Last week I was lucky enough to spend some time at Goblin Valley State Park in Utah. What an unreal place! Stark, barren and filled with absolutely other worldly sandstone buttes with eroded cliffs and spires and thousands of hoodoos, often referred to as goblins. Click any image below to enlarge it.
I stayed in Green River, around 50 miles north of Goblin Valley and decided to get to the park before sunrise. I had seen photos of the park, but being there in person was absolutely amazing. I hiked around 5-6 miles wandering among the goblins. I explored tight mini-canyons and small caves and stood above the valley after climbing rock formations and going up rock walls.
OK, some information about the area:
Goblin Valley State Park, Utah is a surreal landscape filled with thousands of mushroom-shaped sandstone hoodoos, often called “goblins,” formed by the erosion the sandstone. The park has few trails, but just wandering around the goblins, gnomes, hoodoos or whatever you choose to call them is fabulous!
The area contains five buttes and a valley of incredible rock formations surrounded by a wall of eroded cliffs. Photo opportunities abound, especially in early morning and evening hours when the lighting and shadows can create some dramatic scenes.
The geology of Goblin Valley is amazing. Very little rain falls here and erosion over thousands of years has carved out unreal formations in and on buttes, cliff walls and on the valley floor. The hoodoo formations have existed for millions of years, having formed out of rock that dated back as far as 165 million years.
Goblin Valley has been featured in a movies. When I saw the Tim Allen movie Galaxy Quest I wasn’t sure the landscape was actually real. Goblin valley was used for an alien planet scene. The eroded sandstone in the valley inspired the design of the fictional planet’s rock monsters. Parts of other films, including John Carter and City Slickers II, have also been filmed near or inside the park.
Goblin Valley State Park is certified as an International Dark Sky Park, making it one of the best places to stargaze in the country.
Recreation around Goblin Valley includes camping, hiking, mountain biking, riding off-road vehicles, horseback riding and exploring slot canyons. Weather can be extremely hit in the summer, but the high altitude (around 5,000 feet above sea level) means cool summer nights and very cold winter nights.
The area around Goblin Valley offers an amazing landscape of desert with buttes, amazing rock formations, slot canyons and even ancient native American pictographs. While in the area I also took a hike through Little Wild Horse Canyon, Bell Canyon Loop and checked out the Temple Wash Pictographs. Ding and Dang slot canyons are also in the area, but are more technical than I could do by myself.
I took some of what I feel are pretty amazing panoramic images while at Goblin Valley. I don’t know how good they will look on a phone unless it is turned sideways because some are pretty wide. Click any image below to enlarge it.
If you want to explore Goblin Valley or any of the surrounding attractions, make sure and do your homework before going. Cell phone coverage is non-existent in much of the area. Help is far away if you get into trouble. Weather can be a bit extreme. Especially from spring to fall hikers should be also be wary of rattlesnakes. This isn’t intended to be advice or guidance. I just want to give readers an idea of things to be aware of. Again, do your research before heading out.
Having said all of this, Goblin Valley is a must see if you are in the area and have the time!
And by the way, what post would be complete without selfies?
OK, this is really the last thing. While wandering around Goblin Valley, watch out for ghosts!
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