Slot Canyon San Rafael Swell Utah

Slot Canyon San Rafael Swell Utah Average ratng: 4,7/5 270 reviews

Forgotten Canyon, San Rafael Swell, Utah It is not particularly narrow, or very long, or very deep, but Forgotten Canyon (also known as Secret Mesa Canyon) offers a perfect wilderness hike in a remote corner of the San Rafael Swell, itself one of the least visited parts of Utah. Search teams work in the area where heavy rains flooded a slot canyon near Goblin Valley State Park in an area called Little Wildhorse Canyon on Monday, May 11, 2020, that killed a 7-year-old and her 3-year old sister while they were hiking with their family. Meghan Thackery, Deseret News. This is the San Rafael Swell, a huge oval-shaped uplifted area bordered approximately by UT 24, US 6/191, UT 10 and the northern edge of Capitol Reef National Park, and bisected by I-70. Around the edges of the Swell is a ring of upturned eroded strata - the San Rafael Reef, where most of the slot canyons.

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Short ravine, not very narrow or enclosed, but bordered by nicely eroded rocks, with a great variety of textures and colors. Often hiked as part of a loop with adjacent Little Wild Horse Canyon
Length: 1.8 miles, to the end of the enclosed section, 7.8 miles for the complete loop
Difficulty: Easy
Management: BLM
Rocks: Navajo sandstone, Kayenta formation, Wingate sandstone
Season: Spring and fall are best; summers are very hot
Trailhead:Along Wild Horse Road, 5.7 miles west of Goblin Valley SP
Rating (1-5):★★★★★
Bell Canyon is a short ravine that joins Little Wild Horse Canyon; it is just 1.5 miles long and is narrow, albeit rather shallow, for most of its length, and has a great variety of rock forms, textures and colors, unlike most slot canyons that pass through a single homogenous layer. Both canyons cut through the Kayenta, Wingate and Navajo sandstone strata, the main components of the San Rafael Reef. They may be visited all year, although winter brings snowfall and icy pools, while the temperatures in mid summer may exceed 100 °F, so spring and fall are the favored seasons.

Topographic Map of Bell Canyon



Location


See Little Wild Horse Canyon.

Photographs


6 views of Bell Canyon.

Route Description


Walking upstream along Little Wild Horse Canyon north from the trailhead, the Bell Canyon junction is reached after ten minutes, past some short narrows and a minor dryfall - it is a side ravine that veers away to the left. From the start the canyon is very rocky and boulder strewn, the streambed covered by sand and pebbles of various colors and sizes. The walls are made up of exposed, angled strata, and all the surroundings show signs of great erosion. The canyon narrows quite soon but remains fairly open, without any obstructions apart from several dryfalls a few feet high. The passage twists and turns, and the enclosing rocks rise far above, becoming several hundred feet high though not sheer, as even at its deepest point the canyon is V-shaped in profile.

Slot Canyon San Rafael Swell Utah Weather


The narrows finish after 30 minutes walking, when the passageway opens out a lot, and a wide gravelly wash winds through the canyon, which now is bordered by sand banks and boulder piles at each side. After 15 minutes more, a faint track (the disused far end of Chute Canyon Road) crosses the streambed - this is quite easy to miss, but necessary since along here is the way in to the upper end of Little Wild Horse Canyon and the continuation of the loop hike. The road follows beneath the cliffs that run towards the northeast, rounds a promontory then turns back southeast. The surrounding landscape has seemingly endless layered, eroded rocks of every color - mainly shades of green, grey, purple, green and white.
Baptist Draw/Upper Chute Canyon
Cistern and Ramp Canyons
Crack Canyon
Crawford Draw
Devils Canyon
Ding and Dang Canyons
Eardley Canyon
Farnsworth Canyon
Forgotten Canyon
Iron Wash, North Fork
Little Wild Horse Canyon
Muddy Creek
Music Canyon

Utah

Slot Canyon San Rafael Swell Utah Map

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