Day tour of Arches & Canyonlands NP. Backcountry 4X4 Jeep
Description
Arches & Canyonlands: The Backcountry 4x4 Tour See the wonders of Utah’s two most iconic parks in one day—without the crowds. Our unique backcountry access allows us to bypass the paved roads and enter through a remote gateway. You’ll ride in climate-controlled comfort as our expert guides lead you to hidden formations, archaeological sites, and geological marvels that standard tours miss. Two Parks, One Day: Covers both Arches and Canyonlands. Off-Road Access: Exclusive routes through remote gateways. All-Inclusive: Includes a knowledgeable guide and a delicious lunch
Tour Options
Itinerary
The tour will head north on US 191, passing the entrance of Arches National Park, which was designated as a National Monument before being changed to a National Park in 1971. Our special use permit allows us to enter the back door to Arches via the Willow Springs Road. Along this backcountry route, you’ll travel through the new area of the “Utah Raptor State Park”. Here, where Native Americans lived back in history for thousands of years, you’ll see dinosaur tracks and enjoy the views of the La Sal Mountains. The Park lies atop an underground salt bed that is responsible for the arches, spires, and sandstone fins. Several of the stops include Eye of the Whale, Balanced Rock, Delicate Arch viewpoint, and the Windows Section. The trip length is approximately 4 hours. All vehicles are Jeep Rubicons, which are enclosed and air-conditioned.
The Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands National Park is the focus of this excellent half-day tour. Set 2,000 feet above the canyon floor below, we will descend from the top of the mesa via the famous Shafer Trail. Using Shafer Trail’s winding switchbacks the tour will take guests from atop the mesa to the meandering river corridor below. Throughout the tour your experienced and knowledgeable guide will provide you with information on the Park and the various scenery that you will see. There will be an emphasis on the history, archeology, and geology of the area. Your guide will also point out natural sandstone arches, and other formations that many visitors might miss on their own while visiting the Park and the canyons below. This tour offers guests the opportunity to see the splendor of Canyonlands from the comfort of our fully enclosed, air-conditioned, 4×4 vehicles. The tour could be run in reverse, or bottom of the canyon, climbing up.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Not recommended for those with motion sickness, vertigo, etc.
- The Jeep Wranglers used have four passenger seats, and the guide/driver has all guests rotate seats throughout the trip. This makes it so that one person is not stuck in the same seat for the entire trip.
- Due to these tours being 'backcountry' tours, you will be going off the paved roads in an elevated vehicle that has the clearance for these special off-road trails.
- Please call our office to reconfirm tour the day before your scheduled tour date.
- Things to bring: water bottle (free refills available), sunglasses, sunscreen, visor/hat, sun protection, sturdy footwear for hiking, day pack, camcorders and cameras (bring at your own risk)
- We advise that is you are, or anyone in your party is, over 6'2" and/or 225+ pounds to please consult the tour office prior to your trip's departure date.
- Car infant seat (required by Utah State Law for children 8 years and younger or under 57 inches
- Park entrance fee are not included. Please call our office at (435) 259-8594 for the current National park entrance fees.
- You will spend approximately 4 and half hours in each Park. There will be travel time back to our office Approximately 15 minutes. In-between the parks for an approximate one hour lunch.
Reviews(30)
The 4x4 is an a/c jeep, very nice & clean. Marc was beyond great, very knowledgeable and fun! Made the trip so much better & learned a lot!
Highly recommend this tour! Great way to see the backcountry of both parks. Such beautiful areas only accessible by 4x4. Thank goodness for Guide Bill’s great driving skills !!Lunch was great and we had snacks and water along the way. Plenty of bathroom breaks as well. Thank you Bill for a great day that far exceeded our expectations. We appreciate your vast knowledge of the area. Kurt and Shelley
Thank you!
As a group of 7, we split up into cars with Mark and Bill. Both guides were amazing, and we loved the experience. It was a great mix of educational commentary and joking around/conversations as desired. The scenery was incredible, and using this company allowed us to see arches that we wouldn’t have otherwise been able to.
Thank you!
Excellent tour. Mark (our guide) was fantastic, I can’t recommend this company enough. We hope to come back in the near future.
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Wonderful experience with Bill! He is extremely knowledgeable of the area and was very entertaining. He showed us things that I probably would have walked past if he didn’t point it out. His 4x4 experience is superb, wouldn’t want to be on those back roads with anyone else.
Thank you!
Mark was a great driver. Provided a lot of insight into the tour. Really good tour. Really liked it.
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A wonderful day seeing such magnificent scenery and made even better by our fantastic guide, Mark, who was so informative, interesting and helpful. My 3rd time using Adrift and would recommend it to anybody.
Thanks for the review!
My wife and I took a morning 4x4 trip to Arches, and an afternoon trip to Canyonlands last week. Bill, our tour guide, was very informative and friendly. We really enjoyed the trips and would recommend it to anyone visiting the area. What a memorable experience!! Don & Sheri
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We had Mark as our guide. He is extremely familiar with the parks having donr the tours about 1000 times. He was conversational and answered all questions happily. Given the nature of the drive he was always aware of any concerns we had. Highly recommend.
Thank you!
Mark was incredibly knowledgeable about the parks. He was also very helpful, taking difficult pictures for us, and helping me navigate difficult terrain. We enjoyed every aspect of our tour! Highly recommend!!
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