Robbers Roost

Robbers Roost Canyon, Henry Mountains, Utah, sunset

Robbers Roost Sunset : Prints Available

Sunset over Robbers Roost Canyon, with the Henry Mountains in the background.

Last week we went back out to Utah for a couple backpacking trips – the first was a two nighter in Robbers Roost Canyon in the Robbers Roost country along the Dirty Devil River east of the town of Hanksville. This little known and seldom visited area is full of wonderful sandstone canyons reminiscent of the Escalante area further southwest.

See more photos below!

Robbers Roost Canyon, Henry Mountains, Utah, sunrise

Robbers Roost Sunrise : Prints Available

Sunrise on the sandstone bluffs over Robbers Roost Canyon, with the Henry Mountains in the background.

We camped in my truck for one night at a wonderful spot on the desert rim above the canyon with a wide vista over a sea of sandstone formations and canyons, and I was happy to photograph a nice sunset and sunrise from up there.

Robbers Roost Canyon, Utah, March, hiking

It took a while to find the entrance into the canyon, which is mostly guarded by massive vertical walls. We found a nice camp spot near the junction of several tributary canyons and spent the entire next day exploring the North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon.

Robbers Roost Canyon, Utah, March, hiking, slot

Here’s a neat slot near the head of the North Fork.

Robbers Roost Canyon, Utah, reflection, march

9 thoughts on “Robbers Roost

  1. Those near-vertical cliffs stunning! I hope to see similar in AZ! 🙂 Marilyn (in Ottawa, Ontario).

    1. Thanks Vincent! It’s in southern Utah… car or truck is the best way to get there. 🙂 Hehe… no really, it’s too complicated to explain, since the start of the hike is in the middle of nowhere. I use and would recommend Kelsey’s Colorado Plateau hiking guidebook to find some of these places, like this one.

  2. GPS waypoints? I spend some serious time in that part of the world. This summer I hope to shoot petroglyphs and pictographs, and have over one hundred sites mapped for GPS, several east of Hanksville.

    1. No, I don’t use GPS currently. You can find it pretty easily on a map or Google Earth. Robbers Roost Canyon. We entered via White Roost Canyon, though it would be nearly impossible to find the correct entrance spot without the precise guidance that the guidebook tells you, or with GPS, which I don’t have.

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