Conditions Right Now
Why Go
The rule here is the opposite of everywhere else in red rock Utah: there is no set trail, and you are allowed to walk wherever you want among the goblins. They are Entrada Sandstone, laid down about 170 million years ago beside an ancient sea and eroded since into the shapes you see. Canyoneering routes run out of the surrounding country, and the Little Wild Horse slot is five miles up the road if you want to pair the two. It is also an International Dark Sky Park, so plan to stay past sunset.
Do this: Free-range wandering among goblins, canyoneering, dark-sky stargazing
Family note: THE best natural playground in Utah - kids run wild
Fees and hours: stateparks.utah.gov
Build Your Day
Add to the trip: Goblin Valley Free Roam (Hike, 0 mi) · Little Wild Horse & Bell Canyon (Hike, 5 mi) · Grand Wash (Hike, 34 mi) · Hickman Bridge (Hike, 34 mi)
Quick Answers
- What is there to do at Goblin Valley State Park?
- Free-range wandering among goblins, canyoneering, dark-sky stargazing
- Is Goblin Valley State Park good for kids?
- THE best natural playground in Utah - kids run wild
- Why visit Goblin Valley State Park?
- Nowhere else lets you turn kids loose in a landscape like this. The goblins are Entrada Sandstone weathered into thousands of stubby mushroom towers you can wander freely among, with no route to follow. Add the dark sky designation and it becomes an overnight rather than a stop.