Canyonlands National Park

National Parks Image Gallery


©2006 National Park Services
The park has more than 2,500 square miles of canyons, cliffs, hoodoos, and mesas around the confluence of the Green and Colorado rivers. See more pictures of national parks.

Canyonlands National Park
2282 SW Resource Boulevard
Moab, UT 84532
435-719-2313
www.nps.gov/cany

Two great rivers in the West are the Green River and the Colorado River, which meet in Canyonlands National Park. Located in southeastern Utah -- just miles from the Grand Junction, Colorado, airport -- Canyonlands National Park has become one of the most popular parks on the Colorado Plateau.

The park is a hiker's paradise, with hundreds of miles of excellent trails into the slickrock backcountry. There are plenty of other activities to enjoy, too, such as rafting in Cataract Canyon and mountain biking on White Rim Road.

Entrance fees: $10/vehicle for seven days or $5/individual for seven days

Visitor centers: The Island in the Sky Visitor Center and The Needles District Visitor Center are open daily except December 25. The Hans Flat Ranger Station in The Maze District is open daily except December 25.

Other services: One ranger station and two campgrounds

Accommodations:

• Willow Flat Campground in the Island in the Sky District. Open year-round. First-come, first-served.
• Squaw Flat Campground in the Needles District. Open year-round. First-come, first-served.

©2006 Publications International, Ltd.

Visiting Canyonlands National Park
Canyonlands encompasses a vast sandstone wilderness cut by great chasms and gorges. From all appearances, this is one of the most arid places on earth, yet it was forged by water. This is a landscape of deep-shadowed canyons, bright orange mesas, great buff-colored pinnacles, and maroon buttes -- an intense pallet of natural colors that comes alive in the rays of the setting sun. The terrain here seems so surreal that it looks as though it might have been painted by Salvador Dali.

The wild array of arches, sandstone pillars and needles, canyon mazes, and scarps that make up the otherworldly terrain of Canyonlands National Park is the work of the Colorado and Green rivers. They meet in the heart of the park at a spectacular site called the Confluence. Here, the rivers form a great Y, cutting 1,000 feet into the brilliantly hued sandstone. From the Confluence, the rivers roll on as one.

The park is conveniently divided into three regions: The Island in the Sky, The Needles, and The Maze. On the following page, we will describe the highlights of each region.