Entrance station · Canyonlands National Park
Buy your park pass here before continuing into The Needles.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Canyonlands Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Canyonlands National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Canyonlands audio tourRecorded for this area
The Needles Visitor Center“The Needles Visitor Center is coming up, and it's worth stopping if you're weighing up a hike or a backcountry drive. Rangers can help you match a route to the day you want.”
Plays on the road 0.4 mi from The Needles Entrance Station in the Parkwolf Canyonlands Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
The Needles Entrance Station is the park's fee and pass booth on the UT-211 approach to the Needles district. It's a practical stop for handling park entry, not a destination to budget sightseeing time for. You can pay the entrance fee or purchase a pass here.
From US 191, follow UT-211 about 35 miles west toward The Needles. It's the only paved road into or out of the district. GPS units often send drivers the wrong way, so use a map to plan the approach.
The Needles Visitor Center is about half a kilometre west of the entrance booth. That's where you'll find exhibits, maps and book sales, backcountry permits, a picnic area, and water year-round; don't mistake the fee station for the visitor center.
Wildlife
48 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
47 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
30 sightingsWestern RattlesnakeMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
18 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
18 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Canyonlands. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyStone Storehouse Trail0.3 mi · 20 min · 0.6 mi awayA short loop to an Indigenous storehouse beneath a sandstone alcove.
EasyCave Spring Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 0.8 mi awayA short loop with a cowboy camp, spring alcove, and rock art.
ChallengingAngel Arch Trail27.5 mi · 20 hr · 1.3 mi awayMolar Rock and a giant arch reward a hard canyon walk.
ModerateHorse Canyon Road Walk to Paul Bunyan’s Potty6.8 mi · 4 hr · 1.3 mi awayA sandy road walk to a sandstone arch in a canyon.
ChallengingAmerican Discovery Trail (Canyonlands Passage)19.8 mi · 10 hr · 2.2 mi awayA remote, one-way 19.8-mile road walk through The Needles.
EasyPothole Point Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 2.9 mi awayA short cairn-marked loop among rain-fed pothole gardens.
ChallengingWooden Shoe Canyon to Lost Canyon Loop Trail8.7 mi · 5.5 hr · 3.2 mi awayTwo canyon floors, slickrock climbs, and one ladder in a rugged loop.
ChallengingPeekaboo Trail10.8 mi · 6 hr · 3.2 mi awayTwo ladders and high slickrock make this a serious Needles day hike.
Visitor center · 0.3 mi awayThe Needles Visitor CenterGet ranger advice before choosing a Needles hike or 4WD road.Sight · 0.5 mi awayStone StorehouseA quick loop to an ancient granary beneath a sandstone alcove.
Campground · 0.7 mi awayNeedles OutpostA handy, rustic base just outside the Needles District.Sight · 0.8 mi awayCave Spring and Cowboy CampSpring, cowboy camp and rock art all fit in a 45-minute loop.
Sight · 2 mi awayWooden Shoe Arch OverlookA quick stop for one unmistakable shoe-shaped arch.
Picnic area · 3 mi awayNeedles Scenic Drive Picnic AreaA shaded stop where rain brings tiny desert creatures to life.
Sight · 3 mi awayPothole PointRain-fed pools bring a small world to life on bare sandstone.
Campground · 3 mi awayThe Needles CampgroundCamp among sandstone spires, with Needles hikes close at hand.Parkwolf’s Canyonlands ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
