- Trail: Big Spring, Lost, and Wooden Shoe Canyon Loop
- Length: 10 miles
- Elevation Gain: 1,137 feet
- Why hike it now: Take advantage of near-perfect desert temps before winter snows move in
I started my post-college career in Moab, and to this day, the red rock canyon country of southeastern Utah is some of my favorite terrain on earth. I couldn’t tell you exactly what it is—the clear skies, the sheer scale of it, the way that it smells like sagebrush and wet sand after a rain. All I know is that 16 years after I left, I keep going back.
Last fall, I had the opportunity to take my oldest son on a three-day, two-night backpacking trip through Canyonlands National Park’s Needles District. We linked Big Spring, Lost, and Wooden Shoe Canyons in a loop. It was a perfect primer to the variety of terrain in canyon country: We climbed up soaring slickrock benches and took in views of the desert around us, then dropped deep into canyons threaded with sandy-bottomed arroyos and willow thickets. Did it make a strong enough impression on my 6-year-old that he came away with my love of the desert? I can’t say for sure, but he hasn’t stopped asking if we can go back.
A few logistical caveats: The NPS only allows camping in designated sites in this part of the park, so reserve yours in advance on Recreation.gov; we hiked clockwise and stayed in Lost Canyon 3 and Big Spring 1, but it’s totally feasible to knock out the route as a dayhike. If you do choose to take your time, any number of side trails zigzag their way to the sandstone canyon rims for great sunset or sunrise views. (Just remember to stay on trail: Fragile biological soil crust keeps the soil from blowing away, and your footsteps can easily damage it. You’ll have to pay the park entrance fee of $30 per vehicle, unless you have an annual pass.
Along the trail, there’s one short ladder and a few precipitous ledges, so if you’re taking your kids, make sure they can follow parental directions. The only water sources are potholes and ephemeral puddles, and they’re not reliable, so check with rangers for current conditions and be prepared to carry your own. Finally, this is canyon country, and seasonal watercourses can flood quickly. Check the weather before you depart.
The Hike
Starting at the Salt Flat Trailhead, begin hiking along the Wooden Shoe Canyon Trail, bearing left at the first junction to stay on it. At about mile 1.3, climb a broad sandstone bench and negotiate the roughly 8-foot ladder before dropping into Lost Canyon. Follow the canyon along sandy and slickrock arroyo bottoms as it narrows. After another short climb and descent (tip: follow the cairns), bear left onto the Wooden Shoe Canyon Trail at mile 5.6 and continue following it through its eponymous canyon. At mile 6.6, continue past the intersection with the South Connector Trail and negotiate one final climb over a slickrock col before dropping into the wide Big Spring Canyon and following it back to the trailhead.
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