CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK, Utah

Forceful and mighty, Druid Arch exerts its penetrating influence on all who approach. Two sky slits in the sandstone monolith have a shocking effect, multiplying the arch’s potency. Journey through diverse passageways – narrow fractures, two stone halfpipes, spires and Elephant Canyon.

Mid-winter, the park is free of crowds. Hiking is fabulous, provided the rock is dry. Druid Arch is due south from the Elephant Hill trailhead, 5,120 feet.

The path makes a quick climb up a staircase set into a skinny fissure. Emerge on a white sandstone bench. The walking platform, and the red-and-white-banded pillars that rise hundreds of feet above the floor, are Cedar Mesa sandstone. Once a dune field, the rock sheet was fractured into joints which further were eroded into pinnacles.

The panorama is sweeping, the immediate landscape, chaotic. Squat towers are capped with white lintels. The track wends between rounded forms, traversing above small canyons.

At 1.5 miles, the trail from Squaw Flat Campground joins on the left. Stay right. This trail is a stellar option on the return. Squeeze through a crack and enter a grassland plain ringed with spires. At 1.7 miles, descend juniper log steps into a long, deep fissure, one of the finest features of the hike. The rift widens into a most beautiful and protected space.

Drop steeply to the floor of Elephant Canyon at 2.1 miles. Here, the trail to Chesler Park veers off to the right. Go left up Elephant Canyon. The route follows the drainageway nearly to the arch. Frequently, the track climbs to parallel the wash. Stay in the channel if you wish.

Elephant Canyon just keeps getting better as you go; walk on a sandstone plane. At 3.4 miles, the Joint Trail to Chesler Park goes right. Stay left, easily dodging obstacles in the boulder-crowded wash.

Deeply incised linear fractures characterize the floor shortly before the one bypass, up-canyon left, that must be taken to avoid a pouroff. Do a fun, 15-foot scramble. The canyon constricts and rises to meet the bypass trail.

Scale a stone halfpipe, so outrageous it will make you giddy. This friction pitch has been worn slick and smooth by boot and water.

At the 5-mile marker, the north side of the arch’s fin comes into view. The route climbs steeply into an amphitheater on a chunky debris field. A ladder near the bottom of the scramble assists.

Reach the Druid Arch platform at 5.4 miles. Two sky doors reside in a Cedar Mesa sandstone fin. This enormous post and lintel structure is reminiscent of Stonehenge. All visitors viscerally will feel the compelling power of this fierce presence. The Druid is jolting in a way that the same obelisk without perforation is not. What makes it stupefying are the slits of sky.

Exploring is limited. A social trail wanders to the left. The daring can creep along a ledge and gaze straight up the stone, but it is not possible to stand inside the arch.

The Druid’s space is most unusual. Its amphitheater is graced with alcoves and pourover cascades. Walls are eroding into pinnacles. Spires have soft, rounded crowns. The canyon is tiered with numerous layers of benches. Pigments are soft desert hues, except for the arch, which is saturated with iron core and stained with black varnish.

With a little rummaging around, explore the backside of the arch. Descend the talus slope. Just past the ladder, go left on a social trail that swings west. Please stay on rock or trail. It is somewhat difficult to move through this obstacle-laced area. Some tempting routes are quite exposed and should be avoided. Heave up a 5-foot, overhung dryfall for the best vantage point.

Retrace your steps down-canyon. At the 10-mile marker, 1.5 miles from Elephant Hill Trailhead, reach the junction with the trail to Squaw Flat Campground, 3.5 miles distant. Obviously, this option presents a logistical problem, unless you shuttled a vehicle in the morning, but I highly recommend this trail. If you must exit at Elephant Hill, at least go 0.2 miles roundtrip on the Squaw Flat Trail to an enchanting oval arch. Slither through the diminutive window before retracing your steps to the trailhead.

For those going on to the campground, descend a friction pitch and enter a canyon labyrinth. Ascend a pink sandstone ridge and cross a mile-wide swath of slickrock. Euphoria! Explore, but have a keen awareness of cairns and follow them faithfully. Turn left at Big Spring Canyon. At 13 miles, the trail splits again. Go right toward Campground A.

Big Spring Canyon and Lost Canyon Loop

This 10.2-mile hike is a circuit encompassing three enrapturing stone passes. Walk on one big rock for most of the day. Pair this with Druid Arch to assemble the primary landscape elements in Needles.

The loop leaves from the Squaw Flat Trailhead in Campground A. Study the sign and carry a map; there are 60 miles of interconnecting trails in the Needles District.

Children, ages 7 and up, will go wild with delight on a 6.4-mile out-and-back to the pass located south on the Big Spring Canyon Trail. Have them wear their stickiest shoes so they can scamper on sandstone friction pitches and climb a gentle knoll known as “The Lump.”

Durango resident Debra Van Winegarden can be reached at http://debravanwinegarden.blogspot.com.

Druid Arch Trail

Travel: From Monticello, Utah, drive 14 miles north on U.S. 191 toward Moab. At Church Rock, turn west on Utah Route 211. Pass the Newspaper Rock petroglyph site. Enter the park, passing the Visitor Center and the road to Squaw Flat Campground A. Stay on the main road, following signs for the Elephant Hill Trailhead. The last 2.5 miles are dirt with tight bends. Allow a solid three hours from Durango.

Squaw Flat Campground: There are 26 spacious and spectacular sites available on a first-come, first-served basis, year-round. With climbing features at every site, this is a children’s paradise. Expect bathrooms, fire grates, picnic tables, tent pads and water. The fee is $15 per night. Squaw Flat fills early every day March-June and September-October.

Distance and Elevation Gain: 11 miles round trip from Elephant Hill Trailhead; 13 miles to return to Squaw Flat Campground A; add 0.5 miles to see the back of the arch; 2,235 feet of elevation gain for the 13.5-mile option.

Time: 5 to 7½ hours.

Difficulty: Trail and cairned route; navigation is moderate, must be able to follow cairns; no exposure; Class 2+ scrambling; carry all the water you will need.

Map: Trails Illustrated, Needles District: Canyonlands National Park No. 313.