Hidden Valley is a 3-7 hour hike to an extensive petroglyph panel in the rim directly to the south of downtown Moab known as "The Behind the Rocks". This hike can be complete as a Moab winter hike if the snow is not too deep. The trail has a lot of sun exposure during the summer and can be too hot.
Hidden Valley is one of those hikes that can be as long as you want it to be. Some people hike up to the valley and go a short distance then turn around. Others spend hours searching for petroglyphs and are well rewarded for their efforts. On my first hike to Hidden Valley, I spent a long time looking for petroglyphs and eventually hiked all the way back to Kane Creek Drive via the Moab Rim Jeep trail.
From the parking lot, a steep climb will take you straight up to a large open valley 1000 ft above the town of Moab. The valley is about 1.5 miles long and is open to mountain bikes though I have never seen one here. This is also a great pet friendly trail for those staying in our pet friendly Moab Vacation Rental 10A8.
Once you reach the head of the valley at the pass, you will see a user made trail going to the north, towards town. This trail leads to a south facing cliff that is extensively covered in Canyonlands Basketmaker II style petroglyphs. This area is considered one of the best petroglyphs in Moab.
The more you explore the more rock art you will find. I recommend this as a winter hike if the snow isn't too deep. During the summer, noise from ORVs on the Moab Rim trail can be distracting. In the winter you can have the entire trail to yourself.
I didn't think much of this photo when I took it but later when I was showing my wife she brought something very interesting to my attention. If you use a little imagination, this petroglyph appears to show two people being abducted by aliens and floating to the sky. What do you think this rock art scene shows?
You can return to this hike time and time again and always find something new. On one hike, we climbed to a valley above Hidden Valley which can be seen in the picture above. The hike included a lot of scrambling and the upper valley was much narrower than the lower Hidden Valley. The right center of the photo is downtown Moab.
Once you think you have gone further than anyone has ever been, you will see that others have already passed this way. Not sure where Rightway Wrongway way goes. We tried but could not get over the lip of the canyon into the Behind the Rocks.
If you are considering a Moab adventure we would recommend checking out the townhomes at Moab Adventure Condo. We stayed with them and it was so nice to have room to relax and not be stuck in a cramped hotel room. Since the cost of the rental was split between two families it actually ended up being cheaper than a hotel room and much nicer. Not to mention the pool and hot tub were just sets from our condo.
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