Places To Go

 

Hovenweep National Monument protects six groups of ancestral Puebloan structures that are spread along 20 miles of the Utah-Colorado border. Each group is one “unit” of the park, and each unit is not connected to the others. The small squares of Hovenweep’s units are surrounded by a mix of Bureau of Land Management land, Navajo Nation land, and private land. This unique layout may be confusing to navigate on your own. We highly recommend stopping at the visitor center, located within the Square Tower Group unit, to speak with a ranger.

 

 

Hovenweep Castle, featured on the park's brochure map, is worth the hike to see it.

NPS photo

Start Your Visit Here: Square Tower Group

The park’s main unit includes the visitor center and campground, as well as several of the park’s famous ancestral Puebloan structures. Access roads to this part of the park are entirely paved from surrounding towns. The park’s main trail, the Square Tower Loop, starts from the visitor center and encircles the group of structures nestled in the canyon. Most visitors will spend their entire visit in this unit, and rangers will encourage you to begin your journey with some or all of the loop trail. If you’re planning a visit to Hovenweep, you can’t miss the Square Tower Group unit!

 

Outlying Units

The rest of Hovenweep’s units are considered outliers and are more difficult to visit. All of the outliers are accessed via dirt road, and we highly recommend using high-clearance vehicles. Amenities like restrooms and water are not available at these units. However, if you have the time and means to reach them, these units are worth seeing. Each contains a group of ancestral Puebloan structures and tells the unique story of the people who lived in these canyons.

(from North to South)

 

Cutthroat Castle is the most difficult Hovenweep unit to access.

NPS photo

Cutthroat Castle

Hovenweep’s northernmost unit, these structures are tucked among pinyon pine at the bend of an ancient river. The access road is also used to visit Painted Hand Pueblo, in Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. The first mile of the access road is gravel. You may park in the gravel parking area and walk to the structures from the upper trailhead. If you do not wish to drive on the gravel access road, you may park at the start of the gravel road and walk or bike one mile to the trailhead, then walk down the trail to the structures.

We strongly recommend visitors park at the upper lot and hike from the upper trailhead. Beyond that, the road gets very rough. If you plan to drive to the lower trailhead, we recommend a high clearance vehicle with four-wheel drive.

 

Horseshoe (pictured) and Hackberry are considered separate units but lie within the same NPS boundary.

NPS photo

Horseshoe and Hackberry Units

Horseshoe may be small, but the views are expansive and inspiring. Most visitors combine their visit to Horseshoe with Hackberry and Holly units, as all three are down the same BLM access road.

Hackberry has changed in the last 700 years but is still a sacred and fascinating place. It is also the largest complex in the monument. If you plan to visit Horseshoe, simply continue on the trail to see Hackberry.

If you do not wish to drive on the unpaved access road, you may park at the start of the unpaved road and walk or bike about one mile to the Horseshoe and Hackberry trailhead, then walk down the trail to the structures.

 

Holly is known for its striking towers and petroglyph panel.

NPS photo

Holly

The most popular site after Square Tower Group, Holly’s impressive towers are worth the expedition. You can drive to this site via an unpaved BLM access road.

If you do not wish to drive on the unpaved road, you have two options. You can either park at the start of the road and walk or bike two miles to the Holly trailhead, then walk down the trail to the structures, or you can park in the Hovenweep campground and hike 7 miles round trip.

 

Cajon may be small, but the structures still impress.

NPS photo

Cajon

Hovenweep’s southernmost and least-visited site, Cajon is often a ranger favorite. The structures are nestled into the head of a small canyon surrounded by Navajo Nation land.

Cajon is located down an unimprovied dirt road. We recommend a high clearance vehicle with four-wheel drive. Please visit this site with respect to the past and present people who call this area home. We do not recommend parking on Navajo Nation land except within the designated Cajon parking area at the end of the unimproved road.