Corona Arch, near Moab

The canyon country around Moab has been home and travelway to Native peoples for thousands of years, and the Colorado River corridor below the arch carries reminders of that long presence, including petroglyph panels pecked into the cliffs along Potash Road. The Ancestral Puebloan and Fremont peoples lived and traveled here, and the Ute, Paiute, and Navajo, or Diné, hold deep and continuing ties to this region.

In more recent times the river corridor became a route for ranching, mining, and eventually the potash operation that gives the access road its name. The trail to Corona also passes near an old railroad grade that carries ore trains along the river. Today the area is best known for recreation, and Corona Arch has become one of the most rewarding short hikes anywhere near Moab.

Corona Arch is cut from Navajo sandstone, the thick layer of fossilized sand dunes that forms so many of the cliffs, domes, and arches across southern Utah. The rock began as a vast desert of wind-blown dunes more than 150 million years ago, later buried, cemented into stone, and eventually lifted and exposed by erosion.

Arches form where water and frost work along natural cracks and weak zones in the sandstone, slowly hollowing out an alcove until the rock behind it thins into a wall, and finally a hole breaks through. Wind, rain, and the freeze-and-thaw of water in the cracks keep widening the opening. Corona is a mature, freestanding arch, sturdy for now, though like all arches it will one day thin and collapse as the same forces that made it carry on.

The trail is a moderate out-and-back that climbs steadily from the trailhead, crossing sandy washes and then long stretches of open slickrock marked by rock cairns. The most talked-about section is a spot where a short metal ladder and a run of safety cable help hikers up a steeper pitch of smooth rock, an adventurous touch that most people find more fun than frightening.

The reward builds gradually. Bowtie Arch appears first, a circular skylight worn through the roof of an alcove, and then the trail rounds a corner and Corona Arch stands revealed at the head of its bowl, framed by red cliffs and open sky. It is a place that rewards lingering, and few visitors leave without craning their necks up at the vast span of stone overhead.

The slickrock and river country here supports the hardy life of the high desert. Lizards sun themselves on the warm rock, ravens croak overhead, and desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, and the occasional coyote or fox range through the surrounding cliffs and washes. Along the river below, cottonwoods and willows draw songbirds and beavers.

Spring and fall are the best times to hike here, with mild temperatures and long light for the open slickrock. Summer brings intense heat and, later, the sudden thunderstorms of the monsoon, so early starts and plenty of water are essential. Winter is cool and quiet, and a light dusting of snow on the red rock makes the arch especially striking.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.