Canyonlands National Park is located in Utah, USA. This park covers 337,598 acres and is known for its multi-colored canyons, mesas, buttes, fins, arches and spires. The sculpting of the land took thousands of years as water and gravity worked at it. The park is divided into four districts called: The Island in the Sky, the Maze, the Needles and the rivers. Each district has it’s own flavor as well as different opportunities for exploring and studying natural and cultural history.

Canyonlands offers many chances for kids to have fun. A free Junior Ranger booklet is available at the visitor center. These have fun activities, facts about the park and a few exercises. When completing it, children can earn a Junior Ranger badge and certificate. Discovery Packs are also available to be checked out at the visitor center. These packs included binoculars, a hand lens, naturalist guide and a notebook. Hikes short enough for children are available in the Island in the Sky and the Needles areas. Kids love to explore Mesa Arch and Whale Rock. The Cave Spring Trail in Needles offers a cowboy camp and prehistoric pictographs. Pothole Point is a hike with potholes full of water and interesting creatures that live in them.

Canyonlands National Park has opportunities for all abilities from scenic auto drives and four-wheeling to climbing, hiking, camping, boating and more.http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/upload/TripPlanner.pdf

• Auto-Touring - Island in the Sky offers the best sightseeing by car with amazing views of the canyons.
• Four-Wheel Driving - hundreds of miles of four-wheel-drive roads.
• Backpacking - permits required for overnight trips. Spring and fall are popular times to backpack and permits often run out. Reservations are recommended. Phone: 435-259-4351
• Biking - famous the 100-mile White Rim Road at the Island in the Sky.
• Boating - permits required for private overnight stays. Guided trips also available.
• Camping - two campgrounds. Squaw Flat Campground has bathrooms, fire grates, picnic tables, tent pads and water available year-round. Fees range $10-15 dollars. Willow Flat Campground has picnic tables, fire grates and vault toilets. No water. Fees are $10 per night. Group camping and backpacking also available. Phone: 435-719-2313
• Hiking - various trails for different abilities. Island in the Sky and the Needles districts have several short trails great for children. http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/things2do.htm

Canyonlands National Park shows evidence of human inhabitants for thousands of years. First were the Hunter-Gatherers, then the Ancestral Puebloans and Fremont people and finally the Utes, Navajos and Paiutes. These later people arrived between 800 and 1300 A.D.

From the 1880’s to 1795, many of the ranches of the area used the Canyonlands area as winter pasturage for their animals. Many places still have the names of those early cowboys. In the 1950’s, there was a high demand for uranium. Monetary incentives offered encouraged prospectors and almost 1,000 miles of road were built in southeast Utah. These new roads offered the first views of the Canyonlands from a car and tourism increased. In the 1950’s and 60’s, Bates Wilson, the Arches National Monument Superintendent, campaigned for the creation of a National Park in the Canyonlands area.

On September 12, 1964, President Johnson signed in the establishment of Canyonlands National Park. Congress in 1971 expanded the size of the park.http://www.nps.gov/cany/historyculture/parkfounders.htm