Welcome to Travel Tuesday! The Mosaic Canyon Trail was one of the other hikes we did while we were on our camping trip in Death Valley National Park!
Mosaic Canyon Trail in Death Valley National Park
Distance: 3.4 miles (out + back)
Elevation Gain: 964 ft
Difficulty: Easy/Moderate
Trailhead Address: 36.57185, -117.14425
Parking: Large gravel parking lot available ($30 to enter Death Valley, or $80 for annual interagency pass)
The Mosaic Canyon Trail starts off pretty flat + wide in the beginning, but will narrow + widen several times throughout the course of the trail. 
The canyon narrows after the first 1/4 mile and you’ll see the smooth marble walls of the Noonday Dolomite around you. 
If you hike the side trails parallel to the canyon instead, be careful, as there can be steep drop-offs on one or both sides! 
Make sure you look out for outcroppings of the Mosaic Canyon Breccia (it has tiny angular fragments of different types of the parent rock encased in natural cement + is how this trail got its name)!
There are short sections along the trail that do require a little rock scrambling. Overall, it’s a very popular trail so if you’re looking for solitude, this probably wouldn’t be the best for that.
Towards the end of the trail, you’ll want to follow the rock arrows left on the ground to make sure you’re going in the right direction!
The trail ends at an impassable dryfall, so we took photos and peaced out afterward! A friend and I accidentally meandered off-course on the way back and ended up on some random semi-cliffs after a little scrambling + had to backtrack quite a bit. We made it back though!
- Sun protection is a must! Bring a hat, sunglasses + wear sunscreen and/or UPF clothing!
- It’d be best to hike this somewhere between fall to spring. It can get up to ~120 degrees here in the summer!
- No dogs are allowed on this trail.
- Have you ever gone hiking in a desert?
- Do you have any upcoming trips planned?
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I have never heard of this trail before reading this article! Sounds like an underrated experience to try!
It was a pretty one for sure — definitely would recommend as part of any Death Valley itinerary! :]
This looks epic, I love hiking and hadn’t heard of this trail. Thanks for all the details
The scenery is much different than the PNW! I would love to take a trip to Death Valley to check it out. This hike looked like it was a lot of fun!
I love and adore PNW but Death Valley surprised me with how pretty it was too! I hope you get to go sometime!
Farrah recently posted…Mosaic Canyon Trail
Hope you get to go if you’re ever visiting Death Valley! :]
Wow I’ve never been but those pictures are INCREDIBLE! Thank you for sharing, adding this to my list of US stops! Truly amazing
Aww, yay! I hope you get to go sometime! It’s so beautiful over there!!
Farrah recently posted…Mosaic Canyon Trail
Oh, wow, what an incredible trail. When we went to Death valley NP, we didn’t get to hike, but still found it a beautiful and interesting park. Our son was 1 years old at the time and since he couldn’t tell us if and when he was to hot we didn’t dare go on any (long) hikes.
Cosette recently posted…2023 Travels in Review
That definitely makes sense! I’m glad you were still able to explore it though — it’s such a beautiful park!
Looks beautiful! I’m glad you had such a lovely time.
ShootingStarsMag recently posted…Local Tourist: Dinner in an Igloo at Frosthaus
Thank you! It was such a fun trip! :]
Farrah recently posted…Mosaic Canyon Trail