Moqui Sand Caves, Kanab, Utah

The Moqui Sand Caves are located in Southern Utah, just north of Kanab, Utah. This is a 1-mile round trip hike that will take you on a dirt trail for the first part and then hiking steep sandstone to reach the caves.

The drive from Kanab is only 7 minutes at 5.3 miles north.

You turn off of Highway 89 into the Sand Caves parking lot. This parking lot is free and the trailhead is located on the north end of the parking lot.

From the trailhead it's about a 1-mile hike out and back. You'll start out on dirt and sandy trails and eventually get to sandstone that you'll do some climbing to reach the Sand Caves.

At the trailhead, you'll see a sign telling you what to prepare for. It says that the route has steep and exposed rock slabs, deep sand, and is a 1-mile round trip. The safety considerations say that for footwear, due to the steep incline of the sandstone slab to consider sturdy footwear. For hydration it says to have at least 1 gallon of water per person per day.

The trail was well marked with these types of trail markers all along the way.

When you are getting close you can look up and see the Moqui Sand Caves above. You'll actuall keep going past them and then loop back around on the sandstone to reach them.

When you reach the end of the sand trail you are going to see a sign pointing to where you start hiking the sandstone. They have painted white paw prints on the sand stone to guide you up and back towards the Sand Caves.

The painted white paw prints will take you up the slope and to the switchback that will take you to the Sand Caves. Then the white paw prints stop and you follow the trail directly to there.

You'll then reach the steepest part of the hike where the sandstone looks like this. Once you get past this section of the hike the trail levels out more and is much easier to get there.

The Moqui Sand Caves have multiple openings which allow in natural daylight. The very back of the cave is dark and you'll need a flashlight or the light on your phone to see back there.

We went in and explore these cool sand caves. This is what it looked like:

Overall, we had a great time hiking to and exploring the Moqui Sand Caves. We would definitely do this again.

Moqui Sand Caves Parking Lot/Trailhead Map:

(Click on the map above to go to a Google Maps larger view.)

The Moqui Sand Caves are free to visit. The parking lot is free too.

Total = $0

These are the checklist items I recommend:

• Hiking Shoes.
• A flashlight or a light on your phone.
• There are no facilities here.
• Bring water and some snacks.