An Incredible day in Arches National Park with kids

One of the greatest rock formations, Arches National Park is a wonderland with landscape of contrasting colors, short hiking trails, strange rock formations, and arches. The park has over 2,000 natural stone arches but you will also see hoodoos, sandstone rocks, and balanced rocks. This red-rock wonderland will amaze you with its formations, refresh you with its trails, and inspire you with its sunsets.

This is our first visit to Arches National Park. Although we have read just enough to know that Arches is one of the popular parks and highly visible on Instagram, we had very little idea about what we had coming for us. We are fresh off our visits at Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park and our expectations are high.

As we have done before when visiting national parks, we stopped by the visitor center to pick up a free map of the park, discuss our plans with the park rangers, pick up junior ranger books and shop for souvenirs or not.

While discussing our plans, one of the rangers suggested that the best way to spend a day in the park is drive the 18-mile scenic road and stop at the attractions and hikes that fit our profile. This 18-mile drive can take less than an hour if you drive straight through or it can take a day if you make many stops. Here are the areas that were suggested to us by the park rangers to visit with kids:

Tip(s):

• We took an afternoon break from the park and headed back to the hotel for few hours to avoid extreme heat. It was scorching and this condition made even a small hike very difficult. To avoid getting sick, this was the best move we made and it re-energized us for the evening visit.
• You can use the Arches National Park map here to plan your trip.

One of the first stops on our list, this famous rock formation is exactly how it sounds. A large rock that’s precariously and improbably perched on a narrow spire. There is round trip path leading to the rock, but it’s also visible from the road and a strategically positioned viewpoint. This is a great stop for a small hike and amazing pictures. There is a small parking lot and from here you can walk around Balanced Rock for an up-close view.

Note for hikers: This is a 0.3 miles round loop trail at the base of a rock formation. Part of the trail is paved and it should take approximately 15-30 mins.

TIP: In between Balanced Rock and the Windows section is Garden of Eden. Stop to take photos of the breath-taking orange sandstone formations.

One of the best places for a stop and must-hike; this stop was recommended by the rangers. From Scenic Drive, turn right onto The Windows Road. This road ends at a loop connecting two car parks, one at the trailhead to the Windows and one at the trailhead for Double Arch. You will come to the parking lot for the Windows first. We parked here and visited the Windows and Double Arch without bothering to move our car (during crowded times it can be very difficult to find parking here).

To get to Turret Arch, take the spur trail just a short distance.

• North Window, South Window, and Turret Arch. These arches are connected by one hiking trail.

  You can hike back to your car via the Primitive Trail. This trail is not as well marked as the main trail and you will need to follow the cairns (piles of rocks used as trail markers) to find your way. The primitive trail adds about 0.5 miles to the hike.

Note for hikers: This is a 1 miles round loop trip. A relatively easy climb up a gravel trail leads to the massive North and South windows and Turret Arch. You can return via the same trail OR you can take slightly longer primitive trail around the back of the Windows from South Window viewpoint. This can take you about 30-60 mins. however we spent a lot longer hanging around, climbing and simply in awe of this beautiful place.

Note for climbers / parents: Climbing here is a lot of fun however be mindful as these climbs are slippery. Climbing down is a lot more difficult vs climbing up.

Double Arch is across from the Windows Arches and is just as it sounds, 2 arches connected at an end. It’s a popular climbing spot for visitors of all ages. Double arch looks small from a distance but it is the tallest arch in the park. It is a short walk to get here and this is one of the few places where you can climb on the rocks under the arch.

Note for hikers: This is a relatively flat 0.5 miles round trip. This can take you about 15-30 mins. or longer depending on how long you spend hanging or climbing around.

Delicate Arch is one of the most popular destinations and highly visible on Instagram. This 65-foot tall rock arch is the main attraction in Arches National Park and people from all around the world travel to Arches to see this arch. Unfortunately we were informed by the rangers that this hike is not recommended for families with young children... so it was a major disappointment but there's a way you can see the arch via Delicate Arch Viewpoint.

Note for hikers: This is a relatively flat 3 miles round trip. This can take you about 2-3 hours or longer depending on how long you spend hanging around.  Kids can do this hike but you will need to keep an eye on them, especially as you walk this short section although it was recommended to us by the rangers to simply see the arch view Delicate Arch Viewpoint.

You cannot hike to the Delicate Arch on these trails; Drive past the Wolfe Ranch parking lot and the flat accessible trail leads to lower viewpoint. The lower viewpoint is only 100 meters from the parking lot. A longer, moderately strenuous trail climbs steeply 0.5 mile to the the upper viewpoint.

Note: If you are headed towards upper viewpoint, take your water bottles, you will need it.

There are so many stops and things to see at Arches National Park besides some of the main areas recommended by the park rangers. We managed to to narrow down a few of our favorites. You might want to have your camera ready, because each one of these destination is waiting to be captured on film, so you can remember them forever.

Landscape Arch is a 1.6-mile round trip gentle hike. The path is mostly gravel until it becomes all sand closer to the arch. Begin the hike at Devils Garden at the north end of the park. If you choose to also hike Double O Arch from above, you’ll pass Landscape Arch along the way and see both arches in the 2-3 hours as stated above.

Devils Garden is considered one the best hike to do in Arches National Park. We did not get around to it and were content with it.

Broken Arch is a walk through a flat, open meadow with snow-capped mountains in the distance. There’s a longer round trip 2-mile loop, but the 1.3-mile out and back round trip will give perfect access to Broken Arch and a wide-open vista for taking photos.

Fiery Furnace is a labyrinth of narrow sandstone canyons that requires agility to explore. It is named for the reddish glow it gets at sunset, the Fiery Furnace has two ways to explore:

1. The easiest way to see the Fiery Furnace is from an overlook.  You can park your car in the lot and walk the very short distance.
2. The best way to enter Fiery Furnace is to accompany a ranger-guided hike or obtain a day-use permit at the visitor center.  

Sand Dune Arch is perhaps overshadowed by the narrow and mysterious entryway to the arch. An easy walk from the parking area, Sand Dune Arch is aptly named as it sits in a sand-filled gap between larger rocks. Go for the ambiance! If you choose to walk to Broken Arch, pair these 2 arches together. The trailhead for both starts out the same before veering off to each arch.

Skyline Arch is a small pull-off from the main scenic road. The flat .4-mile round trip walk reveals a large arch formed in an instant when a giant piece fell out of the formation and created a perfect arch.

Panasonic point is where you can get an entire park view with picnic spot.

Take a look at the ranger programs listed in the park newsletter. There are always activities including ranger led hikes, programs where you can learn about the parks, story telling, presentations about animals or planet systems. One of our favorite activity that we took advantage of was Stargazing.

The national parks and monuments have some of the darkest skies and we used it to stargaze with rangers or on our own as much as possible. To join a ranger led stargazing program, you can stop by visitor center and look at the ranger program schedule or you can simply do it on your own with a few tips:

How to Stargaze

• Plan:  Even the light from a thin crescent moon can make it more difficult to see fainter stars or even the Milky Way. You'll see the darkest skies during a new moon or when the moon is below the horizon. 
• Give yourself time: It can take 20-30 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark. Spend enough time outside away from bright lights to allow your eyes to adjust.
• Use a red light:  White lights from flashlights, cell phones, or vehicle headlights can harm your night vision. A red light won't impact your night vision as much. Many flashlights and headlamps have a red-light feature, or you can simply cover your white light with red cellophane.
• Bring a star chart:  A star chart or planisphere can help you find the constellations and Milky Way.
• Use an app:  

Arches National park is one of the easiest and most accessible to hikers or all ages and abilities. Some of the easiest and recommended hikes by the park rangers for our families are:

• Balanced rock
• Windows
• Double Arch
• Delicate arch Viewpoint

These hikes had parking nearby and a lot of them were paved with low to medium difficulty. Delicate arch is something we had read about a lot but it is one of the difficult hikes to do with kids and we decided to heed park ranger advice.

Biking at Arches National Park means riding on the road inside and outside the park. If you are bike riders, this is a great place to bike as we considered doing but backed out due to extreme heat. If you are considering, just be sure to use all safety measure including sunscreen, carry enough water and snacks and use hats.

Arches National Park is a great place for rock climbers even despite its sandy nature. Couple of places where you can rock climb with kids are:

• Double arches and 
• Windows 

Though these climbs look easy, they can be difficult. Read all about rock climbing, learn about the rules and regulations and remember, safety first.

Junior Ranger is a great program that helps children (and adults) engage and learn about the National Park by completing five or more exercises and three adventures. As a result, participants earn a junior ranger badge and a signed certificate from Arches National Park. Filled with fun activities, these activities are designed for all ages and the books reveal the wonders of Arches to kids and parents alike.

The nearest hotels are in Moab, Utah, about five miles from the park entrance. We stayed right outside at the park at Holiday Inn Express & Suites Moab which offered free breakfast.

Arches National Park has one campground at Devils Garden. The campground is full most nights between March and October, when sites are reserved in advance. Between November and February, sites are first-come, first-served. If you're looking for public and private campgrounds outside the park, visit discovermoab.com

We took advantage of the free breakfast at our hotel Holiday Inn Express & Suites Moab.

There are no restaurants in Arches National Park however there are several spots for picnicking in the park. All these areas have picnic tables and toilets nearby. Some also have fire grates:

• Arches Visitor Center
• Across the road from Balanced Rock
• Panorama Point
• Delicate Arch Viewpoint
• Devils Garden

For Lunch; we chose a different path and decided to take a break in the middle of the day when the heat was extreme. Although Arches doesn't have any food options inside, it is easy drive back out to the town (if traffic is not heavy). We went out to treat ourselves to a middle eastern restaurant, The Sultan Mediterranean Grill. This is exactly what we needed because we had been living it up on the usual hamburgers and sandwiches that we found at many of the other restaurants we visited during our ten-day trip.

Most of the parks we visited in California, Wyoming and Utah had fees that ranged from $25 to $35 per vehicle however we ended up getting an annual pass for $80 which is good one for vehicle for an entire year. This is a great deal if you plan on visiting more than one national park within a year. You can read about individual park entrance fees by visiting www.explore.usparkpass.com or you can buy them it in advance at https://www.usparkpass.com.