Standing at the entrance of Peek-A-Boo Gulch you look up to an intimidating 15 foot rock wall. After somehow, someway you manage your way up into the slot canyon you see two natural bridges cutting through the light in the canyon. Dodging knee deep pools of water and crawling through smooth passageways made of stone you begin to feel a sense of adventure. Never wanting it to end you turn around and do it all over again.

How To Get There

Take Hole-In-Rock Road, off of scenic Highway 12 for 26 miles to Dry Fork Cutoff. Here is the thing, be prepared because this is desolate Utah desert. Hole-In-Rock Road is a dirt road. Any van or car can easily make it to the Dry Fork Cutoff and possibly the trailhead. Although, an SUV or 4WD vehicle would make the trip a lot less stressful. Once you get to Hole-In Rock Road clear your odometer, at 26 miles you will reach Dry Fork Cutoff. There will be a small sign for Dry Fork and the road to the left. After you turn you will be on an even worse dirt road. There will be a parking area on your right but the road for the trailhead keeps staying left. If you are in a small car or van you might want to park here if it has been raining or any signs of mud. There are steep uneven lanes and gigantic potholes but I made it around in my small hatchback by A LOT of maneuvering. If you do walk from the first lot it would be an extra mile.

Hole-In-Rock Road

Hole-In-Rock Road, off of scenic Highway 12 is home to many hikes and great camping in the middle of Utah’s desert. Driving on Hole-In-Rock Road can be a little bumpy to say the least. The road is mostly washboard with your occasional pothole or boulder in the road. Any van or car can easily make it to most trailheads. However, a truck or SUV can only be driven the last 20 miles of the 62 mile stretch.

The Trial

The hike is a half day hike and about 3-5 miles depending on if you take other routes. The trail can be kind of tricky because you are navigating through the desert. From the trailhead at the end of the parking lot you will gradually descend a few hundred feet over sand and outcropped rocks. Make sure you follow the cairns, the temple looking stacked pile of stones, you will see marking the trail. After the sandy trail levels and takes you next to a giant rock wall on your right, you will come out to a dry riverbed. Looking to your left, up the riverbed you will see Dry Fork Narrows and straight in front of you, slightly to the right is Peek-A-Boo Gulch.

Walking straight over the small sand dunes on the other side of the riverbed will be the entrance for Peek-A-Boo Gulch. The entrance from the bottom is quite tricky. You will have to climb a 15 foot wall. There are worn out places to put your hands and feet but it is hard to get a grip or leverage. I would recommend having a friend boost you up and then giving that friend a hand. You could go from the top down and scale down the wall. Once you get up the wall you will see two natural bridges that cross over the canyon. There usually seems to be a collection of water that pools up near the bridges. You can either jump over it or take your shoes off, it’s only about shin deep. This canyon is the shortest of the three but one that you shouldn’t miss.

I would recommend spending the day hiking in, and then turning around and coming back out each canyon to experience all of them. However, Dry Fork, Peek-A-Boo and Spooky can all be combined to make a snake-like loop hike in and out of all the canyons. It’s a great hike but this is through uncovered flat sand and can be very hard to navigate. I would start at the Dry Fork Narrow and when you get to the end of the slot canyon follow the cairns to your right and try and follow any footsteps to stay on the trail. It can get confusing so look for the stacked stones in the distance. From there you can go down into Peek-A-Boo Gulch if you find it too hard to climb up the entrance at the bottom.

Bring lots of water. You should drink a gallon of water per person, per day in the desert. So at least a full 2L camel pack per person. Look for snakes in the desert and you might want to clip on a small travel compass.

Where To Stay

Calf Creek Campground

$15.00/No Reservations/Bathrooms

The Calf Creek Campground is a great place to set up a basecamp when exploring the lands of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Each campsite is secluded and some are on or close to Calf Creek which runs through the campground. (You literally have to drive through the creek to get to some campsites.) There are only 14 campsites for $15.00 each and all are on a first-come-first-serve basis. I would recommend getting there early because the campground is often full by 9am. There are bathrooms but no showers. However, they do have a great swimming area in the creek. Pets OK!

BLM Public Lands

Free/No Reservation/No Facilities/No Fires

You can find free campsites off Hole-In-Rock Road. Utah has a great public land camping policy. You can camp anywhere! Well not everywhere. You must be .5 miles from any highway and can only camp for 30 days. Look for dirt roads on the side of highway 12 and if you’re brave enough or desperate enough for a place to sleep venture down one of those dusty but often muddy roads and find yourself a clearing. Most are marked with little camp posts with a symbol for no fires and no collecting wood. You can find some really neat campsites this way. Just remember pack out what you pack in and be respectful. BLM lands are great for getting off the grid and into nature. Pets OK! Trash can at the beginning of Hole-In-Rock Road.