Arches National Park Fiery Furnace FAQs
We answer all most asked questions about Arches National Park Fiery Furnace, whether about the ranger-guided tour or self-guided tour.
Questions About The Hike
Questions About Ranger Tours
Questions About Securing Permits
Questions About The Weather
Should I Choose A Ranger-Guided Tour Or A Self-Guided Tour?
Hands down, doing the hike by yourself is the best option because it affords you the freedom to explore, but there is a caveat. Permits can be difficult to obtain if you only have a day or two during certain times of the year so if you are coming to Moab during the high season and you’re only planning on being here for a day or two you should book the Fiery Furnace Guided Hike with a ranger in advance, If you’re arriving outside of the busiest times, and will stay more than a day in Moab, you will have a good chance of securing a permit and then hiking it by yourself is a much better option!
Questions About The Hike
01.
How Long Is The Fiery Furnace Hike?
The ranger tour is 2.5 hours. The Fiery Furnace Guided Hike with a ranger moves a little slower to allow adequate time for a larger group of different abilities to make it through the Fiery Furnace. Hiking on your own, if you’re in relatively good shape. you can do the hike in 1.5 hours including all the side trips to the hidden arches as described in our guide, but you will probably take more time because once you get in there you will want to explore additional side canyons (why not, right?) and take it all in with no one around you – right in the middle of Arches National Park with thousands of other visitors fighting for parking spaces and elbowing each other along other trails! Around 3-4 hours is a good time to be inside the Fiery Furnace.
02.
Are There Any Risks Involved In Hiking The Fiery Furnace?
As with any outdoor activity, unfortunately yes. There is a potential for rock fall or for getting injured due to the terrain, but because of its “reputation” and all the “checks” the park service has put into place typically people end up being more cautious on this hike and believe it or not fewer injuries occur inside the Fiery Furnace than at other locations inside the park like the Devil’s Garden or Delicate Arch. You still have to make your own individual decision as to whether this hike is a good fit for you. See our Safety page for more info on other risks associated with hiking the Fiery Furnace.
03.
How Strenuous Is The Fiery Furnace Hike?
The Fiery Furnace is a short 2 miles, but it will feel more like 3-4 by the time you’re done. There are places along the route that are slightly technical, and places where you will step over wide crevices which will require good balance, and places where you will scramble and climb using your hands, but overall if you are an average hiker with a good sense of balance, don’t have an overwhelming fear of heights, don’t have any range of motion issues and you’re hiking on a good weather day, you should have absolutely no problem making it through the Fiery Furnace – and just the opposite, you will love every minute of the experience! Having our guide along takes care of the one thing that is the most difficult inside the Fiery Furnace – the navigational challenge!
04.
What Can I Expect To See Inside Along The Fiery Furnace Hike?
Inside the Fiery Furnace you will have a chance to explore an incredible maze of walls (fins), towers and arches formed by erosion of Jurassic sandstone. If you’re hiking on your own, the start of the hike isn’t marked or obvious – our guide will point you in the right direction right off the bat! Inside you will find park arrows scattered throughout to point you through the hike, but only about 50% of them are easily found which is why everyone who purchases our guide finds it so helpful. You should see nine arches: Walk Through Arch, Crawl Through Arch, Inner Sanctum, Skull Arch, Broken Arch, Kissing Turtles, Unnamed Arch, Flatiron Arch, Surprise arch. The ranger tour skips some of these and GPS apps will only show you one.
Questions About Ranger Tours
01.
I want to do a tour. How Soon Should I Book The Online Ranger-Guided Tour?
The Fiery Furnace Guided Hikes that can be booked online are offered May through September at 9am and 9:30am and you can start booking them in December. In December the entire window is open for the following year and as of December 15th, current year all dates were still available to some degree for the following year. If the online tour is not available, there is an afternoon (3pm) ranger guided tour available on a first-come first-serve basis. To get signed up for that tour follow the “strategies” for securing a permit since the purchase of that tour has to be done in person at the Visitor Center and thus is equivalent to securing the individual permit. If you’re doing the tour, you don’t need a separate permit – the permits are only for hikers who are hiking without a tour!
02.
Online Ranger tour is sold out. what are my options?
You can still try to get signed up for an afternoon (3pm) ranger walk-on tour once you get to Moab. You have to do that in person at the Arches Visitor Center. You can also choose to do the hike on your own and get a private permit if you’re looking for an amazing adventure with more freedom to explore.
03.
What Are Some Strategies For Securing A Walk-In Tour?
If you’re coming to Moab and are wanting to hike the Fiery Furnace on a walk-in guided tour recommend that the Visitor Center at Arches National Park should be your first stop in Moab. If you're arriving in the evening, be at the Visitor Center first thing in the morning, an hour before the Visitor Center opens to secure your spot if spots are still available.
Questions About Securing Permits
01.
I Want To Hike By Myself. Where Can I Get A Fiery Furnace Hike Map?
It might be that the Fiery Furnace Hike is the only hike that does not have a map! The landscape inside the Fiery Furnace is so disorienting that a Fiery Furnace hike map would be effectively useless. GPS apps are available, but they too can be less than helpful because all they can do is show you your location relative to the trail, but not where you should go next. Our guide is picture-based so it provides hikers with invaluable visual landscape references which is the only sure way to know where you are at all times inside the Fiery Furnace!
02.
How Difficult Is It To Get A Permit Throughout The Year?
That depends on when you’re planning on hiking. In winter you can typically get a permit the same day, but it is advisable to get it at least one day in advance. In summer, when it’s more busy you might have to get your permit 1-2 days in advance. In high season, which is May & June and then again September & October, and especially on weekends, plan on getting your permit 3-4 days out so plan your travel accordingly.
03.
What Are Some Strategies For Securing A Permit?
If you’re coming to Moab and are wanting to hike the Fiery Furnace we recommend that the Visitor Center at Arches National Park should be your first stop on your visit to Moab. The visitor center is located conveniently just 2 miles outside of Moab and even though their hours vary throughout the season you should plan on getting there an hour before the Visitor Center closes to get a permit for the next day or be there first thing in the morning the following day. Keep in mind that often in the morning there is already a line of people waiting to secure a permit so you should show up at least a half hour to an hour before the Visitor Center opens to be the first in line – that can often mean the difference between getting a permit or not.
04.
Can I Get A Permit Online For A Self-Guided Hike?
The only way to get the permit for the individual hike is to get it in person at the Arches Visitor Center. All members of the hiking group have to be present at the time of permit purchase. Everyone will be required to watch a 20 minute video covering safety and ecology within the Fiery Furnace and participate in a q&a with the ranger. Permits are $6 per person and can be only issued to anyone over 5 years old.
Questions About The Weather
01.
Can I Hike The Fiery Furnace In Winter?
Yes! Except for a handful of days when the park service closes the trail due to snow, the trail is open year round. Keep in mind that once the first snowfall occurs the trail can become dangerous. The hike is mostly in the shade and that means that the snow doesn’t melt and it turns into ice and that can make some exposed parts of the hike very dangerous. Typically in Moab the first snow doesn’t happen till the end of December so there is plenty of winter hiking to be done before the trail becomes more difficult. But do use your good judgement hiking in winter!
02.
What Kind Of Weather Should We Expect?
Arches National Park Fiery Furnace hike is located in the desert and because of that the weather is relatively predictable and generally good. Spring can be a little wet, but typically the rains are short lived. Summer can be hot, but morning remain relatively cool so you can still pull of a short hike like the Fiery Furnace before the suffocating summer heat sets in. Fall is probably the best time to hike as it will be warm, not hot, and it rains rarely. Winters are mild and you can still hike in the winter, but it does depend on the year. Some years we get a lot of snow and the trail might be closed for a while and some years winters are very mild and the trail is only closed for a few days.
03.
What Sort Of Conditions Can I Expect Inside The Fiery Furnace?
Inside the Fiery Furnace you will be hiking in between tall sandstone walls which means you will be mostly in shade. Only at around noon will the sun be overhead and provide some warmth and sunshine during cold months. Though in the summer, this shade turns out to be ideal for hiking the Fiery Furnace! If you’re hoping for some great photos, the shade will again pose a bit of a challenge – you might need a camera with HDR capabilities to take good photos.
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Or, visit our FAQ pages for more information on the Fiery Furnace trail, Fiery Furnace guided hike, or our Fiery Furnace Self-Guided Tour!
