Even if you can’t travel to Utah right now, you can still see, hear and experience what’s happening in Utah’s Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Zion national parks, thanks to some amazing technology such as webcams and Google Earth. Here are some of our favorite ways to feel like we are in the park, even when we’re nowhere near it.
Zion National Park
See The Watchman in all its glory, plus the Court of the Patriarchs, The East Temple and West Temple from your living room. By using Google Earth, you can fly down into the park and see these spectacular sights. The best part? You don’t even have to deal with park crowds to get these amazing views. earth.google.com+
See what the weather is like at Temples and Towers of the Virgin via this live webcam positioned at the Zion Visitor Center. www.nps.gov/media/webcam/view.htm?id=A4068FB2-DB05-82B5-F242852BBAA0A971
Don’t miss out on a ranger talk just because you’re at home. Listen to audio podcasts that explore places like Lower Emerald Pools Trail here. www.nps.gov/zion/learn/photosmultimedia/podcast.htm And learn about the secret lives of river stones and more here. www.nps.gov/zion/learn/photosmultimedia/audiocasts.htm
For more digital resources, go here www.nps.gov/zion/learn/photosmultimedia/
Canyonlands National Park
You don’t need to visit the park to get a bird’s eye view of Canyonlands National Park. Pull the park up on Google Earth and then fly down to all your favorite spots, including the harrowing Shafer Trail that snakes down a steep dirt canyon road 18 miles to the Colorado River. earth.google.com+
Check out what Islands of the Sky looks like live with this webcam positioned at the Islands of the Sky Visitor Center. www.nps.gov/cany/learn/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm
Get 360 tours of White Crack and Murphy Trail here. www.nps.gov/cany/learn/photosmultimedia/panorama.htm
For more photos and resources, go to www.nps.gov/cany/learn/photosmultimedia/
Bryce Canyon National Park
Is there anything cooler than flying around Bryce Canyon National Park’s world-famous hoodoos? Since you can’t do it in person, take advantage of all that Google Earth offers to get you off the ground and hovering over this majestic parkscape. earth.google.com+
And along that same vein, travel with park ranger Kevin Poe on a journey through parts of the park in the National Park Service and Google Cultural Institute’s The Hidden Worlds of National Parks (artsandculture.google.com/project/national-park-service). It’s a short mesmerizing video with incredible cinematography of Bryce Canyon National Park.
The park is working on eTours and video podcasts, so check here for more including gorgeous photo galleries. www.nps.gov/brca/learn/photosmultimedia/
Capitol Reef National Park
One of Utah’s less-discovered national parks, Capitol Reef is a fantastic place to visit via Google Earth. See Capitol Dome, Goosenecks Overlook, Sunset Point and Panorama Point from up high and then sweep down to get more intimate views of the park’s gorgeous landmarks. earth.google.com+
If you just want to hear the sounds of the park, check out Minute Out in It, a series of short videos about the park at www.nps.gov/care/learn/photosmultimedia/minute-out-in-it.htm
For more resources, visit www.nps.gov/care/learn/photosmultimedia/
Arches National Park
Fly to Arches National Park via Google Earth to see this park’s amazing red-rock arches. There’s Double Arch and Delicate Arch, along with Balanced Rock, Fiery Furnace and more to see as you fly around the park. It’s fun to trace the park road to see how well you remember the order of all the sights to see. earth.google.com+
Wondering how long the line is to get into Arches? Check it out live via this webcam located at the entrance to Arches. You can see the road along Hwy. 191 across from Arches, too. www.nps.gov/arch/learn/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm
If you can’t go to a ranger talk, there are plenty of videos and an audio segment to immerse you into the park’s rhythms. Discover more about he geology of the park and how to get a permit for Fiery Furnace in these videos. www.nps.gov/arch/learn/photosmultimedia/multimedia.htm Then listen to Dr. Sasha Reed, research ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, explain on this audio talk why stepping on the desert’s soil crust can be really damaging. www.nps.gov/arch/learn/photosmultimedia/tinyforests.htm
And then there’s a ton of photos, old and new of Arches, to keep you dreaming. www.nps.gov/arch/learn/photosmultimedia/