Needles, Rivers and Grand Solitude

It's amazing solitude that draws me into Canyonlands National Park in wintertime. At any of several overlooks, at the end of an invigorating hike or backcountry drive, I enjoy the park's otherworldly scenery, often without another human in sight.

The Confluence Overlook is one such place. Standing there recently, in warm winter sunshine, gazing out over a vast maze of canyon corridors, I could see no evidence of human intrusion except fot the narrow trail that brought me to the remote vista.

During winter I enjoy driving the park's backroads and making short hikes on mild afternoons. It seldom snows here. Temperatures are usually mild and the sun shines most days, so this is a great place to escape the ice, snow and murky air that plagues many cities.

Land of Contrasts

The contrasts are almost overwhelming. City streets give way to farmland, to desert, and then southern Utah's panoramic moonscape opens up before your eyes. Mile after mile of rugged, wide-open country. You can drive for 50 miles, moving farther and farther from civilization, and then the road ends in the middle of nowhere, against a sheer cliff or canyon wall. You are left sitting on a precipice where you can see backward through geologic time, where raw earth has rebuffed man's encroachments. I find it therapeutic.

Canyonlands, Utah's largest national park, is a jumble of plateaus and twisting canyons, etched by two mighty rivers into the earth's rocky skull. The Confluence, the place where the Colorado and Green rivers merge, is the park's mystical heartland, a spot held sacred by some ancient cultures.

Travel within the park is an adventure. Two paved roads provide access to some key scenic features, and to trailheads. The paved roads offer a delicious taste of the park, an appetizer, but they leave me hungry for the real deal. To really see Canyonlands you've got to get off the pavement and hike, bike or jeep into remote areas. Canyonlands is famous for its axel-busting jeep and mountain bike trails, and it offers excellent opportunity for short and long hikes.

You can also see the park by floating the rivers. The Colorado is tame for 50 river miles below Moab, providing great opportunity for people who want to canoe or kayak, or take a lazy flatwater trip in a rubber raft. Casual floaters need to arrange a jet boat shuttle to take them back up the river.

Below the Confluence the river drops into Cataract Canyon, a stretch of legendary whitewater with thrilling rapids, offering the river trip of a lifetime when floated with a professional guide.

Hike to the Confluence

To hike to the Confluence Overlook, drive paved Hwy 211 into the Needles District of the park, to the trailhead at Big Spring Canyon Overlook. Then follow the maintained trail to the viewpoint (11 miles round trip). The trail crosses mostly dry, open country where you can enjoy the sunshine. It makes a great hike on a mild day.

Water is not available at the trailhead or along the trail, so bring some. The Squaw Flat Campground serves this area and is open year-round, but be aware that winter nights are cold in this dry desert. In winter, I prefer to sleep at a motel in Moab.

There are many other trails worth exploring. Stop at a park visitor center, or at the Utah Welcome Center in Moab, to get maps and details. The Canyonlands Needles short hikes web page will get you started.

Nearby, Arches National Park also offers great winter hiking opportunities. Zion and Capitol Reef are farther away but also offer excellent winter trails.

Road Conditions

Flash floods this fall damaged some roads in Canyonlands. Here is the current status, as reported by the National Park Service.

Island in the Sky District: The Shafer Trail is closed. The White Rim Road is open, though visitors should expect delays from rough driving conditions. The Syncline Loop Trail is also closed.

Needles district: Salt Creek/Horse Canyon is closed.

Maze district: All roads to the Maze are open but rougher than usual. High-clearance, four-wheel-drive is recommended, even on the Hans Flat access roads where two-wheel-drive is normally adequate.

Horseshoe Canyon: The road to Horseshoe Canyon from Highway 24 is open. High-clearance, four-wheel-drive is recommended.

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- Dave Webb

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