r/Canyonlands

My friend and I are doing a roadtrip of the big 5 in Utah this July and I wanted to go to the maze in canyonlands because I haven’t been to that area yet. I’d love to do a 2 day backpacking trip where we really get to see as much of the bottom of the canyon as possible. Most of the itineraries that look great to me online require 4 days which is out of the question because while we’re both in great hiking shape, my friend hasn’t backpacked before and she’d prefer to just do 1 night for her 1st time, totally fair! I’d love to find a good trail that’d make sense for our timeline. I’m open to suggestions for a 2 night 3 day that I can discuss with her too but the hope is definitely 1 night 2 days. Thanks in advance for your help!!

I‘ll be arriving in Moab on Saturday (tomorrow) afternoon. Thinking of heading to the Needles District on Sunday early morning to do the Druid Arch trail. While I‘ll be staying a whole 8 days in Moab, Sunday seems to be the best choice temperature-wise. It‘ll still become very hot, I know.

So, my idea is to leave my motel at 4am, hoping to be at Elephant Hill TH by 6am.

Good idea? Or should I focus on less enthusiastic hikes instead?

Is it worth it to drive to the needles district if I’m in a sedan? I can’t take my car on many more bumpy potholey back roads, it just can’t be good for it.

If you think it’s worth it- what is there to see? Would it be better to spend an extra day at capitol reef instead?

Me and a group of 3 were planning on hiking Druid Arch later this week. Looking for some advice.

Do you think this is doable in one day? We’re all 20-26 year olds visiting from out of town, in good shape, but not a lot of experience with hikes this long.

Can we get to the trailhead with a standard car? I see it’s an unpaved but graded road up to the trailhead, do I need a vehicle with high clearance? 4WD?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated. First time in needles or canyonlands