Slot Canyons Near Escalante Utah

Peek-a-Boo Canyon, Dry Fork Narrows and Spooky Gulch are three easily accessed slot canyons from the Dry Fork Trailhead off Hole-in-the-Rock Road. Don't miss them if you made it this far into Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah is home to thousands of canyons, large, small, spectacular, remote, popular, and fascinating all at the same time. It holds some of the world’s most exhilarating technical slot canyons that require keen rope skills, teamwork, and yes, cojones. The Zebra Slot Canyon is located off of the famous Hole-in-the-Rock Road that stretches from Escalante in the North down to the Glen Canyon Recreation Area in the South. The hike itself isn’t that difficult, but navigating the slot canyon itself can be challenging. The slot gets very tight as you start to navigate thru it. Slot Canyons Slot canyons are narrow gorges in soft rocks like Utah’s layered sedimentary deposits. They are named for their narrow width, often squeezing down to a sliver. It is said that Utah has the largest concentration of slot canyons in the world, and many of them are easily accessible.

The diversity of geology is incredible in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Unlike the narrow Spooky slot canyon, Willis Creek is a wide (almost spacious!) slot canyon to explore. The best time of day to hike in this slot canyon is early, when the sun starts to pour into the canyon and bounce light and shadow off the walls. Antelope and Peek-A-Boo Slot Canyons, Page, Utah and Escalante, Utah Easy and long. Over the years we have been to several slot canyons. Some are more memorable than others, and some have become overrun. Above: 2006 Antelope Slot Canyon. We had a great time in the Lower Antelope slot canyon back in 2006 when we first experienced the canyon.

After a great start with Zebra and Tunnel Slot Canyons, I continued down Hole-in-the-Rock Raod for more infamous canyon experiences. Referencing the fantastic book, Hiking the Escalante by Rudi Lambrechtse, I discovered extensive non-technical canyoneering hikes in the area and this one at the Dry Fork Trailhead couldn't be missed. This includes Peek-a-Boo Canyon, Dry Fork Narrows and Spooky Gulch.

Getting to Dry Fork Road and Spooky Canyon, Peek-a-Boo Slot and Dry Fork Canyons

As of June 2019, Hole-in-the-Rock Road is definitely passable by 2-wheel drive cars all the way to Dry Fork Road but with a few caveats. (Call the inter-agency center for up to date details) After the turnoff for Zebra Gulch, the road becomes exceptionally washboard. I noticed at least one person changing a flat; not exactly uncommon out here. The road was in otherwise good shape but very slow going.

From the beginning of Hole-in-the-Rock Road as it turns off from Utah Route 12, its 26 bumpy miles to Dry Fork Road. Low clearance vehicles should drive the road to the first bend and park in an unmarked parking area on the right. Past this point, the road is sandy and rocky- high clearance only. The 1.0 mile from the 2-wheel drive parking area to the actual trail-head is an easy hike but tough drive.

Hiking into Dry Fork and the Dry Fork Narrows

Half the adventure is getting to the trailhead! Now that I made it, I filled up on 3 liters of water and set off. There's a small sign in sheet at the trailhead.

Like so many adventures in Utah, this is more of an informal route than a trail. The popularity of the canyons hasn't lead to a single established trail. I relied heavily on my GPS. From the 4 wheel drive parking area, I descended steep slickrock, finding a switch-backed route using several cairns. I picked up a route in the sand that eventually lead down a side canyon into Dry Fork. An ammo box at the bottom served as a register and I knew I found the right place. Here's a map of that route and the canyons that awaited:

Dry Fork Narrows/Slot Canyon

Once reaching Dry Fork, there were three options. I liked the progression of Dry Fork Narrows first, then Peek-a-Boo Canyon, then Spooky Slot. It starts from least claustrophobic to most or least slot-like to most.

Dry Fork Narrows is immediately to the left. I walked up the canyon which progressively narrowed. Gazing upward, it amazed me how these canyons form. Steep walls and a fairly flat bottom formed a nearly perpendicular box. This canyon wasn't as sinuous as other slots but just as entrancing.

For roughly 0.5 miles, the canyon remains narrow. About 3/4ths of the way through it became very muddy and a bit of a scramble. I encountered some sort of desert toad in the water at one point. But what really halted further travel was a Midget Faded Rattlesnake. They are common enough in this area that most guidebooks reference encounters similar to the one I had. So I turned back!

Peek-a-Boo Slot Canyon

Peek-a-Boo Canyon was fantastic! Extremely narrow and with all kinds of unique natural features like arches and natural bridges. From the entrance of the Dry Fork Slot, I walked down Dry Fork for about 10-15 minutes until the obvious entrance of Peek-a-Book appeared on my left.

Its a hands-and-feet scramble to get into Peek-a-Boo. Somebody's cut some finger holds and steps into the canyon so people can get in (not sure if I agree with that practice). In either case, its not terribly difficult by rock climbing standards

Slot Canyons Near Escalante Utah

Some further, less exposed scrambling lead me to a pair of natural bridges which were phone to gaze upon and photograph. How much time did it take for them to form?

This pattern of rock-hopping and stopping to admire natural features continued for about 45 minutes. After about a third of a mile of this, an easy exit appeared on the right. I dropped my pack here and continued exploring up canyon. I regretted I did this as I found the actual end (or beginning) of Peek-a-Boo Canyon after another 30 minutes of slithering through the slots. The guidebooks were confusing about where to exit.

I tried finding a clear route from the exit of Peek-a-Boo Canyon to the entrance/exit of Spooky Gulch but was unsuccessful.

Peek-a-Boo Gulch/Canyon

Of the three I did, Peek-a-Boo was the tightest and longest squeeze. I found and overland route from Peek-a-Boo canyon's exit to the entrance of Spooky Canyon at Dry Gulch. It quickly got tight.

Walking Spooky Gulch was like being underground. It was dark, a bit damp and disorienting. The book says 10 inches of horizontal space here. I'm glad I dropped my daypack at the entrance. Also, I'm glad I set a time with somebody off site just in case I got stuck. Lots of people travel this cave but the need for safety measures persist.

It took about an hour to go from one end of Spooky Canyon to the other. I didn't bring a flashlight but there's a section with rock fall that creates near total darkness. Bring a light source! Some sections also required more significant scrambling so be prepared for that too.

The exit point of Spooky Gulch wasn't so difficult to find and I made an overland loop back to the entrance to save time. Some people simply hike back through the gulch I noticed.

Slot Canyon Near Escalante Utah

Guidebooks mention nearby Brimstone Canyon as another slot nearby. This particular section of Grand Staircase-Escalante probably has the highest concentration of individual slot canyons in the whole region.

I returned the way I came, constantly looking at the map and GPS to ensure I was on the right route. In spite of the area's increasing popularity, even experienced hikers like myself get lost from time to time! Enjoy yourself but be prepared!

Overview

If there is a better non-technical slot in Escalante, it would be tough to name. Egypt 3 is by far one of the most dramatic and narrow non-technical slots in the area. The canyon offers a seemingly endless supply of narrow slot, that gets narrower and narrower as you progress. A number of downclimbs and challenges along the way keep it interesting.
Narrow slots not exciting enough? Need to get a rappel in to REALLY feel like your canyoneering? After the non-technical exit, technical canyoneers can continue down canyon a short distance to a final technical section of slot with 1 rappel. Surprisingly, for such a short slot, it is quite pretty and well sculpted. Even though it is a bit of work to carry a rope through Egypt 3 for a short optional section, I would highly recommend it to technical canyoneers.

Getting narrow - Egypt 3

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