Little Wild Horse Canyon: Hike with Kids

We love hikes that allow our kids to explore. Hiking along a trail is one thing; crawling across rocks, sliding through a slot canyon or wading through water makes it… fun. Little Wild Horse Canyon near Goblin Valley State Park in Utah is great for the whole family.

Little Wild Horse Canyon can be divided into two hikes: The east-side slot canyon or the full 8-mile loop. Here’s a rundown on what you can expect so you can plan your hike – and bring the right amount of water.

SAFETY NOTE: I recommend calling the Goblin Valley State Park Visitor Center (435-275-4584) before your trip to check water levels and weather in the area. Slot canyons can be dangerous and flash floods do occur.

Utah is hot. In the summer, temperatures can reach 100+ degrees. While you are hiking in the shade of the slot canyons, the slot canyon is not the entire trail. You are exposed to the sun in multiple stretches of the canyon. Bring two liters of water per person in your group. Spring and fall are ideal times to hike this canyon.

Hike slot canyon at Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah Carltonaut's Travel Tips

Getting to Little Wild Horse Canyon Trailhead

Little Wild Horse Canyon is accessible from Interstate 70 (I-70) in central Utah. Take Exit 149, which is roughly 11 miles west of Green River. Follow Highway 24 south until you see the sign to turn right toward Goblin Valley State Park.

Five miles later, follow yet another sign to Goblin Valley State Park and turn south. The final turn off to Little Wild Horse Canyon Trailhead is about 1,000 feet before the Visitor Center and entrance to Goblin Valley.

I would recommend stopping at the Visitor Center to use the restroom (they have flushy toilets) before going on the hike. A slot canyon doesn’t offer much privacy for bathroom breaks.

There is limited parking at the trailhead, so be mindful of how you park and where you park.

Kids love exploring the slot canyon of Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah Carltonaut's Travel Tips

Hike Little Wild Horse Slot Canyon

From the trailhead, the first quarter mile is pretty simple. You walk through a wide river bead to access the canyon. We encountered a pool of water when we first arrived at the canyon. Luckily, there was a way around it.

About a quarter mile into the actual canyon, the trail splits. Stick to the right – it’s more of a slot canyon and offers more to explore. We encountered a couple of other pools of water along the route – only these ones didn’t offer an alternate route. So many people took their shoes and socks off and carried children through the pools. Water levels were up to the knees – not too deep. Recent rain storms in the area may cause pools of water to be even deeper.

Let your kids explore the side trails and alcoves along the main trail. The kids loved hiking ahead and hiding in an alcove and surprising us when we walked past them. Activities like that kept even the youngest hikers going – and they hiked almost the entire eight to 10-mile hike.

When the canyon starts to open up, this may be your signal to turn around. The remaining five miles of the eight-mile loop aren’t nearly as fun as the first three miles of slot canyon you just hiked through.

Family hike at Little Wild Horse Canyon in Utah Carltonaut's Travel Tips

Hike Bell Canyon to Complete the 8-mile Loop

If you decide to make the full eight-mile loop hike, note that after hiking three miles through the slot canyon, the next roughly three miles is in open, exposed-to-the-sun trail. It was the hardest part of the trail, especially with the kids. While he had a lot of water, they were starting to go through it more quickly.

We found multiple ways to keep their minds off of how tired they were – we made hiking fun for the kids. My 16 year old even offered a younger kid a piggy-back ride. We had so much fun, but were ready to get out of the grueling September sun and back into the shade of the slot canyon.

The final two miles of the loop is through a narrow canyon known as Bell Canyon. Not quite the slot canyon of the other side of the loop, but it’s narrow, and thus more shade. Since there were alcoves to explore and rocks to climb on in Bell Canyon, too, the kids kept hiking. We had one more pool we had to get through, and a few shoes fell victim to the water.

We were tired when we finished. Almost everyone in the group (kids ranging from toddler to teenager) had hiked the entire route. Our GPS, phones and fitbits calculated the distanced traveled as ranging from 8-12 miles for the hike. So yes… we were tired, but created some amazing memories with our neighbors and friends who joined us on the hike.

So is Little Wild Horse Canyon trail kid friendly?

It can be – but if you aren’t sure, just stick to the five-mile round trip hike through Little Wild Horse Canyon and avoid making the loop over to Bell Canyon.