About this place
Spring Creek Canyon Wilderness Study Area sits in the southeastern corner of Iron County, about 7 miles southwest of Cedar City.
It covers 4,433 acres, roughly 6 miles north to south and 3 miles east to west.
Private and state land surrounds most of it, and the state land nearly cuts it in two. The southern boundary runs along Zion National Park.
The Bureau of Land Management field office at Cedar City manages all the land inside it.
The area takes in part of the Hurricane Cliffs. That is a west-facing escarpment running from north of Cedar City down into northwestern Arizona.
Two big canyons cut through it: Kanarra Falls and Spring Creek Canyon.
Elevations run from 5,600 feet at the base of the cliffs to nearly 7,900 feet on the ridge tops.
The plants are mostly juniper, scrub oak, shrubs and grasses. Along the water it is sedges, rushes, cottonwoods and willows.
Birds of prey live here, bald eagle and peregrine falcon among them, plus 13 animal species and 4 plant species that count as sensitive.
Most of the area is rated outstanding for scenery, because of the narrow red rock canyons and the walking along the streambeds.
Walking Kanarra Canyon means going along Kanarra Creek, wading some of it, and climbing up and over several waterfalls.
Many people come every year.
The facts
- Cost
- Camping fee not confirmed
- Type
- Open area. Camp anywhere within it
- Managed by
- Bureau of Land Management
Getting there
The whole study area is best reached from the town of Kanarraville, about 12 miles south of Cedar City.
For Spring Creek Canyon, drive south on Old US Hwy 91. Just before the south edge of Kanarraville, turn left, east, onto Spring Creek Road, a dirt track. You can park just off it.
Kanarra Creek Canyon is about a mile north of Spring Creek Canyon. For that one, drive east along 100 North Street in Kanarraville to the end of the pavement. Then turn left, north, into the city parking lot.
Coordinates 37.536911, -113.152667
Open in Google Maps Agency page
What is near here
There is another spot of ours within reach, and some better-known places further out.
- Horse Ranch Mountain Directions
- Nagunt Mesa Directions
- Beartrap Canyon Wilderness Directions
- Cedar Breaks National Monument Directions
- Zion National Park Directions
Every distance on this page is the driving distance. A short distance can still take a long time. The road may be closed for the season, covered in snow, or washed out. Many of these roads are dirt. Plan your route before you leave home. Out here there is often no phone signal to look it up on the way.
Nearest town and supplies
- Kanarraville, UT Directions
- Cedar City, UT Directions
Cedar City is big enough that you’d normally expect fuel and somewhere to buy food. Nobody from here has been to check, so don’t count on it if you’re running low.
Have you been here?
Fees and access change, and the records do not always keep up. If you have been, tell us what you found.
Thank you, that is recorded. It helps the next person.
Add road notes for this site
The thing we cannot get from any government record is what the drive in is actually like. If you have done it, this is the most useful thing you can leave behind. We read everything before it appears, and we print a first name with it if you give one.
Thank you. A person will read it before it goes on the page.
Where this information comes from
The description on this page is ours. The facts in it, and the fee and facility details below it, come from the Bureau of Land Management’s own records, read in August 2026.