Poison Spider Trail to Little Arch

The Poison Spider Trail is a popular 4WD and mountain bike trail. For hikers, the 5.7 mile one way route to Little Arch is a good choice. The trailhead area is 6.2 miles west along Highway 279, or Potash Road on the north side of Moab in southeast Utah. The junction of Highway 279 with Highway 191 is across from the entrance to Arches National Park.

The first mile climbs with switchbacks along a road with rounded rocks. There are a couple of obstacles for vehicles that make a hiker’s progress as swift as the vehicles. In this first section there are good views across the broad slow flowing Colorado River. The total elevation gain for the trail is about 1000 feet.

On the mesa top there are domes of Navajo sandstone and desert vegetation. The walking is relatively easy on the road though there are sandy sections. Several of the desert plants are in flower in late April. There are scattered Utah Junipers and Pinon Pines, a lot of Prickly Pear Cactus, Indian Rice Grass and Pepper Grass, and Mormon Tea. I saw a few of the bright red Indian Paint Brush in bloom.

There were about a dozen 4WD vehicles on the trail the day I hiked. There were about 15 dirt bikes mostly in 3 groups, and I saw 4 mountain bikes. I was the only hiker that I saw.

The approach toward the Little Arch area has a series of sandstone domes. The trail climbs over and around the domes. It is easy to follow the burned rubber and oil spots along the rock surfaces. This area is the high cliffs that are above the Colorado River in the vicinity of the Moab Rim Trail. 

The upper part of the Moab Rim Trail and the Hidden Valley Trail can be sighted along here. Views closer to the cliffs reveal the tortured Rim Trail a very extreme route for vehicles. Watch for the junction with the Golden Spike Trail and stay to the right. There is also a loop route for vehicles that hikers would probably skip by again staying to the right.

The side route to Little Arch is well marked. For the benefit of vehicles directions are painted right on the rocks. The Little Arch is at the bottom of a deep pit and the views are from the edges. The trail head area for the Moab Rim Trail can be viewed through the arch as well as a section of river.

Among the spectacular views along the Poison Spider Trail is the many rock fins of the Behind the Rock wilderness area with the snow capped La Sal Mountains peeking above. This view is better in the afternoon as the light shifts to the west. At the trail head area there is a short trail toward a dinosaur track and petroglyphs. My hike for the 11.4 miles took 5:40 hours total on a 65 F degree blue sky late April day. I carried and drank 3 liters of water.

Moab Rim Trail

The Moab Rim Trail is a multi user trail route that climbs to the cliffs overlooking the west side of Moab in southeast Utah. It offers 3.5 miles of road before connecting with the Hidden Valley hiking trail which approaches from the south.

The Trailhead is well marked and is located on Kane Creek Road about 2.5 miles west of the junction with Highway 191.The trail climbs steeply in the first mile, gaining about 1000 feet. There are increasing spectacular views of the Colorado River as it winds toward the Canyonlands National Park. The trail is easy to follow as there are tire marks and oil spots on the Kayenta Sandstone.

The arch known as Little Arch is visible in the top of the cliffs on the opposite side of the Colorado River. Little Arch can be viewed from above along the Poison Spider Trail.

It took me about 30 minutes to get to the top where there are wide views overlooking Moab with some of the arches in Arches National Park visible and the La Sal Mountains to the east. There are some short trails to explore in the overlook area.

The trail cuts away from the rim and splits forming a loop. The left loop follows a sandy wash between large Navajo Sandstone domes and there is a small arch to the left. I think this one is called Buttress Arch. I spent a few minutes getting up under the arch for the blue sky angle, and then followed the right side of the loop.

The route is a two track road for a while then climbs a dome that looked unbelievable to try to drive over. There are good views in all directions from the top of the rocky knob. After descending from the top, the sandy wash part of the loop connects and then the road splits again and ends.

I turned back and followed the sandy part of the loop down a steep slope to explore a side canyon that had several alcoves. This looked like a likely place to find Indian Ruins. This was a scenic and narrow rocky area with some seep springs and lush vegetation but I didn’t see any ruins in the several alcoves.

From here I followed the sandy wash back toward the trail head. There may be ruins or petroglyphs on the road further along the road on the right fork.

There was quite a bit of 4WD drive activity on the trail in this mild April afternoon, with traffic jams forming as the vehicles labored past the tricky spots on this difficult route. With my side trips, it took me 3:00 hours to get to my turn around point, but only 1:15 to return to the bottom for a total hike of 4:15.