Earlier this month, as part of our longer trip to southeast Utah, Adam, Helene, Becca, and I decided we wanted to go for a quick backpacking trip, and the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park was an accessible choice. Adam and I hadn’t been there since were probably 5 or 6 years old, so we set out for an easy overnight to Chesler Park, a backcountry meadow ringed on all sides by beautiful sandstone formations. By a complete and utter stroke of luck, we ended up having the area entirely to ourselves as a big solar storm caused the Aurora to be visible all the way down in southeast Utah, and the conditions for viewing were perfect: clear, dry skies, a new moon, and a stunning landscape. However, watching the northern lights was just one memorable highlight from a great trip that included fun explorations of Druid Arch and the Joint Trail, a section of trail that passes through some incredibly fractured canyons on the southern margin of Chesler Park.
Becca and I had to work on Monday, so Adam and Helene went ahead for an extra night of camping, with plans to meet a few miles from the trailhead Tuesday morning. Becca and I drove down after dark and camped at the Needles Campground for an early start. I had fun scampering around on the sandstone domes above the campground for sunrise, then we threw on our packs and walked up Wooden Shoe Canyon where we bumped into Adam and Helene at the predesignated spot without issue.
South Six Shooter Peak at dawn
A slickrock garden patch near the Needles Campground at sunrise
Reunited, we headed up Wooden Shoe Canyon, following the Park Service trail over a small pass and into a tributary of Elephant Canyon, poking our heads up a few side canyons on the way. Adam and I decided it would be fun to try and find our way off trail down into Elephant Canyon, and we had a great time walking along slickrock, end running canyons, and ultimately scrambling down into the Elephant Canyon right next to the trail leading over to Chesler Park. We dropped our overnight gear here, and took light packs for our afternoon side trip up to Druid Arch.
Peering into a chasm in Wooden Shoe Canyon
Practicing slab technique in a side canyon off Wooden Shoe
Becca on the slickrock above Elephant Canyon
There were plenty of day hikers heading out as we made our way up Elephant Canyon, but by the time we arrived at Druid Arch, we had the whole place to ourselves. The arch is truly striking, and I had a bit too much fun scrambling upcanyon to the back side of the arch in pursuit of more angles to photograph from. In my excitement, I jumped down a steep section of slickrock without realizing that it was quite hard to reverse the downclimb. After snapping my picture, I quickly realized I had trapped myself on an isolated block of rock with no way off - steep cliffs on three sides, and the irreversible downclimb on the fourth. After a few desperate run-and-jump failures, I did what any younger brother would—I yelled to Adam to come help me. Adam made his way over to inspect my shameful predicament, and, after gleefully photographing my stuck self, we made a plan. Adam would crouch at the top of the downclimb, and I would run and jump, reaching as high as I could to grab onto him to steady myself before climbing back up the slab. It was a great plan: the only way that this could make the situation worse was if I pulled Adam off his stance and got him stuck with me, which, naturally is exactly what happened. With a partner assist and some good, old-fashioned Weld boys ingenuity, we both made it back up unscathed and with a funny story to tell.
Druid Arch at the head of Elephant Canyon, taken from the spot from which Adam had to rescue me.
This whole escapade had cost us about 45 minutes, and Adam and I hurried downcanyon to catch the ladies, stopping to fill water on the way. I kicked myself for messing up the sunset timing, but we still got a few views as we climbed out of Elephant Canyon and entered Chesler Park as it was getting dark. We set up camp at one of the designated Park Service sites under a sandstone outcropping, and I put my camera on my tripod to take a few more photos in the dying light. Looking on my camera’s screen, I saw a weird red glow in the sky to north, not yet visible to the naked eye. It was in the wrong direction to be the lingering sunset… what could it be? A distant wildfire? Light pollution? I walked over to the other side of the rock and climbed up to get a better view, and as it got darker, it became clear we were looking at the Aurora, brilliantly red, with hints of green and purple, shimmering almost imperceptibly. We all took our dinner up high onto the slickrock to stargaze under the northern lights and Milky Way, then after dinner I had a grand time running around the Park, climbing onto rock formations to get better views and different angles to photograph. It was truly one of the most amazing camping moments I’ve experienced.
Adam near our camp, silhouetted by his own headlamp, under the northern lights.
Chesler Park and its sandstone formations under the Milky Way and the Aurora. This is a panorama stitched from 24 frames, each a 20 second exposure.
The next morning, still thrilled by the previous night’s display, we set out to explore the Joint Trail, which cuts through some incredible natural fissures in the rock as it slinks out of Chesler Park to the south. We all had a ton of fun exploring the caves, side passages, and slots along the short trail, with lots of opportunities for stemming up high and crawling through narrow passages. We headed back to our camp to discover that we had been ransacked by Ravens… Canyonlands Ravens know how to open zippers!
Chesler Park in the morning light, looking across the Colorado River to the Maze District in the distance
Group photo above the Joint Trail, with Chesler Park in the background
Adam, Helene, and Becca walking along one of the side passages along the Joint Trail
Becca exploring caves along the Joint Trail
We cleaned up our camp, and headed back towards the Needles Campground, completing our loop by exiting via Big Shoe Canyon. A great trip!