(Click words that are bolded for more information.)
Goblin Valley State Park is not as well known as the other canyons that I've written about in previous posts, but it is well worth visiting this remote spot which is located between Capitol Reef National Park and Arches National Park. Unlike the towering spire hoodoos of Bryce Canyon, the hoodoos of Goblin Valley are smaller sandstone formations that resemble mushrooms or the not so nice creatures of fairy tales called goblins. It's interesting that the old German, Norse, and English word for goblin all convey the idea of a hollow or cavity in a cliff, rock, or earth. In J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, three trolls turned to stone at sunrise, and I can imagine that the fantastic shapes that fill Goblin Valley State Park could indeed have been goblins or trolls turned to stone in the baking heat of the San Rafael Desert.
~ Debbie
First stop - Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden here.
Second stop - Montezuma's Castle here.
Third stop - Sedona here.
Fourth stop - The Grand Canyon here.
Fifth stop - The Desert Watch Tower here.
Sixth stop - Glen Canyon and Lake Powell here.
Seventh stop - Zion National Park here.
Eighth stop - Between canyons here.
Ninth stop - Bryce Canyon here.
Tenth stop - Utah's Scenic Byway 12 here.
Eleventh stop - Ancient Petroglyphs here.
Twelfth stop - Goblin Valley State Park here.
Thirteenth stop - Arches National Park here.