Canyonlands National Park is definitely a dry desert, 4 wheel drive, back country park.
The Green and Colorado rivers separate Canyonlands into three distinct land districts: the scenic overlooks at the Island in the Sky, to the remote canyons of the Maze, to the thunderous rapids of Cataract Canyon. There are no roads that directly link the districts. Although they may appear close on a map, traveling between them requires two to six hours by car.
We chose to visit Island in the Sky, mainly because it was the closest to Arches and has many overlook areas that you can enjoy on a nice air-conditioned car drive.
We took a little hike out to Mesa Arch which was amazing. The overlook from here was gorgeous.
Once again, we wished we had more time to explore. We would have liked to see Upheaval Dome, but we didn't want to press our luck with the heat.
The Rangers here were really nice. They had activities for the kids set up in front of the Visitor's Center at regular intervals which was a nice surprise.
When the kids finished their Junior Ranger program, they earned a "Don't Bust The Crust" pin by learning about the biological soil crust on the desert floor.
Know Before You Go: Horseshoe Canyon is a detached unit of the park. It contains some of the most significant rock art in North America. The Great Gallery, the best known panel in Horseshoe Canyon, includes well-preserved, life-sized figures with intricate designs. The rangers told us that it was a long, tough hike, and not very scenic...but worth it to see such an amazing "gallery."
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