How To Visit Magical Goblin Valley State Park, Utah [Remote But Worth It]

Known for its unique and rugged land filled with sandstone goblins, gnomes, and mushroom-shaped rock formations, Goblin Valley State Park, is the place to go if you’re fascinated by geology and natural phenomenons.

Goblin Valley was created by sand deposited 170 million years ago from a vast inland sea, that was then sculptured by uplift and erosion by wind and water, also known as the San Rafael Swell.

The result is a unique landscape made up of uniquely shaped goblin rocks luring us into play.

woman standing in a canyon

The colorful valley, which is only 3 square miles (about a mile across and two miles long), is filled with orange and chocolate covered creatures, which stand at only a few feet high.

If you’re thinking of visiting Goblin Valley State Park and checking out these rock formations, then keep reading to find out how to get there, what there is to see, and the best way to hike around the park!

How to get to Goblin Valley State Park?

Goblin Valley Utah is located between Green River and the town of Hanksville in Utah. To get here, you will need your own car, and then need to drive 20 miles north of Hanksville on Highway 24 (beautiful scenic drive).

Once you reach Temple Mountain junction, follow the signs for 12 miles southwest along a paved road, which will take you to the park entrance. You can park your car by the Visitor Center and Museum, or the main campground in the park.

It’s about 222 miles (3 hr 40 min) from Salt Lake City, 100 miles (90 mins) from Moab and 48 miles (1 hour) to Capitol Reef National Park.

Opening hours and entrance fees

The park is open daily from 6:00pm – 10:00pm, and has a daily fee of $20 per private vehicle, or $10 motorcycle, bicycle, or pedestrian.

If you wish to fly your drone, there is a $15 fee for a permit, and if you want to rappel into Goblin’s Lair, it costs $4 per person.

Things to do in Goblin Valley State Park

woman walking through a canyon

1. Go hiking

Despite it being a playground for games of hide and seek, there are several hiking trails in Goblin Valley State Park you can do, if you are up for it.

There are three main hiking trails within the Goblin Valley State Park. All of them are quite short, so you can do a couple if you feel like it:

Carmel Canyon Loop: 1.5 mile moderately strenuous loop down to the desert floor and amongst the goblins.
Curtis Bench: Easy 2.1 mile return trail following the Curtis formation. It gives you an overview of Goblin Valley as well as views of the Henry Mountains.
Entrada Canyon Trail: a 1.8 mile trail for the adventurous hiker, moderately strenuous one way trail from the campground to the goblins and back.

However, whilst visiting this Utah state park, you may be grateful for the opportunity to hang up the hiking boots and just play.

Or rather, let the kids play and you find yourself a cute goblin to perch on and rest.

2. Admire the rock formations

woman standing on a large red rock

I loved sitting and watching the kids play hide and seek in the nooks and crannies, and play tag amongst the maze-like valley of gnarled and knobby hoodoo like rock creatures.

They had a blast and did not want to leave.

Be gentle with the hoodoos as these creatures are soft and brittle and we want them here for another million years.

We entered the park from the main parking lot and just walked down into the field of goblins and played in an area that took the kids fancy.

girls sitting on red rocks

I do recommend spending time to admire the views of the field of goblins and take a gentle walk amongst them.

3. Rappel into Goblin’s Lair Slot Canyon (Chamber of the Basilisk)

Located near to Goblin Valley is a unique slot canyon called Goblin’s Lair, or Chamber of the Basilisk, which is accessed by a 2.3 mile out-and-back trail. It will take no more than 1-2 hours to hike to the canyon, rappel into it, and journey back to the visitor center, but it’s well worth it.

It’s nestled on the eastern boundary of the park. The beautiful slot canyon has had the entrance sealed by rock fall, so the only way in is to rappel into it.

If you time your visit for midday, you will find light pouring in through ceiling vents, more than 100 feet above the chamber floor, creating an amazing spectacle for photography.

The trailhead is at the observation point in Goblin Valley, and follows the Carmel Canyon loop for a short distance. Then it splits off and requires some moderate scrambling to get to the entrance.

You can rappel from the the west access point, and you need to bring your own technical gear and equipment and permits from the visitor center.

See the trail map below…

4. Go stargazing

Goblin state park is also an International Dark Sky Park – even more reason to camp nearby and enjoy a spectacular evening experience.

Because there is no light pollution, the night sky is clear and dazzling, and you can even see the Milky Way with the naked eye.

6. Play disc golf

Randomly, there is a free disc golf course you can play on. This is a very family-friendly activity, as the first eleven holes are on easy, flat terrain, but holes 12-20 require hiking up some steep canyon sides and sand dunes.

It covers an area of 2 miles, and requires sturdy footwear. You can rent discs for $1 or bring your own.

7. Go mountain biking

You will find mountain biking trails in the nearby Wild Horse Mountain Biking Trail System. There are five looped trails, which range from beginner to intermediate.

It’s a great way to see more of the San Rafael Swell landscapes, as well as adding a layer of thrill to the experience.

Camping at Goblin Valley State Park

We recommend camping overnight and staying a few extra days even to explore the surrounding San Rafael Wilderness.

It’s remote and beautiful, and has plenty of outdoor adventure waiting for you like biking, hiking and 4WD Driving.

canyon

The Main Campground is wilderness camping with no electrical hookups, and costs $45 per person, including one pass for a vehicle ($20 extra vehicle fee).

You can up the luxury by staying in one of the yurts, which costs $150 plus tax. The yurts allow dogs for an additional fee. If you bring dogs to the park, they must be kept on a leash and of course pick up their mess.

If you’re bringing an RV, there is a dump water station which costs $15.

Otherwise, you can camp outside the park.

Camping near Goblin Valley State Park

We boondocked (RV dry camping/ free camping) just outside Goblin Valley State Park at Little Wild Horse Canyon and Belly Canyons.

There is a hike here that takes you scrambling over large boulders and squeezing through narrow spots that is meant to be quite fun. I mean look at it.

caravans parked in a desert

It was perfect. The kids loved our little orange shrouded nook where they could climb, hide and play. Within the crannies was a firepit, although we had quite the dust storm, so no fires for us.

I would have loved to stay here for longer than one night. It was spectacular and free.

Take a dirt road off the main road to find your free camping spot.

For Goblin Valley camping information go here.

Outside of camping, the closest accommodation would be in Green River and The River Terrace Inn comes recommended. Click here for availability and rates. It has a beautiful location on the river and is about equidistant from Arches National Park and Goblin Valley.

Video: Goblin Valley State Park, Utah

See how fun Goblin Valley is in our video.

Final Thoughts

people walking through a canyon

The wind blew in all sorts of patterns and directions while we visited, giving us an insight into how these gnarly creatures were formed.

Can you imagine being the cowboys searching for cattle that first stumbled upon this secluded valley? What must have they been thinking as they came upon the five buttes and a valley of strange shaped rock forms protected by a wall of eroded cliffs?

It’s surreal and unearthly landscape was even the setting for Galaxy Quest, a Hollywood movie.

Goblin Valley State Park Utah is an easy place to explore and requires only a couple hours of play time. You could stay longer if you wanted, but I would say you only need half a day.

After a month of intensive hikes and days of exploring in Utah and the Southwest USA’s national parks, I was thrilled to have the ease of visiting Goblin Valley.

It’s on our list of places to see in Utah that no one tells you about.