Picture Frame and Balcony Arches

Located south of Moab, about 20ish minutes, Picture Frame and Balcony Arches is part of the popular Behind The Rocks area and offers users amazing scenery, great primitive camping, and opportunities to explore a spiderweb network of numerous side trails. The trail begins off Highway 191 and winds through classic Utah desert landscapes, including sandstone formations, wide-open vistas, and scattered juniper trees. The trail is most accessible on the east end and gets rougher the farther west you travel. While the road isn’t particularly technical, weather conditions like rain can make parts of it more challenging, and it is best suited for high-clearance, 4WD vehicles due to sections of loose sand, rocky terrain, and slickrock. The end of the trail is where the reward is, with both arches situated near opposite corners of a large dome of sandstone that forms a ridge on a small mesa overlooking part of the Behind the Rocks Wilderness. Balcony Arch is located on the southwest corner, above several designated campsites, while Picture Frame Arch is located on the northeast corner. Picture Frame Arch is the more well-known arch and is a large, natural sandstone formation that resembles a picture frame, making it a popular spot for photography.

The first 2 miles of trail do not allow camping, but there are several large staging areas great for airing down or unloading your machines. For the remainder of the trail, primitive camping is only allowed in designated areas marked with a tent symbol sign. Campsites range in size from a single vehicle to large group sites. From tenting and car camping to travel trailers and RVs, there is definitely a spot along this trail for everyone.