Hiking To Goblin’s Lair In Goblin Valley State Park
The Goblin’s Lair is a popular hiking destination within Goblin Valley State Park in Utah. It is a hidden chamber nestled within the rock formations, offering an adventurous experience for visitors.
To reach the Goblin’s Lair, hikers follow the Carmel Canyon loop till they reach the spur trail for the Goblin’s Lair Trail. The trail is approximately a 3-mile round trip with around 300 feet of elevation gain.
The trail starts from the observation point overlooking the Goblin Valley, and from there, it descends into a sandy wash. Hikers will need to navigate through the valley, passing by numerous goblin-like rock formations, also called hoodoos, along the way.
The lair is a large sandstone cave-like structure formed by erosion and not actually a cave at all but a small slot canyon.
The entrance to the lair resembles a gaping mouth and inside the chamber, visitors can explore and admire the unique geological formations and patterns created by nature over thousands of years.
Depending on the time of day you may see light pouring in through numerous ceiling vents located 100 feet above the chamber floor.
The hike to Goblin’s lair is easy, but it will take some work to get into the lair. The entrance is steep and requires some rock scrambling as well. Sections of rock are coated in sand and loose gravel and make the trek up quite slippery.
My advice is to make sure you have on a really good pair of shoes.
I actually didn’t even get to see the lair because my shoes were getting no traction and I kept slipping trying to climb up. The hubby was able to make the trek up though and get a couple of pics.
If you would like some more adventure take the short spur trail that leads to Goblette’s Lair.
It’s a smaller cave than Goblin’s. I couldn’t make it up that incline either because of my shoes, but the hubby did.
Exploring the Goblin’s Lair adds an extra layer of adventure to your trip to Goblin Valley State Park.
But, if I’m being honest the hike there isn’t all that exciting and the hubby said the lair was nothing special. Unless you really want to check it out I suggest spending more time exploring Valley of the Goblins which is what the park is famous for.
For a $2 permit fee, you can also rappel into the Goblin’s Lair. Permits are available at the visitor center.
There is a $20 admission fee per vehicle to enter Goblin Valley State Park which is good till 10 pm the next day.
Hours of operation for the park are 6 am – 10 pm each day.
