Mosey on Down to Moab

10 Desert Adventures in Utah

By Elissa Gilbert

Southern Utah was settled late during America's westward expansion, and the area still attracts a certain kind of rugged adventurer seeking to conquer the terrain.

Moab, a small desert town near the Green and Colorado Rivers, is known as a center of active sports, but you don't have to be an adrenaline junkie to explore the area. Here are 10 easy adventures for everyone:

1. Visit Arches National Park. Just 5 miles outside town, the entrance fee gives you access to an 18-mile paved drive through a landscape of carved and sculpted pinnacles and arches in desert reds and tans. Easy, short trails lead you close to several formations like the North and South Windows and Landscape Arch.

2. The dramatically named Islands in the Sky district of Canyonlands National Park places you on a plateau 1,000 feet above another plateau 1,000 feet above the Green River. Drive the park's road to scenic viewpoints and hike to Mesa Arch on an easy half-mile loop trail marked with rock cairns.

3. Explore the slickrock back country. Sand Flats Recreation Area is a mountain biker's dream but you can also explore in four-wheel-drive vehicles. Moab Adventure Center

Want to see more?

• Positively Perfect: Visit Park City, Utah
• Salt Lake City, Utah: Olympic Glory and More
• All Aboard! Utah's Polar Express Adventure
• Check out our Article Library.
• Talk about it!