Arches National Park is one Cory and I have been to several times, and while I think each National Park is special, I feel like posting about the ones I’ve been to that I have photo albums of as they are a source of inspiration in my work. As of my time of writing this I have been to Arches three times and Cory has five. It is in Utah, just outside of Moab, so is a place we have been able to go while on road trips to see family, and have made a point to while on vacation. Arches has the densest concentration of natural arches in the world- more than 2,000 - per nps.gov.
A couple of tips before you go- Moab is a tiny town, try and go during an off time (like when school is in), book hotels in advance for your best bet if you go when it’s busy, and remember Canyonlands is another National Park some twenty five miles away if Arches ends up too crowded to be enjoyable. In summer Arches gets super hot. Many hikes have very little shade, so take water, wear a hat, tie a cool wet bandana around your neck (we like Blu Bandoo for the gel that retains water and keeps you cool) and try not to hike during the heat of the day. Also, sandals are my preference for hiking shoes when it’s hot as they allow for hot toes to swell and not be as restricted. It was over 100 degrees when we were there during summer and I have to say, sandals were way better than anything else. Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen!
