Sight · Canyonlands National Park
A sandstone tower worth stopping for once you're deep in the Maze.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Canyonlands Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Canyonlands National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Canyonlands audio tour“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Chimney Rock is a tall sandstone tower in Canyonlands' Maze district, beside a single vehicle campsite. It's worth a stop only if you're already planning a multi-day Maze trip: this is no quick detour from the paved park roads. The camp is 39 miles from Hans Flat Ranger Station, a drive listed at more than five hours.
Maze roads require high-clearance four-wheel drive with low range. They're extremely remote and difficult, so this is for experienced backcountry drivers ready to handle self-rescue. Overnight trips require a permit, and the Maze usually takes several days to explore. Don't plan this as an afternoon outing.
The vehicle camp is a single site for up to nine people and three vehicles. There are no services, food, gas, or potable water in the Maze; this site has no pit toilet or picnic table, so bring everything you need, including a reusable toilet system. GPS can lead drivers astray here, so carry and know how to use backcountry maps. Pets aren't allowed in the Maze, even in vehicles.
For a photo, keep the tower's broad base and its open setting in the frame; a tight crop loses the way the rock rises above the Maze landscape.
Wildlife
48 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
47 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
12 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
30 sightingsWestern RattlesnakeMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
18 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
18 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Canyonlands. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ChallengingShot Canyon Route10.1 mi · 8 hr · At the trailheadCairns lead from Chimney Rock into Shot Canyon's broad floor.
ChallengingPete's Mesa Route8.4 mi · 6 hr · At the trailheadSlickrock miles with the Maze spread out below.
ChallengingChimney Rock Route2.3 mi · 2.5 hr · At the trailheadA steep old stock route drops into Pictograph Fork.
ChallengingHarvest Scene Route8.7 mi · 7 hr · At the trailheadA rugged loop reaches the Maze’s famous Harvest Scene pictographs.
ChallengingThe Plug Route3.9 mi · 2.3 hr · 1.5 mi awayA hard one-way 3.9-mile connector from The Plug to Pictograph Fork.
ModerateChocolate Drops Trail8.8 mi · 5 hr · 2.4 mi awayCairned slickrock to four sandstone sentinels deep in The Maze.
ModerateColorado and Green River Overlook Trail8.9 mi · 5 hr · 2.5 mi awayBeehive Arch and two river views reward a long Maze approach.
ModerateGranary Trail1.9 mi · 2 hr · 2.5 mi awayA tight sandstone squeeze, an alcove granary and Colorado River views.
Sight · 1.2 mi awayStanding RockA roadside spire reached by a five-hour, low-range 4WD drive.
Sight · 2.5 mi awayThe Harvest SceneA striking pictograph panel on a hard Maze backcountry loop.
Sight · 2.6 mi awayThe Doll HouseA sandstone spire city at the end of a six-hour 4WD route.
Sight · 2.6 mi awayChocolate DropsFour nearly 200-foot shale towers, deep in the Maze.
Sight · 3.5 mi awayMaze OverlookA canyon panorama reached only after hours of rough 4WD travel.Parkwolf’s Canyonlands ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
