Everything You Need to Know About Visiting Balanced Rock

Balanced Rock picture in Arches National Park

x of x

Key Info

Arches Scenic Drive
Moab, UT 84532
Official Website

Details

Hiking, Natural Wonders, Sightseeing Type
Less than 1 hour Time to Spend

4.6

Overall

Scorecard

Value

5.0
Facilities

2.5
Atmosphere

5.0

Read about how we rank Things to Do.

This iconic, 128-foot boulder, precariously perched on top of a thin pedestal of rock, is one of the park's top sights. Though it seems like it might fall over, the rock is actually attached to its eroding pedestal of Dewey Bridge mudstone.

Balanced Rock can be seen from the road, but many recent travelers suggested parking and taking the short trail (less than half a mile) to the rock's base. A stop here is especially popular with photographers, who suggest a sunset visit, when the setting sun gives the rocks a deep, red-orange cast.

Balanced Rock is located less than 10 miles north of the park entrance. There is a picnic area across from it along a gravel road, which also has a covered canopy and vault toilet. Access to Balanced Rock is included in park admission. Visit the NPS website for more information.

More Best Things to Do in Arches National Park

Landscape Arch picture in Arches National Park

Windows Section picture in Arches National Park

Delicate Arch picture in Arches National Park

Double Arch picture in Arches National Park

Visitor Center picture in Arches National Park

Fiery Furnace picture in Arches National Park

Wolfe Ranch picture in Arches National Park

x of x

#1 Landscape Arch Located in the Devils Garden area, Landscape Arch is North America's longest arch, stretching an amazing 306 feet. To view the arch, you can take an easy, flat 50-minute ... Read more » (c) Swapan Jha / Getty Images

#2 Balanced Rock This iconic, 128-foot boulder, precariously perched on top of a thin pedestal of rock, is one of the park's top sights. Though it seems like it might fall over ... Read more » Robert Loe / Getty Images

#3 Windows Section The Windows Section, which is about 2 square miles in size, is home to some of the largest arches in the park, including North Window, South Window, Turret Arch and Double Arch ... Read more » Daniel Viñé Garcia / Getty Images

#4 Delicate Arch Delicate Arch has to be the world's most famous natural arch. The opening beneath the arch is 46 feet high and 32 feet wide, making it the largest free-standing ... Read more » www.infinitahighway.com.br / Getty Images

#5 Double Arch Double Arch, at 112 feet, is the tallest arch in the park. At 144 feet in length, it's also the second-longest arch in the park. Luckily, this natural wonder is ... Read more » Nigel Killeen / Getty Images

#6 Arches Visitor Center Start your park experience at Arches Visitor Center, located just a mile inside the entrance. Recent visitors call the center a "treasure trove of information." Along with exhibits inside and ... Read more » Frank Kehren / Flickr

#7 Fiery Furnace Adventurous types love to explore the Fiery Furnace, a series of narrow passageways that leads through towering sandstone walls. Since it's easy to get lost among the labyrinth and ... Read more » KatieDobies / Getty Images

#8 Wolfe Ranch In 1898, John Wesley Wolfe settled 100 acres here with his son, where they had a few head of cattle and eked out a living. They lived in a rough ... Read more » MicheleVacchiano / Getty Images