A few miles from Goblin Valley is the start of a series of slot canyons, the most popular of which is Little Wild Horse. As usual, the hike starts in a sandy wash, but soon comes to an abrupt end at a fifteen foot sheer cliff. I questioned whether I had taken the wrong trail or somehow gotten off the trail, but decided that wasn't the case. Knowing that many people made this hike, I convinced myself there must be a way around. The only possibility was a skinny ledge with a very low roof that required me to crawl on hands and knees for some twenty feet. After that, I resumed my walk in the wash until reaching the start of the canyon.
Some folks make a loop hike by combining LWH with the next canyon, Bell Canyon, for an eight mile trek. However, as I had read, there is a dry fall in LWH that is difficult to pass without help. Some hikers start at the other end just so they can slide down this obstacle. In any case, it was getting late, so I turned around and back tracked the way I had come.
All in all, this was an excellent slot canyon hike. There were very tight sections, there were boulders to climb over or crawl under, and there were a few puddles to wade through. In other words, there were challenges, but nothing too difficult. The canyon walls were beautiful, sculpted and colorful.
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