📍Goblin Valley SP (near Hanksville), Utah

Today is about travel and settling in—expect a scenic multi-hour drive across open desert highway, with the landscape gradually shifting from scrubland into the rust-colored badlands that signal you're close. Use the drive to fuel up on snacks and water, since there are no services once you turn off Highway 24 toward the park.

Once you're through the entrance station, head straight into the main Goblin Valley hoodoo field for a loose, unstructured wander. There's no correct path—kids and teens tend to scatter and reconvene naturally, discovering slot-like gaps and balanced boulders at their own pace, while the valley's total silence gives the whole experience a hushed, otherworldly quality.

As the sun drops, the hoodoos deepen from rust to near-purple, and temperatures cool quickly—layer up. Plan dinner logistics around your basecamp of choice (camping or a return drive to Hanksville), then find a dark patch of sky once night falls; this is some of the least light-polluted terrain in the country, and the Milky Way is often visible with the naked eye by 9 or 10pm.

Get an early start—being on the trail by 7:30am means cooler air, softer light, and a canyon largely free of other hikers. The route narrows and widens unpredictably, some sections requiring sideways shuffling, others opening into wide sandy washes, and the shifting scale keeps both parents and teens genuinely engaged rather than just walking.

After exiting the slot canyon, the pace shifts deliberately—Temple Mountain Scenic Drive trades physical exertion for a slower, more contemplative kind of exploring. The rusting remnants of old mining equipment give the landscape an eerie, post-industrial edge that contrasts nicely with the organic curves of the morning's canyon walls.

Head back toward basecamp as the light turns golden, giving the drive itself a scenic, unhurried quality. With no restaurants inside the park, plan your evening meal around whatever base you've chosen—camp cooking or a return trip into Hanksville—and wind down early; tomorrow's hike rewards an early start again.

Start early again while the light is soft and the trail empty—The Separates rewards patience with layered, sculptural rock formations that feel far removed from the main valley's foot traffic. The walk is steady rather than strenuous, making it a good closing hike for tired legs after two adventure-heavy days.

Before departure, swing by the San Rafael Swell Overlook for one last wide-angle look at the terrain you've spent three days exploring—it's a fitting, low-key bookend to the trip's more physical moments.

With no dining services inside the park, plan your departure meal around Hanksville or your route home, filling up on gas and snacks before rejoining the highway. As the badlands shrink in the rearview mirror, the quiet of the place tends to linger longer than expected.