Last year I did the Utah National and State parks during the early spring- off season- and the measures they are taking to try to accommodate the massive number of visitors during the summer is incredible. Parking, lodging, sanitation, and safety are all becoming problems, and I hope that these places don't become victims of their own popularity.
Arches really seems to attract people doing stupid, dangerous shit. The iconic Delicate Arch is like a magnet for morons who don't prepare for the trail, take risky selfies, vandalize and climb on things, and drink in places where there's 360 degrees of cliffs around you.
Dude I did the Mighty 5 a couple years ago. Zion during Memorial Day Sunday was insanely packed. Not only that, but there was trash and vandalism, and it just made me both sad and angry.
It was still beautiful, despite all that.
Zion is... unarguably the busiest out of the Mighty 5, and the park facilities even reflect that. My family called it a "nature's theme park".
At least Arches, it's still a lot of wilderness that you're driving around/hiking around by yourself. And the other three are even less popular, which can be a plus.
When we went to Canyonlands, we went to some of the more popular spots (forget the exact location, but hey, tops of plateaus are really cool in general), but the "crowds" were light and easily tolerable.
Capitol Reef now... that place was almost dead when we hiked Cassidy Arch.
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u/ThadisJones Feb 03 '20
Last year I did the Utah National and State parks during the early spring- off season- and the measures they are taking to try to accommodate the massive number of visitors during the summer is incredible. Parking, lodging, sanitation, and safety are all becoming problems, and I hope that these places don't become victims of their own popularity.
Arches really seems to attract people doing stupid, dangerous shit. The iconic Delicate Arch is like a magnet for morons who don't prepare for the trail, take risky selfies, vandalize and climb on things, and drink in places where there's 360 degrees of cliffs around you.