Feel free to skip this, but my new hiking shoes are amazing. I’ve owned two pairs of hiking boots and one pair of trail runners in my life. Because I have terribly wide feet, all of these shoes have been uncomfortable, squishing my toes dreadfully. But as they were all more expensive than they should have been (and the trail runners were New Balance, which are usually good for wide feet!), I suffered with them until, literally, the soles peeled right off). So, I ordered a pair of Merrell Yokota 2s online. The reviews said that they worked well for wide feet. Oh my, do they! From the moment I put them on, I knew that they were the most comfortable shoes I had ever worn. They seem to actually go wider in the toe area! My feet look down right pudgy in them, but they are soft and comfortable.
I knew they would not need breaking in and they did not! I made sure that my socks were up in the back, between the top of the heel of my shoe and my foot and I added some prophylactic band-aids on the longer hikes, but I don’t think I even needed them. And on these slippery bits, I felt complete confidence in the grip of these shoes which was lovely. They have the feel of rock climbing shoes, slightly sticky. I’ve added an affiliate link to these shoes (I mean, why not?) but I honestly just ordered them from Amazon and love them and wanted to share with my wide-footed compadres: truly excellent for hiking in Arches or any spot with smooth rock trails).
When the Views Start Getting Otherworldly, You’re Getting Close
After the rock face, the direction of the trail gets a little less clear. There are some signs, and honestly, there were enough people that it was hard to get lost, but I did backtrack a tiny bit a few times as I tried find the best way to cross over the shallow creeks and get around some rocks and valleys. You soon come to a rounded out rock valley (lovely views if your shoes are sticky enough to get up to the rim of the bowl). Then you find yourself on a narrow part of the trail that hugs the cliff on one side and looks down on a beautiful wash below.
From here, look up. There’s a hole in the cliff you’re hugging and if you climb up (thanks again sticky shoes!) you can get a great view of the Delicate Arch through Frame Arch (aka Twisted Donut Arch). Thanks to EarthTrekkers and Visit Utah‘s guide for hiking in Arches for telling me to look up for this view — lots of people walk right past it!
The Arch!
Then continue on the cliff and turn a corner and there’s the arch itself. In the early evening the cliff you’ve just rounded provides a circle of shade and lots of people gathered there. They were likely awaiting the sunset (which was still about an hour away at that point). You can walk the whole rim of this rock bowl, just marveling at the Delicate Arch on the edge.
Folks line up to get a shot of themselves under the arch, trading off with strangers to get pics of their whole group. I waited patiently to a pic of the arch without people in it, which I did finally succeed at. But, people were super considering and helpful to each other, which was super nice. The colors of the rocks behind the arch are gorgeous and the rim of the bowl provides ample space to sit, chill, contemplate, photograph, or just rest until it’s time to head back.
When I did head back I face a bigger crowd that had joined me hiking up. This crowd clearly included the instagram folks, people in dresses, and full makeup. There was definitely some questionable foot ware. But it proves that the hike is not too hard – people do it in sandals and heels!
I loved seeing Delicate Arch is the sinking sunlight. It was stunning. I was also lucky to have only two or three people taking photos under it while I was there. And while it was definitely hot, it was probably in the 80s, so a pretty comfortable desert hike. Overall, a great time to hike out to Delicate Arch. And it left me with time for one more hike. Two Wandering Soles’s fabulous overview of Arches, cross-referenced with All Trails, pointed me to Windows as my next stop hiking in Arches.
Sunset Drive Through Arches
The sun started to set as I was hiking back to the car and driving back to the Windows turnoff. Lots of folks parked at turnouts and along the the road, some with camping chairs, watching the sunrise. It was gorgeous, lots of colors and the sky turned a gorgeous shade of blue. But I wanted to be out on the trail, so I kept driving to Windows. The parking lot was also easy to manage and lots of people were just chilling and watching the sunset. (I’m not an intense sunset chaser, but if you are, Dueling Journeys has a great post on places to see a sunset while you’re hiking in Arches!)
Sunset Hike Around Turret Arch
This trail is also well marked and has bathrooms at the start of the trail. I headed in the direction that goes to Turret Arch first because there were lots of people hanging out in the Windows and I wanted to see them a bit emptier if I could. Turret Arch seemed a bit less popular although there were a few other groups heading that way. It’s a short scramble over some rocks to go through the arch and walk along rocky paths behind the arch. The view of the Double Arch, through Turret is truly beautiful. It doesn’t face the sunset, which is probably why Turret is not as popular this time of day, but gorgeous nonetheless.
One of the trickiest parts of hiking in Arches it that everyone wants a picture/selfie in the arches, so I there’s a lot of waiting to get that perfect picture and trying to stay out of people’s pictures. If you are in search of a perfect photo, try to be considerate of the fact that other people are just trying to hike and walk, so if you spend five minutes directing your subjects “up a little, over a little, two more steps to the left” you will eventually just get photobombers. People are considerate but they only have so much patience!
Windows at Dusk
From Turret, I took the trail that went around behind the Windows. I kept thinking of Abbey walking through the Window and then down to a spring in Desert Solitaire. I didn’t get to the spring, but the open space behind the Windows (and I was the only one out there by then) gave me a sense of what Arches was liked before the parking lots and the bathrooms!
The trail behind the Windows is definitely the road less traveled (although, note to self, never walk OVER a line of rocks or a branch across a trail without being thoughtful — that line was probably put there to keep you ON the trail)…. It took me a more backtracks than I care to recount before I really took this lesson to heart! But the trail is sandy and not well marked, so it’s easy to wander off.
By the time I was behind the second window and getting some gorgeous pics of the arch with the moon above it, it was dark and I really appreciated my downloaded All Trails map that kept me heading in the right direction. I knew where the parking lot was, but it was nice not have to blaze my own path through the brush (and whatever critters might have been chilling in that brush).
Cataloging all the Places to See Sunset in Arches
Walking back to the car, the sky continued to be lit up with sunset stripes. I could see people still in the Double Arch, their flashlights bobbing as they hiked down from the perches they had claimed to watch the sunset.
Lesson here: folks in these national parks take sunset seriously. If you want to be in an iconic spot with an iconic view, get there early and claim your space. Bring snacks, make a day of it, but it will be competitive. If you, like me, would rather take advantage of the sunset crowd being stationary for two hours, this is a great time to visit some of the less “optimal for sunset” spots.
Balanced Rock at Twilight
On my drive out, I passed Balanced Rock and stopped just to look at it in the twilight. It is a stunning work of physics — how does that rock stay up there and, when might it come down?
Just as important, as I snapped a photo, I learned that my phone translated twilight into a gorgeous midnight blue. And I’d use that knowledge in my next stop: Mesa Arch in Canyonlands.
Obviously, spending 4 hours hiking in Arches is not enough. But I got a good sense of the park — and I hope go back and spend more time.