Devil’s Garden
4.2 mi roundtrip, ~2–3 hr, Easy-Intermediate, Landscape, Partition, Double-O Arch
How to get there: Devil’s Garden is at the very end of Arches National Park which is a one way park and not a loop. It’s about 18 miles into the park. There are lots of parking spots, but also lots of people, so make sure you get there early. We arrived around 8AM and parking was no problem.
Start at the trailhead in the center of the parking lot, next to the bathrooms. Within the first 0.3 mi you will come to the first major arch: Tunnel Arch, and a little farther along at is Pine Tree Arch. Both are exciting to see but nothing compared what is to come.
At about 0.8 mi is Landscape Arch, the first iconic arch in Devil’s Garden. Landscape Arch is the longest arch in Arches National Park at ~290 feet wide. Up until this point, the trail is relatively even and mellow. Some turn around at this point, but you can continue on to the Primitive Trail to reach Double-O Arch.
While the trail becomes more challenging and is classified as a ‘difficult’ trail by the Arches NP Visitor’s Guide, we found it to intermediate at most if not still easy. You leave the ground’s sandy path and climb onto an inclining ramp-like sandstone fin, elevating 250 ft with drop offs on each side, but is by no means extremely narrow. After you reach the top of this section, there’s another fin you can climb onto, to get a cool overlook of what you just climbed.
After you finish this fin, you hike for about half a mile on the dirt path before climbing onto another fin. This fin is wider and flat the whole way with a great view of Devil’s Garden on the right. On the way there is also a sign that points you to and overlook where you can see Black Arch. Just past Black Arch maybe less than half a mile is Double-O Arch
Towards the end you climb down another narrow fin before the last little walk to the base of the Double-O Arch. Climbing down the last fin can be a little intimidating but is by no means impossible. It is recommended to walk through the arch to get a view from the other side.
On our way back we stopped at Partition Arch and Navajo Arch. Partition Arch was pretty cool but a little sketchy once you climbed through, but sitting underneath such a large arch was a cool experience. We didn’t find Navajo Arch particularly exciting but is really close by so worth checking out!
Double Arch
0.25 mi, ~5 min, Easy-Intermediate
How to get there: The drive from the entrance of the park is about 9.5 mi. You turn right towards “Windows Trailhead” just past Balanced Rock. Park in the lot connecting Double Arch and the Windows. You might have to drive around a couple times to find parking, but there is always someone leaving. I would suggest parking and walking between the two instead of re-parking to go to the other, which is only about a mile.
There’s a short, easy, half mile walk down the trail to the base of the Double Arch. You can see it from the parking lot and just follow the trail. However if you want to climb and sit in one of the arches this part could be considered ‘intermediate.’ The view through the arch isn’t that exciting but sitting in the arch is pretty cool. Coming down from the arch is probably the hardest part, as it is a little steep.
The Windows: North + South, Turret Arch
0.5 mi to N Window from trailhead, 1 mi Between all three, 10-20 min total, Easy
The North Window is the one you immediately see from the trailhead. From the North Window you continue on towards Turret Arch and if you turn left instead of going straight to Turret Arch you will turn a corner and see the South Window. From these windows you can also see the Elephant’s Parade.
