Distance (round-trip)
10.5 mi
Time
7 hrs
Elevation Gain
1507 ft
Season
Spring
Fall
Winter
Weather
–
10.5 mi
7 hrs
1507 ft
Spring
Fall
Winter
–
“Warnings” are the name of the game on the Syncline Loop Trail. Most topo maps will make special note of the trail’s condition, stating things like “Primitive Trail” and “Difficult to Follow.” Signs near the trailhead echo that language with capital letters that spell out “WARNING.” Indeed, this is not a trail to be taken lightly. I have done some tough trails in my time, but this one is definitely near the top of my list for “most difficult trails I’ve ever done.”
Remember that this is overwhelmingly on primitive, unmaintained trails. There is some light scrambling involved, no water, very little shade, and deep canyons that can cut off GPS signals. Oh, and all the elevation gain is on your way out, after you’ve put in a full day’s effort.
That said, this is also one of the most fun trails I have ever had the pleasure of hiking on. You’ll hike down unbelievably steep inclines, stand atop dry waterfalls, meander through desert washes, climb up steep slickrock slopes, do a bit of class 3 scrambling … oh, and hike into the center of a bizarrely eroded, ancient meteorite impact crater in the middle of the desert.
If that doesn’t get you going, I don’t know what will.
There’s a little bit more of an overview of the region’s geology on the easy Overlook Trail write-up, and this trail begins at the same picnic area. If you haven’t already done it, tacking on at least the first viewpoint to this trail is a great way to get an idea of the geologic crazytown you’re about to walk into. If you don’t, you won’t really get a look at the Upheaval Dome until you’re inside of it.
Just after you start hiking toward the overlook, you’ll see an sign marking the junction with the Syncline Loop Trail. As it’s name suggests, this is a loop and the trails will connect. Direction is a matter of choice, but I will recommend hiking this route in a clockwise direction. If you hike this way, you’ll be descending a mile-long stretch of trail at nearly 20% grade instead of ascending it (but believe me, your knees will still feel it). If you complete the entire loop circuit, your return to the canyon rim will be longer with a more gradual overall incline grade, but you’ll still have two very, very steep sections – one 0.2 mile stretch of climbing and scrambling that’s got a 37.4% incline grade and a 0.4 mile crawl up a wash that’s got a relatively easy 12.2% grade.
I’m not kidding when I say this hike is tough.
Turn left to start on the clockwise loop. The trail begins easily enough as a simple single-track traversing some beautiful red rock terrain.
After about a half mile, you’ll be able to see out past the plateau you’re on and into the White Rim and Stillwater Canyon. This, like many panoramic scenes of Canyonlands, is an awe-inspiring view in and of itself but there is plenty more to come.
As you hike toward the edge of Upheaval Canyon, keep an eye on the rocks around you. Although many of them look normal and perhaps not even noteworthy, if you pay close attention you’ll see that the normally horizontal sedimentary rocks are resting at unusual angles.
This is because you’re hiking at the edge of a giant meteorite impact crater and the layers of rock you’ll find almost everywhere else in the Canyonlands region have been punched in the proverbial gut by a giant space rock, leaving this 3-mile wide crater in the Colorado Plateau. The angled rock along the perimeter of the crater were warped by the force of the impact while the upheaval dome in the center of the crater occurred when the ground “bounced back” from the hit.
This can be tough to visualize when you’re on the ground, but from the air the circular crater shape is apparent. This aerial shot looking southeast shows the open entrance of Upheaval Canyon and the circular route of Syncline Valley surrounding the center on both sides.
The “established” portion of the trail ends about 0.85 miles in when it reaches the edge of the Syncline Valley. If it looks like the trail just kind of drops straight down into the canyon below, well, that’s because that’s kind of exactly what it does.
The next mile of this journey is going to be intense on your knees – this is that 20% decline I was warning you about earlier.
The trail makes some serious switchbacks here, and although the ground can be loose it’s not too difficult if you take it slowly. In the winter, this section of trail can get some lingering ice in some of the shadier parts. You should check with a ranger for any condition reports before you venture out – and if it’s icy be sure to give yourself extra time on this descent … and don’t forget to enjoy the gorgeous views of Steer Mesa to your left and Bighorn Mesa to your right as you make your way down!
At around the 1.45 mile mark the trail gives you a short (relative) break in the descent as you hike along the steep north side of Syncline Valley. At just before 1.6 miles, the trail crosses a wash with a 240-foot dry waterfall.
You’re going to be tempted to look over the edge and I won’t tell you not to do it, just stay back far enough, when you do, OK?
It may look like the trail stops here, but look on the other side of the wash for a small depression in the rock (hopefully still marked by a cairn). Crawl up and over this and continue your descent – now even a little more steep than before.
After a few more jagged, steep switchbacks down a boulder field, the trail drops down into a wash at the bottom of Syncline Valley. From this point, the trail continues to descend but at a much more reasonable pace. There may or may not be cairns to mark your path here, but even if you don’t see them the directions are pretty simple: Keep going forward and down.
The wash begins in a rocky boulder field and as you walk inside of it you’ll notice the ground becoming softer and more fine. If you keep your eye out on the sides of the wash you’ll also see the infrequent but drastic effects of water erosion cutting through the rocks over millions of years.
To your left, Steer Mesa connects with Bighorn Mesa via a thin wall before making a sharp turn to the west and eventually vanishes from sight.
As this is happening, the wash you’re walking in is also boring deeper and deeper into the canyon floor, and will eventually break through the red stone into a darker gray layer. Drop into the new layer of earth with the wash and continue as it reveals new layers of earth history.
At 3.1 miles, keep right at the junction with the Upheaval Canyon Trail and in another 0.3 miles you’ll reach a junction with the northern half of the Syncline Loop Trail, but you didn’t come all the way down here to not go inside the crater, did you?
Stay on the Upheaval Canyon Trail and do a quick, short climb up some expertly designed stairs (with a bit of scrambling from cairn to cairn thrown in for good measure) to skirt past another dry waterfall. You’ll now find yourself in another broad, sandy wash that snakes its way between the two large, bent columns that guard the entrance to the Upheaval Dome.
As you hike into the wash, stay to the right at the 3.7 mile mark to stay inside the primary, wider canyon. It’s about 0.9 miles from here to the end of the trail inside the Upheaval Dome, and along the way you’ll notice the rocks around you in stranger and stranger shapes and configurations.
At the 4.6 mile mark, the trail you’ve been on abruptly ends at a wooden sign. It is possible to continue inside the Upheaval Dome and I encourage you to at least poke around a few corners to see what’s there. Once you’ve fully soaked in the geological oddities, return back to the junction with the northern half of the Syncline Loop Trail.
On the Syncline Loop Trail (north) just past the junction is the small, primitive Syncline Camp (wilderness permit required).
This small flat is the only place you’re allowed to camp inside Upheaval Canyon, and what it lacks in creature comforts it more than makes up for with scenery:
Beyond the camp is when a realization will hit you – remember all that downhill you started off with on your way into the canyon a few hours ago? Well, now it’s time to start that unpleasant business of heading back up to the canyon rim. It starts out easily enough, meandering through the sagebrush and intermittently riparian landscape surrounding a similarly intermittent stream.
… but by the 6.4 mile mark, the trail will stop giving you a break and present you with the steepest, most difficult section of the entire loop.
After a short climb up a single track trail, the route just starts up the rocky slope of the canyon wall. Occasionally there’s a staircase cut into the rocks for you, but more often than not you’re on your own.
Sometimes you’ll be crawling underneath the rocks to move forward.
Other times you’re laughing at the helpful “trail” signs as you’re hoisting yourself up and over person-sized boulders and squeezing between cracks.
Oh, and you’ll be doing all of this while scrambling up what is essentially an exposed, sheer cliff, by the way. (Apologies for the finger in the shot here – this is right before I had to pack the camera away for a bit so I could focus on not sliding off the rock)
For the next 0.2 miles, you’ll be climbing up almost 360 feet with an average grade of 37.4%, but you will at least have an advantage over me by knowing about this section of trail before you get to it. Let’s just say it’s a good thing there weren’t any kids in the canyon when I was crawling up, because – as I learned – profanities echo really well here.
The good news is that once you top off from that hellish incline, the trail mellows out considerably. Instead of scrambling on all fours, you’ll get to walk through a very pleasant meadow nestled between the canyon walls.
Depending on the season, the ground here may seem more like a coastal marsh than a desert canyon. Tall native grasses and reeds line the trail on both sides as it meanders and dips in and out of dry (or wet) creekbeds.
At just past 7.8 miles, the trail takes a sharp right into a narrow, steep canyon – your last major ascent on the way back to the trailhead. This section of trail is half scrambling up a boulder-strewn path and half just walking straight up some steep slickrock. It’s a little exhausting – but not nearly as difficult as the trail you’ve already done. You can also see the rim of the Upheaval Dome from the beginning of the incline, if that helps your motivation levels.
By the 8.5 mile mark, you’ve passed all the tough parts of the hike and the rest of the trail follows a wash along the perimeter of the Upheaval Dome. When you see the long, low, white shape of nearby Whale Rock, you’ll know you’re almost back at the trailhead.
Give yourself a pat on the back and make sure to stretch before you get back in your car – you’re gonna be feeling this hike for a day or two.
Maps of this area warn you that the Syncline Loop Trail is "primitive and difficult to follow," and they are not exaggerating. The trail conditions range from well-worn single track and expertly built (if challengingly steep) staircases to completely unmaintained routes through desert washes and canyons and even sections that require some class 3 scrambling. This is not a trail for the casual hiker - be prepared to spend a lot of time on this route, bring more water than you think you'll need, and make sure you have detailed maps and know how to use them.
The closest developed campground is a few miles to the east at Willow Flat (first come, first-served, no water). The nearest reservable campsites are at nearby Dead Horse Point State Park. There is a primitive, backcountry campsite (Syncline) just north of the junction with the Upheaval Canyon Trail, as well as two backcountry camps along the Green River (Hardscrabble A and B), which are an additional 5.7 miles west of that same junction. Backcountry camps require a permit. Information is available in the Camping link. The closest reservable campsites are at Dead Horse Point State Park, just east of the entrance to Canyonlands.
From Moab, head north on US-191 for 11 miles and turn left onto UT-313W. Stay on this road for 14.6 miles, then stay straight to head onto Grand View Point Road and enter Canyonlands National Park (fee applies). In 13.1 miles, turn left onto Upheaval Dome Road (just past the trailhead for Mesa Arch). Stay on this road until it ends in 4.8 miles.
13 Comments
Where'd you see snow? :)
I did this hike in mid-March. If any parts of this area get snow, it'd be mostly limited to light dustings at the canyon rim under most circumstances. Definitely don't need any ice or snow gear for probably 99.999% of the time - heat in the summer is more of a concern here, in my opinion, but it's an amazing trail!
Thanks for the write-up! I noticed some snow in one picture... it would help to note time of year in your trip report. I live in Vail, and do a lot of climbing, so this may not be as much a concern as I'm used to, but it helps to know what conditions to expect based on time of year when planning (in case other gear is needed). I guess this is just a trail hike, though.
Great write up! We did this trail on April 26th and it was every bit as challenging as detailed above. From a fitness point of view its not incredibly hard if you are an experienced hiker, but I would agree with Casey about the difficulty of the scrambling portion as you are ascending in a clockwise direction. His photo of the ledge with the trail far below should be a caution to anyone with a fear of heights or who is uncomfortable climbing on exposed rock. (That part much much more risky than exposed trails such as Angels Landing or Hidden Canyon in Zion.) One slip and you are likely dead, not just injured. This is NOT like the trails in Zion or Bryce which are wide and packed - -on the rocky parts its much more like an Eastern trail in that its narrow, uneven, and rock strewn. That being said it is an incredible, beautiful, and remote place very much worth going to!
The hike write-up describes going inside the dome, at about mile 4.8. The trail ends there but it is possible to go off-trail and meander around inside if you want - just don't get lost! :)
You mention seeing the rim to the Upheaval Dome, but is it true or is it not true you can actually go into the Dome itself from this trail? Like just before the end there's a turn or something?
Thanks for the correction, Jackson. I am (clearly) not much of a climber :)
Awesome trip report. Lots of good info for the whole route. Thanks for writing it!
One potential correction for ya though. You mention twice that the route has "bouldering", when I think you mean scrambling. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouldering
Thanks for the memories, Michael!
I didn't think the trail was super tough to route-find, but I think all the warnings are in place just because it's an easily accessible route that doesn't look that difficult from the trailhead. I also had a TON of fun on this one and, like you, I credit this trail with really putting me in touch with the magic of the Colorado Plateau.
This was one of the first back-country trails I did in Utah. The blasted stairs that are in your picture of the ascent above were not yet there. Instead there was a cable that you held on to as you climbed up and over the rock in which they were made. I found the whole trail to be a blast. It sealed my love for the area.
I did it again two years ago. I didn't remember it being difficult to follow, but all the blogs and warnings made me a little nervous. On the trail, I found myself wondering what all the hubbub was about. How on earth are people getting lost on this trail? There was a good sized cairn about every 10 feet, even in the wash where forward is the only way you can go.
Still, it remains a great trail.
Stumbled upon your blog, and wish i could have read it before.
I did the trail in June 2014, but counterclockwise. Real awesome rock formations.
At the end i wish i had taken more Water with me (1/2 gallon is definitively not enough)
With recent wildfire damage and ongoing waves of COVID-19 infections and restrictions, National Forest, National Park, and other public land closures, restrictions, or social distancing guidelines may be in-effect.
If infection rates are on the rise, please do your best to remain local for your hikes. If you do travel, please be mindful of small gateway communities and avoid as much interaction as you can. Also remember to be extra prepared with supplies so you don't have to stop somewhere outside your local community for gas, food, or anything else.
Please be sure to contact the local land management agency BEFORE you head out, as these conditions are likely to change without enough notice for us to fully stay on top of them. Thanks, and stay safe!
Click here to read the current CDC guidelines for traveling during the COVID-19 pandemic.