

Hype:
The easiest of the hogs, Hog 2 Canyon is a technical slot canyon in the Hog Canyons area of North Wash, Utah. Hog 2 features narrow sculpted sandstone, downclimbs, a little easy stemming, and a few rappels. The canyon is quite scenic and makes for a great half or 3/4 day.
For travel timing, spring and fall are the strongest choices because of the cooler weather; summer heat can be harsh on exposed approaches and exits.
Time: 2-4 hours
Length: 1.6 mile approach from car or 0.23 mile approach from top of slab exit, 0.6 mile canyon, 1 mile exit to car or .66 mile exit to top of slab.
Longest Rappel: 3+ rappels up to 75 ft
Gear: Standard canyoneering gear.
Fees: None
Recommended Ages:
![]() | 0-3 |
![]() | 4-11 |
![]() | 12-19 |
![]() | 20-49 |
![]() | 50-69 |
![]() | 70+ |
Recommended Months to Visit:
| Jan |
| Feb |
| Mar |
| Apr |
| May |
| Jun |
| Jul |
| Aug |
| Sep |
| Oct |
| Nov |
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Links: https://ropewiki.com/Hog_2_Canyonhttps://www.roadtripryan.com/go/t/utah/north-wash/hog-canyons
Navigate to 37.972542, -110.530494.
1.6 mile approach from car or 0.23 mile approach from top of slab exit.
From the trailhead, follow the semi-established trail along the edge of the plateau to the top of the canyon.
0.6 miles
Section of easy galumphing.
Drop 1 - 75 foot rappel from a cairn anchor.
Continue down canyon through alternating open and narrow slot sections.
Stemming/chimney sections above the canyon floor.
Narrow elevated section (“mae west” style) and descend back to the bottom.
Proceed through additional tight slots and obstacles.
Drop 2 - 60 ft rappel anchored from a pinch point. Two-stage rappel.
Drop 3 - 50 ft rappel anchored from a chockstone.
Enter a dark, narrow slot near the end.
Drop 4 - Downclimb through the tight “Birthing Canal.” A handline may be desired for some.
Once you reach the bottom of the canyon, you have two exit options.
Gully Exit
1 mile
This is the traditional exit up a gully. This exit is shaded and straightforward. It deposits you near the trailhead.
Slab Exit
0.66 miles
This is up the nose between Hog 1 and Hog 2. This exit is preferred if you are doing multiple hogs in one day as it saves time and distance getting to the other hogs.
Be aware that there is a steep slab climb right at the bottom that is quite tricky to get up. Once one person gets up on top, they can lower a handline for others. After this crux move, the rest of the exit is a straightforward slick rock walk up.
Closest City or Region: North Wash, Utah
Coordinates: 37.985051, -110.515450
By Jeremy Dye
Jeremy Dye, Tara Dye, Savannah Dye, Madilyn Dye, Cooper Dye, Marci Parker, Callie Parker, Alex DeBirk, Jeremy, Peter,
Friday, March 13 - When the kids got home from school, we loaded into the truck and drove down to North Wash for the Sand Patrick’s Canyoneering Rendezvous. Trent Carlisle and I were the hosts, but really it was mostly Trent. We set up the trailer, then I met up with Chris, Marci, Kelly, and Matt, and we did Bushwax Canyon. It ended up being a lot of fun. There were a couple of stemming spots that were pretty tricky for Marci and Kelly, but Chris helped them through it and they were just fine. Tara and the kids hung out at camp and went to bed. When I got back to camp, I hung out around the campfire for a little bit, then went to bed around 11:00.
Saturday, March 14 - We were aiming to leave at 9:00, but it took a little bit to get everyone ready, so we left camp around 9:30. We drove up to the Hog Canyons, and I took us on a really bad dirt road that was not a good idea. We had to turn around and go back to the highway, which was kind of tricky in the deep sand. When we got to the trailhead, we hiked across to the top of Hog 2. We had a group of 10. We descended Hog 2 at a medium-slow pace. There was quite a bit of downclimbing and a few rappels and lots of skinny narrows. We climbed the Nose back up to the plateau top. That climb was kind of tricky, and Tara had to give me a foot support so I could make it up. Then I lowered a rope so everyone else could climb up. At the top of the canyon, we split up into two groups. Five people went back to camp, and the other five of us descended Hog 1 Canyon. We started off going a little bit faster but had to slow down because one of the group members was struggling a bit and getting quite tired. That canyon had several optional rappels, which we mostly downclimbed. I used the rope twice as a hand line but never put on my harness. Once at the bottom of Hog 1, we scrambled up the gully exit and went back to the car. We made it back to camp around 7:00. At 6:00, there was a potluck at camp. We hung out around the fire and had a fun time munching and swapping stories. Tara and the kids were pretty tired and went to bed around 9:30. I stayed up until a little after 11:00.
Sunday, March 15 - We got up and made breakfast, then all gathered together. The original plan was to do Morocco Canyon or Merry Piglet Canyon, but we heard that both canyons had a lot of water, so we opted to do Death Canyon instead. We had a group of 15 people, which was a lot. The approach was a little slow with little legs, but we made it in good spirits and descended the canyon pretty quickly. At the two rappels, it took quite a while to sequence everyone through. There was a little puddle at the bottom of the second drop, so we clipped a tether to people and pulled them out from the water so they could stay dry. When Lila was being lowered down, she got her feet above her and slid down headfirst on her back. She didn’t appreciate that very much, so I waded in the water to catch her at the bottom. Everyone else stayed dry. We hiked back to the cars, then went back to camp where we loaded up all our gear, then left a little before 2:00. We stopped at Stan’s on the way home and got a couple of hamburgers and some ice cream and filled up with gas. Then we drove the rest of the way home, arriving around 6:00 p.m.
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