Primitive Trail

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This is a great hike but I cannot recommend this for inexperienced hikers. The trail starts from the Devil’s Garden trail head. Just before you reach Landscape arch, there is a sandy trail that leads to the right. The trail is marked with a wood sign at the beginning.

Follow the sandy trail for about 1 mile until you reach a dry wash. the direction of the trail is marked with a wood sign. While in the wash you will come to a large pot hole usually filled with water and several logs. Try not to use the logs to cross the water because they are unstable. Get a running start and run along the left side, circling to the right. Don’t stop running! This should get you around the hole. You can also skirt the right side very high if you have good hiking boots and you are comfortable using friction to scale steep slick rock.

There is another tricky area as you start to cross the fin’s about 2/3’s of the way along the trail. It is steep slick rock that you ascend diagonally. This tends to be very slippery because of dry sand that other hikers inadvertently deposit when they ascend. I had one student slip here and slide to the bottom.

At the end of the primitive trail you will see Double O arch. This is a good place to stop for lunch.  To return to the parking area, take the Devil’s Garden Trail.  Make sure you take the side trip to Navajo Arch, it is well worth it.

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