Best time to go
NPS says the hike is generally a year-round route in good weather, with fall color usually from mid-October through mid-November. Pine Springs parking often fills on spring and fall weekends, so keep an alternate plan.
Overview
About Devil's Hall
Why stop
- The Hiker’s Staircase adds another striking landmark before the Hall.
Heads up
- The rough wash is slow underfoot and can be hard to follow.
Devil’s Hall is a narrow natural rock hallway between steep canyon walls in Pine Spring Canyon, reached by a hike from Pine Springs. Go if you’re up for a rough, boulder-scrambling route: NPS rates the out-and-back strenuous and estimates 4.2 miles, 548 feet of elevation change, and 3–5 hours. The natural staircase and tight corridor are the reward.
Parkwolf’s verdictA worthwhile, strenuous detourMap
Where it is
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Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
Best time to go
1 active Guadalupe Mountains alert
- CautionDevil’s Hall wash hazardous when wetMentions Devil’s Hall, referenced in this guideDevil’s Hall is a strenuous hike; do not enter the wash when it is wet or water is present. - The wash requires rock scrambling, and its loose gravel and rocks may be unstable.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Guadalupe Mountains Tour Guide
Your drive to Devil's Hall, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Guadalupe Mountains 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.
Recorded for this place
Pine Springs: The Guadalupe Peak Climb0:00 / 0:24
“You're nearing Pine Springs Trailhead, where the climb to Guadalupe Peak begins.”
Plays as you drive up to Devil's Hall in the Parkwolf Guadalupe Mountains Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Pine Springs Visitor Center and the Pinery
- Why an Airline Marked the Summit
- The Tree with Alligator Bark
- Frijole Ranch: An Orchard Fed by Springs
- 22 audio storiesacross Guadalupe Mountains’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Aoudad, Mule Deer, Wild Turkey, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 32 trails, 34 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“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
More about Devil's Hall
The wash is the hard partFollow constructed trail for the first mile, then turn left into the wash.
Follow constructed trail for the first mile, then turn left into the wash. The next mile is rough loose rock and large boulders; some scrambling brings you to the Hiker’s Staircase, then the Hall. Return the same way. This is slow going, not a quick walk to a viewpoint.
Choose a dry day and leave daylightNPS says not to climb in the wash or on canyon walls when conditions are wet or rainy.
NPS says not to climb in the wash or on canyon walls when conditions are wet or rainy. Wear shoes with solid tread; trekking poles are recommended. There’s no water station along backcountry trails, so carry what you’ll need. The wash exit can be hard to find after dark, so leave enough daylight to retrace the route. Pets aren’t allowed on trails.
Walk the corridor slowlyThe Hall is a short, enclosed passage between steep walls, with the Hiker’s Staircase just…
The Hall is a short, enclosed passage between steep walls, with the Hiker’s Staircase just before it. From inside, frame both walls and a bit of rocky floor to show how tight the corridor is; the visible staircase is another part of the experience.
Permian reef countryThe park’s larger geologic story reaches back to a Permian sea.
The park’s larger geologic story reaches back to a Permian sea. NPS dates the regional Capitan Reef to about 260 million years ago, when a reef grew along the edge of the Delaware Sea. The agency doesn’t identify these specific walls as that formation, so treat this as broader Guadalupe geology rather than a label for every rock in the Hall.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Guadalupe Mountains
33 sightingsAoudadMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
163 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
11 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
34 sightingsCollared PeccaryMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
39 sightingsDiamondback RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
43 sightingsBlack-tailed RattlesnakeMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Guadalupe Mountains. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
