Mesa Arch
An arch on the edge of a two-thousand-foot cliff, which glows from underneath at sunrise.
Duration
1 hr – 2 hrs
Difficulty
●●●○○
Best time
At sunrise
Open
Every day
Entry price
30 USD
Mesa Arch sits on the very edge of a six-hundred-metre cliff, in the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands. The walk is short — a kilometre round, almost level.
Its reputation rests on one precise phenomenon: at sunrise, low light strikes the wall below, reflects up under the arch and makes it glow from beneath, with the La Sal Mountains framed in the opening. It lasts about fifteen minutes, and a row of tripods is in place well before.
Getting there
Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands, forty minutes from Moab. The trail starts at the car park.
What the price covers
entry to Canyonlands for one vehicle and all its occupants, valid seven days. On foot or by bike, $15 per person, free under 16.
What to bring
- Walking shoes
- Dry bag
- Sportswear
Rules on site
The car park is full an hour before sunrise: leave Moab in the dark. There is no railing at the edge of the arch, and the drop is six hundred metres.
Checked on 30 August 2026 at National Park Service — Canyonlands, entrance fees
