Little Wild Horse Canyon - San Rafael Swell
I love slot canyons. Who doesn't love slot canyons? So when you have a beautiful and easily accessible slot canyon, it's popular. Little Wild Horse Canyon is no exception. It says right on the trailhead sign that it's the most popular hike in the San Rafael Swell.
So how can you see it and not have crowds? Apparently, you just need to leave early and in the middle of winter after it's snowed.
We saw 2 or 3 other groups, but basically had the entire canyon to ourselves for the entire hike. And I was really impressed. The hike is as long or short as you want it to be. You can actually make a loop out of it with an adjacent canyon (Bell Canyon) for an overall distance of about 8 miles with 700~800 feet of elevation gain. We just did it as an out and back because we wanted to check out Goblin Valley State Park.
It would actually be very easy to link this loop with a visit to Goblin Valley over 2 or more days. But then again, there's so much to see in the area, you could spend months or even years exploring.
I'm a little bit of a slot canyon junkie and I'd rate this one in the top 5 that I've seen to date. If you're in the area, make sure to try this one out. It's amazing.