Canyoneering | Morocco Canyon
Hype:
Morocco Canyon is short but fun. This is a favorite for college classes and similar groups because it is physical and scenic but not too complicated. The canyon features an arch, a couple of rappels, a couple of pools, and a short approach and exit.
Canyon Rating: 3B 
Time: 2-3 hours
Length: 1.0 miles round trip
Longest Rappel: 50 ft
Gear: Standard canyoneering gear
Fees: None
Recommended Ages:
 | 0-3 |
 | 4-11 |
 | 12-19 |
 | 20-49 |
 | 50-69 |
 | 70+ |
Recommended Months to Visit:
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Navigate to 37.977186, -110.491550.
Morocco Canyon is located 32 miles south of Hanksville along UT-95.
Park in the flat area on the east side of SR-95 just north of a culvert. Cross the wash to the south by traveling on the shoulder of the road. Follow the emerging social trails east to the base of the cliffs, then scramble up the cliff. No rock climbing is necessary if you choose your route carefully. Once up the initial section of cliff, head south and follow the cliff band south and then east to the top of the canyon.
Morocco Canyon starts off immediately with a rappel.
Drop #1: 50 foot rappel.
From the bottom of Drop #1, stem across a pool through an arch to the next drop.
Drop #2: 25 foot rappel off a chockstone. Starts off in a narrow section and opens up into a free-hanging rappel. Drop looks much taller than 25 feet, but the rappel deposits you on a ledge.
Continue down canyon past an easy stemming section to the next drop.
Drop #3: 20 foot rappel off a large boulder over a chockstone. Can also be downclimbed.
Continue down canyon to the next drop. When you get to Drop #4, you can choose to stay in the watercourse and possibly encounter up to 3 small pools, or you can stay on a ledge to the north and bypass the water. The 3 pools are lots of fun and generally not more than waist deep, so I highly recommend staying in the watercourse.
Drop #4a: 20 foot rappel off a deadman anchor into a pool of water. Instead of dropping into the pool, you can bridge over the pool and down to the ground. The bridging is exposed and not easy.
After a chockstone is a pothole that occasionally holds water. It is possible but incredibly difficult to bridge over the top of the pothole to avoid getting wet.
The last pool occasionally holds water. It is generally less than waist deep but occasionally is a short swim. At low water, it is possible to jump over the pool with a parkour jump off the opposite wall.
Drop #4b: If you choose to avoid the water and take Drop #4b instead, rappel 30 feet to the canyon floor just below the last pool.
Walk down canyon for a few minutes to the next drop.
Drop #5: Rappel 35 feet from a chockstone.
From the last rappel, walk 2 minutes to the highway and follow the highway back to your car.
Closest City or Region: Hanksville, Utah
Coordinates: 37.974748, -110.487229
By Jeremy Dye
Jeremy Dye, Tara Dye, Savannah Dye, Madilyn Dye, Cooper Dye, Matt Laurendeau, Amanda Laurendeau, Alex Laurendeau, Caleb Laurendeau, Rose Laurendeau, Becca Bevan, Taggart Bevan,
Start: 12:15
End: 5:05
We went down to North Wash had a great canyoneering trip with friends. We did Morocco Canyon the first day then camped and did Hogwarts Canyon on the second day. The weather was awesome and the canyons were just the right difficulty for the group.
By Jeremy Dye
Jeremy Dye, Savannah Dye, Anthony Dye, Ondylyn Wagner, Kevin Christensen, Michelle Christensen, Christensen Kids, Ryan Baker, Baker kids, Friend,
Start approach: 4:00
Top of canyon: 4:30
Back at car: 6:25
After doing Hogwarts Canyon with the whole group, Ari took the younger kids on a drive down to the lake in hopes that they would take a nap in the truck. The rest of us did Morocco Canyon. There was a group of college students at the first rappel rebuilding the anchor, so we set up rappel from the west rim and dropped in right below the arch.
It was still pretty cold, so when we got to Drop #4 I bridged over the water and climbed down to the canyon floor. Anthony stayed at the top of the drop, and we set up a guided rappel to lower the kids past the water. The rest of the adults stayed on the rim and bypassed the water by rappelling down right below the last water obstacle.
Once we got all the kids past the first pool, Anthony stemmed across the next pool, but it was incredibly exposed and stretched out. There wasn't a great way to zipline kids across, so I took one for the team and carried the kids across the water.
At the last pool, Anthony did a parkour jump off a wall and across the pool. I carried the kids across. We met up with the other adults here as they were rappelling down from the ledge above.
We finished out the canyon and headed back to camp.
Camp Sites: Butler Canyon Primitive Camping
Canyoneering: Maidenwater Canyon, Middle Fork
Fun Places: 
Hiking: 
Rappels
Downclimbs
Wading
Stemming
Fixed Anchors
Wetsuit Generally Not Required
No Drinking Water
Arches
Wayfinding
Road Access is Paved
Access Road is 2WD Accessible