Our tips for visiting Canyonlands National Park with kids.
Canyonlands has 3 distinct areas, all of which have their own entrance roads and are, well…not close to each other. We debated seeing the Needles section, which is accessed south of Moab, but instead chose Island in the Sky. Island in the Sky is the most visited section, and we were not disappointed. Island in the Sky is an easy section of Canyonlands National Park with kids as far as hikes are concerned because there really aren’t that many. The hikes they do have are either fairly short or too long or steep to consider doing with kids.
The majority of what you do in Island in the Sky is drive along a butte and look out over canyons created by the Colorado River (to the east) and the Green River (to the west). That may sound underwhelming, but the views are amazing and worthwhile! While you can’t see the actual rivers well (the best way to see the Colorado River is to drive the spectacularly beautiful Highway 128 outside of Moab) you get to see the power of the water as the canyons themselves are amazing. We did do three hikes in the park, so we will highlight those as well as the overlooks we stopped at.
Canyonlands National Park with Kids
Mesa Arch Trail (0.5 miles roundtrip, easy rating)
The Mesa Arch trail was fun, has a memorable view, and was fully worthwhile. We stopped here first, as it is famous for the sun creating a reddish glow to the underside of the arch at sunrise. It seemed funny to see an arch in Canyonlands after having spent the past day at Arches National Park, but it ended up being a fun transition because the view through the arch is out into a beautiful canyon. The parking lot is pretty small, but the hike is short so it turns over quickly. There is a pit toilet at the lot as well.
Grand View Point Overlook Trail (2 miles roundtrip, easy rating)
This trail, along the cliff, has beautiful vistas that allow you to see literally miles to the south and, at the trails’ end, to the west. It is a fairly easy trail, and is wide enough that even those with a fear of heights should be comfortable.
The trail reminded me of the Grand Canyon where you get a variety of perspectives over similar terrain by walking along the rim of the canyon. There is a pit toilet at the trailhead and a decent amount of parking. We ate our picnic lunch at the picnic area just a bit back down the road towards the visitor center.
Upheaval Dome Trail (1 mile roundtrip to first overlook, 150 ft. elevation gain, moderate rating)
If you were to ask what we likely wouldn’t do again, the Upheaval Dome trail is it. It is a short trail to the first overlook and the parking area for the trailhead is also a picnic area with a pit toilet. Parking was hard to find and people were parking illegally even in March. After arriving at the Upheaval Dome overlook point on the trail we found it to be neat but not amazing. The scale and size of the dome is lost in the viewpoint and, unfortunately, because of that it ends up being a bit underwhelming. If you are at the edge of your energy level save the time and energy and use it elsewhere.
Scenic Drive Overlooks
Before heading out of the park we stopped at the Green River Overlook before driving back to, and walking out onto, the Shafer Canyon Overlook.
Along that drive we saw a peregrine falcon and some mule deer. It was neat to see the Jeeps heading down the Shafer Road (which looks amazing, scary, and fun all at the same time). From there they can connect onto the White Rim Road and have a memory that will stay with them forever.
After getting our Junior Ranger badges for the kids, we checked off our family’s 15th National Park! After Canyonlands we left the Moab area and drove through Capitol Reef National Park on our way to Bryce Canyon and Zion.
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