Top 6 Places to Visit Near Hanksville, Utah
This hidden gem, Hanksville, nestled in the beautiful but strange landscapes and rock formations of southern Utah, will transport you from Earth to Mars and then the Moon when you visit it. When I covered the Utah Mighty 5 (the five national parks in Utah) on my last road trip through Utah, I didn’t realize I was in Hanksville, and so I missed out on seeing the Moon!
Hanksville is the perfect place to jet off for all kinds of adventures—from national parks, secret slot canyons, hiking, biking, camping, and more. I highly recommend this area, and below I’ll cover the top 6 places you can visit within a three-hour drive!
Let’s go on a Utah adventure, shall we?
1. A Road Trip of All the National Parks!
Exploring the Utah Mighty 5 is a great way to start. If you aren’t familiar with the Utah Mighty 5, let me give you a quick summary: Utah is home to five national parks:
Capitol Reef
Bryce
Zion
Canyonlands
Arches
I highly recommend doing this road trip. When I started, I began in Moab and made my way over to Zion. If you don’t want to see all the parks, the closest national park to Hanksville is Capitol Reef, which tends to be the most underwhelming compared to the others. The rest have more dramatic features. That’s why I think you should start here first—so you can appreciate this park more.
2. Goblin Valley State Park
This park is just a 30-minute drive from Hanksville! I’ve been to it twice now, once again trying to make up for my earlier lack of appreciation from a few years ago. Blame it on lack of sleep and hitting that travel exhaustion wall. Plus, it’s right down the street from the next recommendation.
This park looks like you’re on Mars. It has hoodoos nicknamed goblins because they resemble giant red sandstone goblins! I only wish I had come at sunrise or sunset to see it in a different light. During midday, the sun made it hard to get great photos of the goblins.
3. Little Wild Horse Slot Canyon
Just a ten-minute drive from Goblin Valley State Park and thirty minutes from Hanksville, Little Wild Horse Slot Canyon is a hidden gem for explorers. This narrow, winding canyon offers an easy introduction to slot canyons without a long drive to Zion or Kanab, with an eight-mile loop perfect for beginners. It showcases breathtaking red and ochre sandstone walls.
As you enter, towering rock faces create a sense of awe. These structures were shaped by thousands of years of flash floods carving smooth passages and alcoves. They catch the light, changing it. The hike is moderate and requires awareness of weather conditions due to flash flood risks. But don’t worry… even a quick visit offers stunning views!
4. Factory Butte
Only 30 minutes from Hanksville, this spot shows why the area is perfect for a base! The 6,302-foot-tall Factory Butte has impressive geology, composed of clay, silt, and mudstone.
You can drive quite close off-road on the clay, but make sure your vehicle is suitable and that it hasn’t rained recently, or the ground will be extremely soft. I didn’t drive too close because I was chasing a sunset over Moonscape, but it was a great teaser for the wonders ahead.
5. Moonscape
Yes, I went to the Moon without spending a hundred thousand dollars! Well, an earthen version of the Moon, at least! This is hands down the NUMBER ONE activity near Hanksville!
After passing Factory Butte, you’ll wonder where the crevice leading to Moonscape is. Off-roading here reveals a dramatic landscape of silver-gray and dusty white terrain, all the way up until you reach a point where you must stop to avoid going over a 2,000-foot cliff. Standing on the clay soil, you look into the barren vastness of the crater with mountains in the distance, truly feeling like you've landed on the Moon!
A few tips:
Be cautious when standing near the edge since the clay can crumble unexpectedly.
Also, visit at sunrise or sunset for the most spectacular colors. During the day, it's just shades of gray.
If you're camping overnight like I did, I suggest sleeping in your car, as it can get very windy and difficult to set up a tent. If luck is on your side, you might even glimpse the Milky Way!
6. Monument Valley/ Forest Gump
This drive takes about 3 hours from Hanksville, compared to the 30 minutes for most of the other places I recommended. But it is worth it since this drive offers stunning views. The area is as iconic as scenes in movies!
Located on the Arizona-Utah border, it boasts towering red sandstone buttes—over a thousand feet tall—symbolizing the American West with their dramatic shadows shifting from fiery sunrise to crimson sunset. Also, you can take a tour of Monument Valley. I didn’t drive the entire three hours, since I was trying to catch the sunset at Moonscape, but even during the hour I was there, the views were incredible!
Forrest Gump Point, the famous viewpoint, features the highway with Monument Valley's buttes in the distance, highlighted in the film “Forrest Gump.” Be mindful if you are running like Forrest Gump—I was amazed at how many cars were driving through!
So check it out! Hanksville has something for everyone, from exploring Mars and the Moon to hiking slot canyons. It's the perfect base camp or starting point for your Utah adventures! When you visit, let me know which spot you loved the most, or tell me if there's another spot I should add to my list!
