Snow Canyon: The Land of Petrified Sand Dunes
Snow Canyon State Park Guide
Use our realistic Snow Canyon Guide to plan your next adventure in this state park.
Snow Canyon State Park features red, orange, and white sandstone formations, slot canyons, extinct volcano, lava beds, sand, and petrified dunes.
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Sights & Places of Interest
Snow Canyon State Park is an enormous park that has numerous trails for hiking, biking, climbing, and horseback riding.
This Snow Canyon Guide aims to help you decide what sights to prioritize during your visit.
Johnson Canyon
Our exploration of Snow Canyon started at the park’s South Entrance, the one closest to St. George, UT.
The Johnson Canyon trailhead is located in a fee area, prior to reaching the park’s entrance station. Therefore, having a digital day pass and properly displaying it is necessary to use this trail.
Reaching Johnson Canyon involves a two-mile (3-km) return hike from the parking lot. The hike is easy. But hiking under the merciless Utah sun is not the easiest undertaking. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen, and pace yourself.
Jenny’s Canyon
After a quick exploration of the Johnson Canyon and Scout Cave trails, we proceeded further into Snow Canyon.
Jenny’s Canyon, the parking lot after the South Entrance Station, is reachable by a short half-mile (one km) return hike.
The trailhead has different formations, including this monkey looking rock.
Jenny’s Canyon is a slot canyon. It goes parallel to Snow Canyon Drive for a few hundred feet (meters).
The canyon starts with a narrow entrance. It then proceeds with a wide area. And the canyon starts to quickly narrow towards the end.
The sides of the canyon have several cavities. Doves and other birds use them as locations for nests.
The canyon ends in a narrow well like area. Jenny’s Canyon resembles Capitol Gorge in Capitol Reef National Park.
Sand Dunes
Jenny’s Canyon viewpoint revealed Sand Dunes, the next sight in Snow Canyon. These sand dunes cover a much smaller area of the park compared to Great Sand Dunes, Death Valley, and White Sands National Parks. Nonetheless, these dunes are worth a quick stop.
The Sand Dunes Picnic Site provides first glimpses of the White Rocks.
Pioneer Names
The next notable stop is just minutes from the Sand Dunes. It features names of the first settlers carved into the rocks.
The short trail brings you a bit closer to the carvings and graffitis. But a sharp eye could see them right from the parking lot.
Hidden Pinyon Trail
Our first proper hike in Snow Canyon State Park started at the next parking lot. This lot is next to the campground at the intersection of the Whiptail, Padre Canyon, and Hidden Pinyon trails.
The Whiptail is a paved accessible and biking friendly trail. The other two trails proceed over a rough terrain.
We took the Hidden Pinyon trail for a 1.5-mile (2.5-km) return hike.
The trail quickly gained elevation. It soon showed the first glimpses of Petrified Dunes and canyon.
Hidden Pinyon Lookout
The Hidden Pinyon Lookout is the end point of both the Hidden Pinyon and Petrified Dunes trails. The Lookout provides amazing views of the canyon below and the West Canyon Road, all the way to Sand Dunes Picnic site.
Padre Canyon & Red Sands
You could also admire Padre Canyon and Red Sands. Both are across the canyon from the Hidden Pinyon Lookout.
Petrified Dunes
The Hidden Pinyon Lookout is connected to the Petrified Dunes trail. This trail’s overlook gives another, slightly more obstructed view of Padre Canyon and the West Canyon Road.
The Petrified Dunes display ancient sand dunes that hardened into rock. While hiking in Snow Canyon, you could still easily imagine the sand layers in these Petrified Dunes.
The Petrified Dunes Trail uses metal spheres as trail markers to help hikers navigate. The trail finishes at a parking lot. It is roughly a mile (1.6 km) away from the Hidden Pinyon trailhead parking. If you follow this path, you would need to take the Whiptail back to your vehicle.
Scenic Overlook
Reaching the park’s Scenic Overlook required passing the park’s North Entrance Station, exiting the park bounds, and taking the UT-18 highway southbound for a few miles.
The last 0.3 miles (0.5 km) to the Scenic Overlook proceed on an unpaved road. However, the views from the Overlook are well worth the uncomfortable drive. If you look south, you would see Sand Dunes, Petrified Dunes, Padre Canyon, and the winding Snow Canyon Drive below.
The views to the north reveal the Lava Flow and Whiterocks. That was our next and final stop in Snow Canyon State Park.
Whiterocks Trail
The Whiterocks parking is just off the UT-18. The parking lot is unpaved. Some parts of the entrance are washed away. Exercise caution if entering the lot in a low ground clearance vehicle.
Once parked, you could take a one-mile (1.6-km) return trail to the Amphitheater.
Whiterocks Amphitheater
The shape of the Whiterocks Amphitheater allows it to collect and preserve water.
This creates perfect conditions for vegetation. Not surprisingly, the Amphitheater’s bed was full of grass and water plants during our visit.
The Amphitheater’s slopes are made of white sandstone petrified dunes. The trail is not clearly marked once you reach the Amphitheater. Most hikers we saw proceeded to the top via the petrified dunes.
You could catch a view of the West Canyon Road and Red Rocks through a hollow at the very top of the Whiterocks Amphitheater. We finished our Snow Canyon exploration at sunset and went on with our journey.
Continue with our Snow Canyon Guide to learn more about ways to get to the sights, entrance requirements, and places to stay.
Getting to Snow Canyon
Snow Canyon State Park is in Southwestern Utah, 11 miles (18 km) from the city center of St. George, UT and Interstate Highway I-15.
You can reach Snow Canyon from Las Vegas, NV, a major airline hub, in just over 2 hours. A drive from Salt Lake City, UT will take about 4 hours.
Snow Canyon State Park is also about an hour away from Zion National Park and two hours from Bryce Canyon National Park. This makes Snow Canyon a perfect addition to a South Utah or Nevada trip.
Where to Stay
The park’s favorable location makes lodging search fairly easy. St. George, UT is a no brainer destination for anyone looking to stay in a close proximity to Snow Canyon State Park.
The city is home to numerous hotels, which should allow you to choose a property according to your preferences and within your budget.
You could also consider staying in the nearby town of Hurricane, UT. Hurricane, UT is closer to Zion National Park. It could allow you to beat some crowds and explore both parks while in the area.
Entrance Requirements & Passes
Snow Canyon is a Utah State Park. Therefore, visitors need to purchase a Utah State Park Annual Pass or pay day use fees.
The park charges differentiated day use admission fees based on the visitor’s residence.
- Utah residents pay $10 per vehicle
- Non Utah residents pay $15.
Some of the trailheads are in the fee areas before you reach any of the entrance stations. If you plan on hiking any of these trails, you would need to follow a cumbersome procedure:
- Purchase a digital day pass
- Write down your pass data on a park envelope
- Display it on your windshield.
- To comply, make sure to bring a pen with you.
Snow Canyon State Park is open year round from 6 am to 10 pm.
Takeaways: Snow Canyon
Snow Canyon State Park is a beautiful park. It is just outside St. George, UT city limits.
The park has an astonishing variety of sights. You can find slot canyons and sand dunes, desert overlooks and sandstone formations.
Even if you plan on exploring just the park’s highlights, you would need at least 2 to 3 hours. Adding any longer hike or activity could easily make it a full day visit.
However, the park’s vast area and countless viewpoints could serve as a double-edged sword if you are pressed on time. The entrance fees are also quite high, especially for non Utah residents.
If you are looking to escape Zion crowds, do not mind high fees, and have half a day to spare, Snow Canyon will not disappoint you.
Take a look at our Snow Canyon Video Guide and visit our YouTube channel for the latest videos.
Frequently Asked Questions
Snow Canyon features red, orange, and white sandstone formations, petrified dunes, slot canyons, lava beds, and historic carvings.
Snow Canyon is in Southwestern Utah, just outside the city of St. George, UT.
Snow Canyon costs $10 per vehicle for Utah residents and $15 per vehicle for non Utah residents.
You can hike one of the park’s trails, ride a bike or a horse, climb formations, or go canyoneering.
Snow Canyon is a beautiful park with lots of hiking trails and overlooks. It provides a good addition to a Zion itinerary if you have time and can pay the day use fees.
Safe realist travels!
