The natural waves and contours of the sandstone are awe-inspiring and perfect for pictures, while the light stemming and maneuvering are totally fun. This loop has scrambling and shuffling to make it like an adult-sized play-place. You could just poke into one of the canyons for an hour to see what it’s all about, but why not do both while you’re there? Who is Going to Love ItĮveryone - except claustrophobes. It is worth noting, due to the restrictive nature of the some of the spaces in Spooky, this canyon is better suited for smaller body types.Īdding to the cool factor of this destination is that it’s a loop - which is rare for these parts. Peek-A-Boo is a slot and corkscrew, and Spooky Gulch is a narrow slot canyon.

Unlike many of the Escalante-area slot canyons, Peek-a-Boo and Spooky Gulch require zero technical gear or know-how-although it requires some navigational and rock-scrambling skill. This three-miler will give you stellar views and a new perspective of slot canyons in Southern Utah. The loop generally takes about 3-4 hours depending on pace and skill level.

It soon tightens up, and you’ll be having a good time navigating the confines of this fun canyon. Scramble down a mellow rock face to get into the canyon. Once you leave Peek-a-Boo, keep hiking (longer than you think you should, most likely) until you come to a juniper tree, then follow the trail and cairns leading to the right and the entrance of Spooky Gulch. There are hand and foot cut-outs in the rock to help you get up and into the canyon. Once you’re off the cliff and into the sand dunes, you’ll hike along the creek wash until you see the mouth of Peek-a-Boo. Once you’re in, all you have to do is walk through a scenic paradise of red and purple rock.įrom the trailhead, get into Dry Fork Wash via moderate scrambling down some short cliffs and following cairns as needed. These magnificent hikes, located in the Dry Fork area of the Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument area, can be done individually, but they make for a killer loop you can tackle in one afternoon of adventure. On most Southern Utah bucket lists, you’ll find the local favorite one-two punch of Peek-a-Boo and Spooky Slot Canyons.

Hiking southern utah slot canyons