Sight · Canyonlands National Park
A quick loop to an ancient granary beneath a sandstone alcove.
Overview
Stone Storehouse is a small Indigenous-built storehouse tucked beneath a sandstone alcove in The Needles. The 0.3-mile loop takes about 20 minutes and is a worthwhile cultural stop while you’re already exploring the district; the structure itself is modest, so don’t build a day around it.
Parkwolf’s verdictWorth a quick stopMap
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
Stone Storehouse“You're nearing the Stone Storehouse trailhead, a twenty-minute stop for a small Indigenous storage building tucked beneath a sandstone alcove.”
Plays as you drive up to Stone Storehouse 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
An interpretive guide at the trailhead points out native plants people used for everyday needs and explains possible uses for the storehouse. Look at the sheltering alcove as well as the stonework: the setting is part of what made this a useful place to store things.
The structure may be more than 1,000 years old. Around 950 CE, ancestral Puebloan communities near Mesa Verde and Fremont communities to the north were moving into the Canyonlands region for water, workable ground, building sites and wild plants. Farming became harder during late-1200s drought, and many farmers moved south.
The trailhead is on Needles Access Road. Parking is just a few roadside spaces, so this works best as a quick stop. The Needles Visitor Center is about 0.3 miles away and has water year-round; there’s no water reported at the trailhead.
From the viewing fence, keep both the masonry and the alcove in frame. A tight crop can show the stonework, but the overhang explains the storehouse’s sheltered setting.
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
EasyStone Storehouse Trail0.3 mi · 20 min · 0.1 mi awayA short loop to an Indigenous storehouse beneath a sandstone alcove.
EasyCave Spring Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 0.7 mi awayA short loop with a cowboy camp, spring alcove, and rock art.
ChallengingAngel Arch Trail27.5 mi · 20 hr · 1 mi awayMolar Rock and a giant arch reward a hard canyon walk.
ModerateHorse Canyon Road Walk to Paul Bunyan’s Potty6.8 mi · 4 hr · 1 mi awayA sandy road walk to a sandstone arch in a canyon.
EasyPothole Point Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 2.5 mi awayA short cairn-marked loop among rain-fed pothole gardens.
ChallengingAmerican Discovery Trail (Canyonlands Passage)19.8 mi · 10 hr · 2.6 mi awayA remote, one-way 19.8-mile road walk through The Needles.
ChallengingWooden Shoe Canyon to Lost Canyon Loop Trail8.7 mi · 5.5 hr · 2.7 mi awayTwo canyon floors, slickrock climbs, and one ladder in a rugged loop.
ChallengingPeekaboo Trail10.8 mi · 6 hr · 2.7 mi awayTwo ladders and high slickrock make this a serious Needles day hike.
Visitor center · 0.3 mi awayThe Needles Visitor CenterGet ranger advice before choosing a Needles hike or 4WD road.
Entrance station · 0.5 mi awayThe Needles Entrance StationBuy your park pass here before continuing into The Needles.Sight · 0.6 mi awayCave Spring and Cowboy CampSpring, cowboy camp and rock art all fit in a 45-minute loop.
Campground · 1.2 mi awayNeedles OutpostA handy, rustic base just outside the Needles District.
Sight · 1.5 mi awayWooden Shoe Arch OverlookA quick stop for one unmistakable shoe-shaped arch.
Campground · 2.5 mi awayThe Needles CampgroundCamp among sandstone spires, with Needles hikes close at hand.
Picnic area · 2.6 mi awayNeedles Scenic Drive Picnic AreaA shaded stop where rain brings tiny desert creatures to life.
Sight · 2.7 mi awayPothole PointRain-fed pools bring a small world to life on bare sandstone.Parkwolf’s Canyonlands ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
