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    Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)
    Myrabella / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

    United States

    Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)

    Point of Interest

    Island in the Sky is the northern and most accessible district of Utah's Canyonlands National Park, about 32 miles west of Moab.

    by Felix Gillen

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    9. Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)
    Island in the Sky is the northern and most accessible district of Utah's Canyonlands National Park, about 32 miles west of Moab. You come for the view: from a mesa top you look roughly 2,200 feet down into the canyons of the Colorado and Green Rivers, and the best overlooks are just minutes from the car.The park splits into three districts that no road inside the park connects. The Needles to the south and the Maze to the west are separate trips; Island in the Sky makes an easy day trip from Moab. One road runs from the visitor center across the mesa to Grand View Point, with a spur to Upheaval Dome.Before you goEntrance fee: $30 per private vehicle. There's no nonresident surcharge here. The $55 Southeast Utah Parks pass also covers Arches.Supplies: no restaurants or gas in the park. Potable water is available at the visitor center only, spring through fall, and there's none on the trails. Fill the tank and pack lunch in Moab.Visitor center: open daily March through December from 9 a.m., with longer summer hours.Combine it: Dead Horse Point State Park is on the way, with its own fee, and its view of the Colorado River's gooseneck is worth the detour.

    Sights in Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)

    Discover the most important sights and attractions

    Mesa Arch
    Attraction

    1Mesa Arch

    A short path leads to this rock arch directly at the cliff edge, 0.6 miles round trip, about half an hour. Through the arch, you look out over the canyons and the Washer Woman rock spire. At sunrise, its underside glows red, and it's accordingly full of photographers then. If you want a photo without people, come well before sunrise or choose a later time in the morning. Stay behind the arch; in front, it drops vertically.
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    Grand View Point
    Attraction

    2Grand View Point

    The viewpoint at the southern tip of the Mesa, at the end of the park road. Below you lie Monument Basin with its rock towers, the White Rim Road gravel track, and beyond, the canyons of the Colorado and Green River. If you only visit one spot in Island in the Sky, make it this one. The Grand View Trail continues from the parking lot along the rim to the outermost tip, 1.8 miles round trip, about an hour and a half, with almost no incline. There is no shade.
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    Upheaval Dome
    Attraction

    3Upheaval Dome

    A round crater of bent, grey-green and red rock layers on the Mesa's western edge. Though long believed a salt dome, shocked quartz findings now point to a meteorite impact. From the parking lot at the turn-off's end, the first viewpoint is 0.6 miles roundtrip, the second 1.2 miles, with ups and downs over rock steps. The second point offers a better view into the crater.
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    Green River Overlook
    Attraction

    4Green River Overlook

    Overlook on the western edge of the Mesa, accessible via a short spur road next to the Willow Flat Campground. The view spans the winding Green River across to the Maze District and is most beautiful in the late afternoon and at sunset, when the light from the west casts into the canyons. Less visited than Grand View Point, you often have the rim almost to yourself.
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    Shafer Canyon Overlook
    Attraction

    5Shafer Canyon Overlook

    Just behind the Visitor Center, you'll look out onto the switchbacks of Shafer Trail, a gravel track winding in tight turns from the Mesa down to the White Rim Road. A high-clearance 4x4 is needed for the descent; it's dangerous when wet, and a Day-Use-Permit is required for a day trip on the White Rim Road. The view from the overlook is enough for most; it's the first stop on the park road.
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    Dead Horse Point State Park
    Attraction

    6Dead Horse Point State Park

    The State Park is located on the access road to Island in the Sky, just before the National Park boundary, and is not part of the National Park: It has its own entrance fee; the National Park pass is not valid here. From the viewpoint at the end of a narrow peninsula, you look down on a tight bend of the Colorado River deep in the canyon. It’s worth a detour of half an hour to an hour on your way there or back, especially in the late afternoon.
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    Restaurants in Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)

    History

    Ancestral Puebloans and earlier hunter-gatherer cultures left granaries and rock art across this region; the best-known panels are in remote Horseshoe Canyon and at Newspaper Rock near the Needles district.The driving force behind the park was Bates Wilson, then superintendent of Arches. He took politicians on jeep tours through the canyons and spent years campaigning to protect the country around the confluence of the Green and Colorado. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the bill on September 12, 1964; Wilson became the first superintendent and is known as the "Father of Canyonlands."At about 337,000 acres it is Utah's largest national park, divided by the two rivers into Island in the Sky, the Needles and the Maze.

    Getting There and Around

    From Moab, head north on US 191 and turn onto SR 313; it's 32 miles, about 40 minutes, to the visitor center. The road to Dead Horse Point State Park branches off along the way. Apart from the campground there's no lodging and no store in the park, so Moab is your base, with hotels, restaurants, groceries and RV parks.In the parkPark road: the paved road runs about 12 miles south from the visitor center to Grand View Point, with a spur to Green River Overlook and Upheaval Dome. There's no shuttle.Shafer Trail: this dirt road switchbacks steeply off the mesa. Don't attempt it without a high-clearance vehicle and some experience, and avoid it when wet. Most people just look down on it from Shafer Canyon Overlook near the entrance.White Rim Road: the roughly 100-mile track below the mesa requires high-clearance four-wheel drive with low range. Day trips need a day-use permit and overnight trips an overnight permit, both from Recreation.gov.How long: half a day covers the overlooks and two or three short walks. Mesa Arch is best at sunrise, Green River Overlook at sunset.

    Accommodations in Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)

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    Campgrounds in Canyonlands National Park (Island in the Sky)

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    Nearby

    Moab

    Moab

    Moab is a small town of about 5,000 people in eastern Utah, on the Colorado River and US 191, just under four hours' drive southeast of Salt Lake City. It's where you'll stay for Arches National Park, five minutes up the road, and Canyonlands' Island in the Sky district, about 45 minutes away.Main Street doubles as US 191: motels, outfitters, grocery stores and most restaurants are on it or a block or two off it. Jeep, rafting and mountain bike tours leave from here, and in the evening most visitors end up on the Main Street patios after a day on the trail.Good to knowPeak season: March through October, especially around Easter (Jeep Safari) and holiday weekends like Memorial Day and Labor Day. Book rooms and campsites weeks or months ahead.Heat: July and August regularly top 100°F. Hike early in the morning or in the evening.Groceries: City Market on Main Street is the biggest grocery store in the area. Stock up on water and supplies before heading into the parks.
    Arches National Park

    Arches National Park

    Arches National Park lies in eastern Utah just north of the town of Moab, about four hours southeast of Salt Lake City. It holds more than 2,000 sandstone arches, and the most famous, including Delicate Arch and Landscape Arch, are within short to moderate hikes of the road.A 19-mile scenic drive runs through the park past the trailheads for the Windows Section, Balanced Rock, Wolfe Ranch and, at the far end, Devils Garden. You'll reach many arches within 15 minutes on foot, but there's almost no shade along the way.Moab as your baseMoab is five minutes from the park entrance and also the base for Canyonlands National Park and Dead Horse Point State Park. It has hotels at every price point, grocery stores, gas and outfitters for jeep, rafting and canyoneering trips. Rooms book up early in the March to October high season.What to know in 2026No timed entry: you don't need an entry reservation in 2026. Expect lines at the entrance on weekends and holidays, and lots that staff close temporarily when they fill up.Still reservation-only: Devils Garden Campground (March through October) and every Fiery Furnace hike, self-guided or ranger-led.Entrance fee: $30 per private vehicle. Arches does not charge the $100 nonresident surcharge. The $55 Southeast Utah Parks annual pass covers Arches, Canyonlands and two national monuments.Heat: July and August highs often pass 100°F. Hike early or late and carry at least two liters of water per person; water is only available at the visitor center.
    Utah

    Utah

    Utah sits between Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, and Idaho. Most visitors come for the five national parks in the south, the "Mighty Five": Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands. In winter, the draw is the Wasatch Range, with ski resorts less than an hour from Salt Lake City.Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics and gets the Games again in 2034. Northwest of town lies the Great Salt Lake, a remnant of Ice Age Lake Bonneville. The state's high point is Kings Peak (13,518 ft) in the Uinta Mountains.Down south, the parks sit close together: Zion with the Narrows of the Virgin River, Bryce Canyon and its hoodoos, Capitol Reef along the Waterpocket Fold, and Arches and Canyonlands outside Moab. Monument Valley and Lake Powell are right on the Arizona line.
    Page

    Page

    Page is a town of about 7,400 people in far northern Arizona, right on the Utah line and the shore of Lake Powell. It's the base for three stops that top many Southwest road trips: Horseshoe Bend, Antelope Canyon and Lake Powell with Glen Canyon Dam, all less than 15 minutes from town.It's roughly four and a half to five hours from both Las Vegas and Phoenix and about three from the Grand Canyon's South Rim. Plan at least one night: Horseshoe Bend is emptiest at sunrise and best lit in the afternoon, Antelope Canyon glows most around midday, and a boat trip on the lake is worth the time.Book aheadAntelope Canyon: guided tours with a Navajo-owned operator only. In spring and summer, book days or weeks out; Upper Antelope Canyon doesn't sell tickets on-site. Budget around $100 per person for Lower Antelope Canyon, including the Navajo Nation fee.Horseshoe Bend: no reservation, but parking is $10 per car.Time zones: Page stays on Mountain Standard Time year-round, while the Navajo Nation observes daylight saving time. Double-check which time your tour is listed in.The town itself is no-frills, with motels, grocery stores and a modest choice of restaurants, but it works well as a base.
    Bryce Canyon National Park

    Bryce Canyon National Park

    Bryce Canyon National Park sits on a high plateau in southern Utah, a short day's drive northeast of Zion, at around 8,000 feet and topping out above 9,000 feet at Rainbow Point. You come for the hoodoos: thousands of orange-red rock spires packed into amphitheaters, with short trails that drop from the rim right down among them.Bryce isn't really a canyon but the eroded edge of a plateau. The heart of the park is the Bryce Amphitheater, lined by Sunrise, Sunset, Inspiration and Bryce Points. From there an 18-mile dead-end road with 13 viewpoints runs south to Rainbow Point.Where to stayThe closest hotels and restaurants are in Bryce Canyon City just outside the entrance, home to the sprawling Ruby's Inn. For something quieter, stay in the village of Tropic below the plateau, about 15 minutes away. Inside the park, the Lodge at Bryce Canyon is open spring through fall.Before you goEntrance fee: $35 per private vehicle. Visitors who aren't U.S. residents pay an extra $100 per person age 16 and up; U.S. residents don't. The America the Beautiful pass ($80 for residents, $250 for nonresidents) covers entry, and the nonresident version waives the surcharge for everyone in the car.Altitude and weather: nights are cool even in summer, it freezes almost every night from October through May, and snow is common in winter. Bring a warm layer and rain gear year-round; weather changes fast up here.After dark: Bryce is an International Dark Sky Park. Rangers run stargazing programs in summer, and full-moon hikes are assigned by lottery.

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