Sight · Canyonlands National Park
Rain-fed pools bring a small world to life on bare sandstone.
Overview
Pothole Point is a natural field of shallow basins weathered into sandstone in The Needles. It is a good stop if you like looking closely at rock patterns and small desert habitats; choose one of the district’s longer hikes if you want a bigger outing. The short loop is 0.6 mile, about 45 minutes, with only 36 feet of elevation change.
Parkwolf’s verdictWorth a slow lapMap
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 tourRecorded for this place
Pothole Point“Up ahead is the Pothole Point trailhead, for a short walk among rain-fed hollows in the sandstone. Allow about forty-five minutes for the six-tenths-of-a-mile loop over uneven rock and steps.”
Plays as you drive up to Pothole Point in the Parkwolf Canyonlands Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“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
Rain and slow weathering enlarge the shallow depressions in sandstone. When water collects, a pothole can support a miniature community adapted to drying out; conditions change with recent rain or snow, so pools may be full or dry. The living soil crust around the rock includes cyanobacteria, mosses, algae, lichens and fungi that help limit erosion and hold moisture. Stay on the marked route, walk around the basins, and keep hands, feet, sunscreen and soap out of the water.
Look down for the round basins and their tiny plants, then take the boulder spur for a wider sweep of the Needles and surrounding terrain. After rain, frame a pool from the route with slickrock and the distant spires behind it; that gives the photo both the tiny basin and the wider 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
EasyPothole Point Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 0.1 mi awayA short cairn-marked loop among rain-fed pothole gardens.
ModerateSlickrock Trail2.4 mi · 2 hr · 0.5 mi awayFour canyon overlooks on an open slickrock loop marked with cairns.
ChallengingConfluence Overlook Trail11 mi · 5.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayA strenuous day hike to the Green–Colorado rivers’ dramatic meeting point.
ChallengingWooden Shoe Canyon to Lost Canyon Loop Trail8.7 mi · 5.5 hr · 1.9 mi awayTwo canyon floors, slickrock climbs, and one ladder in a rugged loop.
ChallengingPeekaboo Trail10.8 mi · 6 hr · 1.9 mi awayTwo ladders and high slickrock make this a serious Needles day hike.
ModerateBig Spring to Wooden Shoe Canyon Loop Trail7.5 mi · 3.5 hr · 1.9 mi awayTwo canyons, one high saddle, and a rougher route between them.
ChallengingBig Spring Canyon to Elephant Canyon Loop Trail10.5 mi · 5 hr · 2 mi awayTwo ladders cross a slickrock pass between Big Spring and Elephant.
ChallengingChesler Park Loop and Joint Trail10.7 mi · 6 hr · 2.3 mi awayA spire-ringed meadow and narrow rock passages reward a full-day loop.
Picnic area · 0.4 mi awayNeedles Scenic Drive Picnic AreaA shaded stop where rain brings tiny desert creatures to life.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayBig Spring Canyon OverlookSpires and sandstone benches line a bend in Big Spring Canyon.
Campground · 1.8 mi awayThe Needles CampgroundCamp among sandstone spires, with Needles hikes close at hand.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayWooden Shoe Arch OverlookA quick stop for one unmistakable shoe-shaped arch.
Sight · 2.7 mi awayStone StorehouseA quick loop to an ancient granary beneath a sandstone alcove.
Visitor center · 2.7 mi awayThe Needles Visitor CenterGet ranger advice before choosing a Needles hike or 4WD road.
Entrance station · 3 mi awayThe Needles Entrance StationBuy your park pass here before continuing into The Needles.
Sight · 3.2 mi awayCave Spring and Cowboy CampSpring, cowboy camp and rock art all fit in a 45-minute loop.Parkwolf’s Canyonlands ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
