Utah is home to The Mighty Five: Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, and Zion National Park.
Arches National Park
Photo of Capitol Reef National Park taken by Sanjay Acharya under the license of CC BY-SA 3.0.
Arches National Park contains many trails that let you get an up close view of its impressive arches, including Broken Arch Trail (1.9 miles round trip), Landscape Arch Trail (1.8 miles round trip), and Park Avenue Viewpoint and Trail (1.8 miles roundtrip).
Bryce National Park
Photo of Bryce Canyon National Park taken by Luca Galuzzi under the license of CC BY-SA 2.5.
Bryce Canyon National Park offers 2 hour and 3 hour guided horseback riding, which begin in April and usually end in late October.
Canyonlands National Park
Photo of Canyonlands National Park taken by the user Julianibarra under the license of CC0 1.0.
Canyonlands National Park is unique in that you can plan a flatwater trip that either floats down the Greenwater or Colorado rivers. You will need a permit for all flatwater trips, which you can purchase through recreation.gov.
Capitol Reef National Park
Photo of Capitol Reef National Park taken by Wolfgang Staudt under the license of CC BY 2.0.
The many rock layers found at Capitol Reef offer a diverse environment for canyoneering. Canyoneering routes to try out include Pandora’s box, Arch Nemisis Canyon, and Bless Canyone. You will also need a permit to go canyoneering at Capitol Reef, although you can get a permit for free by emailing care_permits@nps.gov.
Zion National Park
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Two hikes Zions National Park is known are Angel’s Landing and The Narrows. Angel’s Landing is a day hike that leads to a lofty summit and reaches an elevation of almost 6,000 feet. You will need a permit to be able to hike Angel’s Landing, which you can get by entering a lottery through www.recreation.gov. The Narrows is a hike through a slot canyon that features some incredible rock formations and does not require a permit. Both hikes are strenuous in difficulty, although there are much easier hikes that you can do, such as the Pa'rus Trail and the Grotto Trail.