Utah’s Best Arches

While the Delicate Arch has become Utah’s logo, in a sense – marking our license plates, billboards, keychains, calendars, and more – there are many astounding arches across Utah that aren’t as well-known but worth visiting. While many of these are in Arches National Park, they’re all worth putting on your bucket list for places to visit in Utah. Here’s a list of 10 stunning natural arches and bridge in Utah, including Delicate Arch – because what list of arches in Utah would be complete without Delicate Arch?

Double Arch

Double Arch

Also located in Arches National Park, these two sandstone arches are interesting because they share the same base and arc towards different directions, meeting with the massive red cliff face. The half mile round-trip hike is easy for all skill levels and ages, complete with beautiful wildflowers that are native to Utah. No matter what other hikes you’re doing in Arches, considering the length of this trail, it’s a must to visit these arches.

Rainbow Bridge

A familiar sight to those who travel to Lake Powell frequently, Rainbow Bridge National Monument is about as smooth and flawless as natural arches come. This rounded feat of nature is 290 feet tall and 270 feet across – as long as a football field. The bridge is considered sacred to the Navajo Nation, a representation of deities creating life in the desert, so it’s important to treat the area with respect when visiting.

Natural Bridge

This castle-like arch located in Bryce Canyon is a magnificent contrast to the towering pines and red hoodoos that populate the rest of the terrain. Good news for those who don’t like to hike – this arch requires no hiking whatsoever. It can be seen from the road to Rainbow Point, and there’s a parking lot for those who want to stop to get a better look.

Corona Arch

Corona Arch & Bowtie Arch

This massive arch located just west of Moab leans against the cliffside, overlooking the red desert wasteland that continues to the edge of the horizon. This is an easy, well-marked trail about 3 miles round-trip across slickrock. This is a great hike for kids, and what makes it even better, this is a two-in-one hike – Bowtie Arch is right around the corner, nestled into the mountainside.

Mesa Arch

One of Utah’s most photographed spots for good reason. This low-curving arch is at the edge of a tall mesa, overlooking a stunning desert landscape. The arch is in Canyonlands National Park and is an easy hike at .7 miles roundtrip. For avid landscape photographers, this is one of Utah’s most accessible arches waiting to be apart of your next photography road trip.

Landscape Arch

Want to see the largest natural arch in the Americas? Landscape Arch is what you’re looking for. Located in Arches National Park, this spindly, fragile-looking arch is a whopping 290 ft in span. The arch can be found at the end of the Devil’s Garden Trail, which is an easy, 1.5 mile round trip hike that winds through a Mars-like landscape in Arches.

Kolob Arch

Only three feet shy of Landscape Arch’s length of 290 feet, Kolob Arch has a span of 287 feet in Zion National Park. In fact, for a long time, it was considered the world’s longest arch due to different measuring methods. While this is a stunning hike that doesn’t experience frequent travelers, it comes at a cost in length, stretching to a 14 mile round-trip hike. This is why it’s commonly traversed as a multiple-day backpacking trip, as the average time to hike this is about 12 hours.

Sipapu Bridge

Sipapu Bridge

Named from a Hopi term for “opening between worlds”, this arch is 268 ft in length in span and 220 ft in height. This massive arch is located in National Bridges National Monument in southwestern Utah. Two other natural bridges are present at this monument, named Kachina and Owachomo, although Sipapu is the largest. The moderately-difficult hiking trail to get to Sipapu is 1.2 miles roundtrip and features ladders, switchbacks, and steep inclines on switchback.

Hickman Arch

This twisting, chromosome-like arch is located in Capitol Reef National Park. The moderately-difficult hiking trail for this arch is 1.8 miles roundtrip and features stunning canyon views at the arch, perfect for pictures overlooking the desert landscape.

Delicate Arch

The golden child of the arches in Utah that we all know and love, and for good reason. It stands out starkly against the rest of the rolling terrain, making it one of the most distinguishable arches on earth. The 3 mile round-trip hike is in Arches National Park, ranked as a moderately difficult hike with some rugged spots of steep inclines/declines.