6 Best Sights in Moab and Southeastern Utah, Utah

Named for its striking pair of massive buttes, Bears Ears National Monument stretches across more than a million acres of land sacred to several Native American tribes. Countless archaeological sites and artifacts dot this remote landscape, including cliff dwellings, petroglyphs, pictographs, and a prehistoric road system. The scenery is awe-inspiring, too, with remote canyons, vast grasslands, and the kind of towering red-rock formations southern Utah is famous for. Opportunities abound here to hike, rock climb, river raft, and embark on scenic drives, and visitor information is available at both the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service offices in Monticello. Because of the long history that surrounds you in Bears Ears, being especially respectful of your surroundings is a must. In Bluff, the Bears Ears Education Center offers further guidance on how to explore such a culturally important area. 

While entering the monument is free, permits and passes are required in the Shash Jáa Special Recreation Management Area and the Cedar Mesa Special Recreation Management Area. Depending on the time of year, these can be purchased at trailheads or at  www.recreation.gov. The hike to Moon House, an Ancestral Puebloan dwelling, is so popular that only 20 hikers are allowed per day and a separate permit is required.

For any visit to Bears Ears National Monument, this is as important a stop as the BLM office in Monticello. Run by the nonprofit Bears Ears Partnership, this is not an official visitor center for the park, but it does focus on teaching visitors how to explore Bears Ears respectfully. It's also a great place to pick up maps for your trip, and do peruse the gift shop and bookstore. Indigenous pottery shards are on display, as are more modern pieces by indigenous artisans showcasing the kind of work Native people created in the area thousands of years ago. The visitor center typically has a seasonal closure in summer and winter, though the dates change depending on visitation. The Partnership's thorough website also has plenty of up-to-date information for your journey.

It's impossible to miss this delightfully weird roadside collection of massive scrap-metal sculptures, from huge dinosaurs to tiny, buglike creatures. The longer you stay, the more details you see, and somehow the small sign reading "Welcome to the Center of the Universe" feels right on. The "garden" promotes love and is free, though it does take donations in a little box. 

The best place in southeast Utah to see ancient tower ruins dotting the scenic cliffs, if you're headed south from Canyonlands and have an interest in Ancestral Puebloan culture, a visit to this monument is a must. Park rangers strongly advise following printed maps and signs from U.S. 191 near Blanding, Utah, or County Road G from Cortez, Colorado; GPS is not reliable here. Once you arrive, you'll find unusual tower structures (which may have been used for astronomical observation) and ancient dwellings.

With a shoreline longer than America's Pacific coast, Lake Powell is the heart of the huge 1.25-millon-acre Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Created by the Glen Canyon Dam—a 710-foot wall of concrete in the Colorado River—Lake Powell took 17 years to fill. The second-largest man-made lake in the nation, it extends through terrain so rugged that it was the last major area of the country to be mapped. Red cliffs ring the lake and twist off into 96 major canyons and countless inlets with huge, red-sandstone buttes randomly jutting from the sapphire waters.

The most popular thing to do at Lake Powell is to rent a houseboat and chug leisurely across the lake, exploring coves and inlets. Like many tourist spots in the region, the lake's busiest times are in the summer, with peak visitation on holiday weekends. Book far in advance for those dates. It's also important to check with the National Park Service for current water levels, closures, and other weather-related conditions.

Southwest of Bullfrog, Rainbow Bridge National Monument is the largest natural bridge in the world, and its 290-foot-high, 275-foot-wide span is a breathtaking sight. Unfortunately, accessing this wonder is difficult. You can either hike a 14-mile trail from the Navajo Nation or boat in, though the National Park Service had to pull its dock back from the water in 2021 due to low water levels and damage from storms, with no estimate for restoring its original location. Small boats and vessels still have access to the shoreline but getting to the trail requires wading through water and mud. No special permit is needed to boat into the monument, but hiking in from the Navajo Nation requires a permit issued by the Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation Department ( www.navajonationparks.org). The main visitor center for Lake Powell is Arizona's Wahweap Marina, with a campground, general store, restaurants, swimming pools, boat docks, and houseboat rentals.

Sego is one of the most dramatic and mystifying rock-art sites in the entire state. Large, ghostlike rock-art figures painted and etched by Native Americans approximately 4,000 years ago cover these canyon walls. There's also art left by the Ute from the 19th century. Distinctive for their large anthropomorphic figures, and for horses, buffalo, and shields painted with red-and-white pigment, these rare drawings are a must-see. A well-preserved ghost town is also nearby.