The National Parks in southern Utah are spectacular: Arches, Bryce, Zion, Canyonlands. If you haven’t been, that would be my recommended route, a day or days in each. In past years, my son and I hiked every trail in Arches, and I’ve waded through the river in the narrow canyon in Zion more than once. However, after spending time through there on many occasions, I was looking for a more direct route on this road trip, that passed through country I hadn’t seen before.
I was just beginning to think that the road through central Utah was boring, when I came upon a stretch of dramatic red rock shapes, Black Dragon Canyon. And there would be more as I drove on to my stay for the night.
St. George sits in the southwest corner of Utah, just before the desert lands of Nevada and California. A wall of red rock rises along its northern edge. I had a couple of days to explore hidden treasures in that red rock landscape.
Snow Canyon State Park seemed to be a misleading name. Although some of the signage claims that there’s snow in winter, on this mid-February day it was warm enough by mid-day to just wear a t-shirt. I chose a few short hikes: Jenny’s Canyon, Pioneer Names, Petrified Dunes, and Johnson Canyon trails. Each had some interesting features that beckoned to me. I was disappointed to learn that the Red Cliffs trail known for petroglyphs had been closed.
Settlers from as early as 1881 wrote their names in wagon axle grease on the canyon wall along what is now Pioneer Names Trail. Protected by an arch above, you can still read them today.
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Ruth Rosenfeld 
Gorgeous!
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Yes, truly! Hard to not take a good photo there.
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Wow, looks absolutely stunning. Some of the visible strata are just so photogenic.
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That they are. It was difficult to weed down a representative sample. Thanks.
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What a breathtaking landscape. Those high rising rock walls with the narrow trail in between is fascinating. You have really amazing photo’s in this post – thanks for sharing.
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Thank you! The landscape is so beautiful, it’s easy to take amazing photos.
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Splendid pictures and photography. The landscapes are spectacular and what a narrow canyon !
Thanks for sharing these landmarks with us.
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Thanks so much for your comment. There are many spots with those narrow “slot” canyons.
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There is no shortage of beauty in this area Ruth. So happy we spent a week exploring some canyons in 2018. Thanks for sharing. Allan
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Glad this brought back some of your own explorations to mind. Thank you, Allan.
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So pretty and such a great area to explore!
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It’s an amazingly beautiful area. Thank you for coming along.
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I passed through St. George from Zion to Las Vegas last October, but I didn’t stop to check it out. I’ve heard good things about it, though, and your post confirms its surrounding beauty. Plenty of red rocks to chance upon, and the hikes sound great: I can imagine every twist and turn offers those stunning views!
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There are a lot of places in the area to explore. It was a good place to stop for a couple of days to break up the long drives. Thanks for your comment, Rebecca.
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Your pictures are beautiful. I’ve always wanted to go on a road trip through the southern part of Utah to visit all the various national parks in the area. The red rock landscape looks gorgeous.
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Thank you! It’s an amazingly beautiful place, the red rock sculpted canyons of southern Utah. I encourage you to visit.
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What an amazing landscape, and your photos are stunning. I’d love to visit this area – it looks like Mars 🙂
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Thank you, Hanna! The red rock cliffs and canyons are amazing. Hope you get to visit.
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What a cool park! I’ve never even heard of it. Hiking through the narrow canyon looks like fun!
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I hadn’t heard of it either, until I did some research about the area. It’s overshadowed by the amazing national parks in southern Utah, but worth a visit!
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I love all these rock formations, they take me back to our long-ago road trip in Utah and Arizona! In fact I think we spent our first night in St George but it was only a place to sleep en route between Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon’s North Rim. It seems we missed lot by hurrying through!
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There are some surprisingly hidden gems in southern Utah. Most people know about the national parks, but this was less traveled and not crowded. A great discovery!
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I can only join others in awe at your photography and the landscape. An Arizona trip would be delightful, hiking for days through all the beautiful parks and reserves. Hope you are well, Ruth.
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Thank you, Leighton! The national parks and hidden treasures like this one are in southern Utah and the sculptural shapes are so beautiful.
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I have to agree with you – the National Parks in southern Utah are truly spectacular! Having lived in an evergreen, rain-drenched country for almost two decades, seeing endless red rock vistas make me gasp in awe! Utah’s vast, breathtaking landscapes will certainly blow away any visitor with their beauty. Thanks for sharing and have a good day 🙂 Aiva xx
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I’m so glad you were able to visit the red rock country of southern Utah. This area, near St George, is less traveled but echoes those sculptural rock formations in the national parks. Thanks for your comment, Aiwa!
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I’m eyeing up St. George for next year’s spring break, so it was great to see these photos. Looks like we may have something there…
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If you haven’t been through the national parks, there is lots to do in southern Utah! I just spent a couple of days in the St George area, and it was worth a stop. Looking forward to seeing your own choices.
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I’ve been to southern Utah several times. After Colorado, it’s my favorite place in the US. Haven’t spent much time in the St. George area, though. We’ll have to see if it’s a spring break contender.
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What incredible landscapes. Your pictures bring out the beautiful colours if the rock. I love the pioneers’ names in wheel grease on the walls. Amazing that they are still there. The walls look very slick to climb but I’d like to see them up close and give it a try. Maggie
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Thanks, Maggie. While I watched the climbers, the higher up one came down a bit to try a different route. I didn’t stay around to see how far they climbed.
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What spectacular country! And wonderful photos. This was a good stopover on your journey.
Alison
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Thank you, Alison, spectacular it is! There are many interesting places in this Utah red canyon country.
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St. George has always been nothing more than a final gas stop heading west, on I-70 before descending through the Arizona canyon into the deserts of Nevada and California. It doesn’t catch my attention from the highway. Your photos give the town so much more life and make me want to explore some of those hiking trails. I will never look at St. George the same way again!
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I had seen something about the canyons and trails there and did some research. It was definitely worth a stop to explore.
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Those climbers are tiny up there!!
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Sometimes it helps to include people for a sense of scale, right?
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