Due to the mild winters here, hiking is awesome year-round. Spring and Fall are the best times to hike, and most winter days are still very pleasant. During the summer months, temperatures later in the day can get really hot, but hiking is still enjoyable in the morning hours. If your looking for something closer or a shorter hike or walk, then visit our Trails Page, explore our Interactive Trails Map, or download a PDF of the St. George Trails Map.
Below are some of the better trails for hiking with kids and the whole family.
Jenny's Canyon
- Trail Information
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Length: 0.5 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: Easy
This trail is closed annually from March 15th, to June 1st.
Jenny’s Canyon Trailhead
The trail leads off of the right (east) side of the road as visitors enter from the south.
Mouth of Jenny’s Canyon
The route up to the slot canyon is somewhat steep, and has steps in some areas.
End of Jenny’s Canyon
Jenny’s Canyon narrows and becomes impassable rather quickly, making this a short hike overall.
Sand Dunes
The Sand Dunes and its picnic area lie just across the road from Jenny’s Canyon. The dunes here are a popular way to relax, take your shoes off, and enjoy the beautiful red sand of Snow Canyon.
Jenny’s Canyon is a fun, short slot canyon located almost at the mouth of Snow Canyon, across the road from the Sand Dunes. At only a half-mile roundtrip, this is a good way to introduce children to the excitement of canyoneering.
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Johnson Canyon
- Trail Information
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Length: 2 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
This trail is closed annually from March 15th, to October 31st.
Johnson Canyon Trailhead
The trail heads east from this point, approaching and then hugging the reaching walls of Snow Canyon, before it disappears into the depths of Johnson Canyon.
Johnson Canyon Arch
With a 200-foot span, the Johnson Canyon Arch is one of the largest in the area.
Parking Area
The parking area is adjacent to the south entrance station, adjacent to the restrooms. The trailhead is on the east side of the road, but the parking area is across the street.
Johnson Canyon Trail is a short, but exciting hike at the mouth of Snow Canyon State Park. It boasts a natural spring, black lava flows, redrock walls, cottonwood and willow glades, and an impressive arch near the end. There are only minor up-and-downs on this route; the trail gains almost nothing in elevation between the road and the arch.
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Pioneer Names Trail
- Trail Information
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Length: 0.5 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
Pioneer Names Trailhead
The trailhead is located 0.15 mile north of the Sand Dunes picnic area and the inception of the West Canyon Road.
Pioneer Names
The names are located at the base of the cliff, at approximately the middle of the crescent’s curve.
End of the Trail
The end of the trail brings visitors back to Snow Canyon Drive, 0.2 miles north of the trailhead.
Snow Canyon Campground
The park campground is located just to the north of the Pioneer Names Trail.
The Pioneer Names Trail in Snow Canyon State Park is a short, crescent moon-shaped hike that leads visitors over some mildly rocky terrain with small slopes. The trail passes a collection of some names on a rock face, written in axle grease. The names date back to early settlers from 1881.
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Red Cliffs Nature Trail
- Trail Information
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Length: Easy
Difficulty: Easy
Red Cliffs Trailhead
The trailhead is at Red Cliffs Campground, a very nice little camping area where there are plenty of rocks for kids to climb on. Cottonwood trees provide shade. Water and restrooms are available. To reach the campground drive I-15 to the town of Leeds (15 miles north of St George) and then follow the frontage road south to Quail Lake. Watch for the Red Cliffs sign and follow the paved road under the freeway and up to the campground. The trail is well marked. BLM has provided interpretative signs identifying plants and natural features along the way.
Waterfall
The waterfall marks the end of the official trail, but you'll probably want to explore farther. At the waterfall, the small stream covers the entire canyon bottom, which is just a few feet wide. You'll notice steps carved into the sandstone to the side of the waterfall. Using the steps, it is easy to climb around the fall and you can then proceed up the canyon for miles, if you are so inclined. The area at and just above the waterfall is the most interesting part of the canyon. The pool beneath the waterfall is an ideal natural swimming hole and it is fun to slide down the natural shoot or to jump into the pool. The depth of the pool varies according to water flow. Never jump into such a pool without carefully exploring to determine water depth.
Short, scenic and fun, this little trail leads from the campground at Red Cliffs Recreation Area into a narrow canyon beside a small stream. As you hike, the canyon narrows until it is just a few feet wide and a beautiful little waterfall blocks the trail. But it is easy to climb around and the trail continues into the canyon.
Spring and fall are ideal times to hike here. Afternoon temperatures are very hot in summer, and the stream may completely dry up. Summer mornings can be pleasant and it is great fun to play in the stream during warm weather. Climb around the waterfall and then slide down the natural shoot.
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Sand Dunes
- Trail Information
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Length: 0.5 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
Sand Dunes
The mostly bare, playable area of the dunes is relatively small, only 400 feet wide, and just over 1,000 feet long, though they actually stretch for much further than that under layers of juniper and other hardy desert shrubs.
Picnic Area
The picnic area sits within the shadows of 500-foot cliffs to the east, and 700-foot cliffs to the west, making it a beautiful place to relax and enjoy the scenery during a meal.
Jenny’s Canyon
Jenny’s Canyon is a fun slot canyon located almost at the mouth of Snow Canyon. Only half a mile long roundtrip, this canyon makes for a good, short hike.
The Sand Dunes of Snow Canyon are one of the main attractions of the state park. Near the beginning of the canyon, co-located with a picnic area and restrooms, and right next door to the West Canyon, Whiptail, and Jenny’s Canyon Trails, it makes a popular destination for those who wish to enjoy a leisurely lunch and then some exploration. The sand is soft and fine, perfect for a barefoot stroll. Some of the dunes are large and steep enough that children enjoy rolling down the sides.
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West Canyon Road
- Trail Information
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Length: 8 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
West Canyon Road
Bikers, hikers, and joggers routinely use this road as a means of exercise and landscape enjoyment.
Junction with Whiptail Trail
West Canyon Road meets up with, and parallels Whiptail Trail pretty much at its inception, before Whiptail splits and heads east, and West Canyon continues northwest up the canyon.
End of the Road
Deep within the narrow defile, West Canyon Road ends, and visitors must turn around, though they do not necessarily have to return the way they came. Hikers and joggers have the option of enjoying any of the dozens of other trails in Snow Canyon that intersect with the Road, or with other trails that intersect with the Road.
The longest trail in Snow Canyon State Park, the West Canyon Road is an unpaved maintenance road that runs from just above the Sand Dunes area of the lower park, to the deep, narrow canyons to the west of the main roads. The trail gains 400 feet of elevation along its 4-mile trek up the road, the last mile within the protective walls of the narrow head of Snow Canyon.
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Whiptail Trail
- Trail Information
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Length: 6 miles round trip
Difficulty: Easy
Whiptail Trailhead
The Whiptail more or less officially begins at the intersection of Snow Canyon Drive and South Tuacahn Parkway. But the bike trail is really a 16-mile loop trail, continuing southeast into St George, and then up State Route 18 on a northerly route until it reaches the State Route18-Snow Canyon Drive junction just south of the Cinder Cone Trail. From there, bikers, or the marathon joggers, can turn south and head through Snow Canyon, to once again find themselves at the South Tuacahn Parkway.
Johnson Canyon Trail
The trail crosses the road just a few hundred feet past the Johnson Canyon Trailhead. It is a short, but exciting hike at the mouth of the park. It boasts a natural spring, black lava flows, redrock walls, cottonwood and willow glades, and an impressive arch near the end.
Upper Galoot-End of the Trail
Just a little way above the Hidden Pinyon Trail, its overlook, and the Three Ponds route across West Canyon Road, the Whiptail Trail comes to and end, though hikers, bikers, and joggers can continue up the side of Snow Canyon Drive if they wish. There is a picnic area at the end of the trail, and a large sandstone island that is fun to play on. there is another picnic area, the Lower Galoot, on the south side of the sandstone island, only 900 feet south of the Upper Galoot.
The Whiptail Trail is a popular route for hikers, bikers, and joggers alike. It is a wide, paved trail that follows the bottom of Snow Canyon State Park, stretching from the Upper Galoot—just a little over half-way between the Cinder Cone Trail and the outskirts of Ivins—to the trailhead on South Tuacahn Parkway. The trail gains just under 500 feet in elevation as it climbs from Ivins, up past the park office and campground, and finally comes to an end at the picnic tables of the Upper Galoot.
As a hike, three miles up and three miles back, on a paved road is not that bad. There is always a plethora of bikers and joggers on the trail, those using the amazing backdrop of the canyon as their aerobic scenery of choice.
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Paved Trails
The City of St. George and its surrounding area has more than 25 miles of paved trails for biking or hiking. With little change in elevations, they're a fun way to get out and have fun with the whole family. You can find more information and pictures of the various paved trails on our Trails Page, explore our Interactive Trails Map, or download a PDF of the St. George Trails Map.
Fun trails for biking can be found on our Biking Trails page.
