Mossy Cave Trailhead — Attraction in Four Corners States

A great walk right near Bryce Canyon (and on the way to Capitol Reef, going on scenic Route 12). It’s a nice little hike for groups with small kids or hikers looking to fill time, but don’t come with grand expectations.

The cave is fairly easy to get to, but winter/spring hikers beware of a large, angled rock that they must climb over. It can get very slippery and there were a couple of tumbles. The best strategy I’ve found is to grab onto branches & roots sticking out of the soil and dig into it with a hiking pole. (If you do not have a pole or are traveling with small children or older people, try asking returning hikers what the conditions are on that section. It’s not enough of a view to risk someone’s health over). The cave itself is small and not wholly impressive, but I imagine it would be a nice break from the sun on a hot day. There’s a small trail off of the path to walk into the cave for pictures, but it’s very narrow and has a decent drop-off.

The fork to the waterfall is charming and much easier. Parts close to the trail have eroded or been taped off, but nothing dangerous and other hikers are pleasant enough to let people go by. The stream was a bit mucky, but shallow enough to walk to the other side and look at some nice rocks.

The real highlight from this trip were the natural bridges on the waterfall path. The trail to go through them was closed, but the path to the large natural bridge in Bryce (mile 12.5) had not yet been cleared of snow, so it gave me a sense of Bryce Canyon...

The Mossy Cave Trail at Bryce Canyon National Park is a great one for anyone, about a mile round trip, maybe 30 minutes depending on your speed and preference. As you walk through the easy canyon trail, there are some good views of hoodoos and other formations. The trail isn't difficult until the very last part to climb up to the actual cave. That last bit gets a little steep and it's a narrow path with a short drop off on one side, but it doesn't last long and then you're there! The landing at the cave is small and fenced off so no one goes climbing inside and messing up the natural ecosystem of the cave. This would be a fun one to visit at various times of the year to see how the cave changes from solid icicles to melting ice to dripping caves and back again. Just before the final stretch, there's a lookout over the Tropic Ditch, where early settlers worked for 3 years to divert water to their towns for living and crops in a mostly desert region. There's a nice waterfall there. We were there in early May, and it looked like there was a trail leading all the way over to the waterfall, but it was closed at the time. Perhaps it is open at other times of the year? There are often trails closed in the spring in these national parks due to unpredictable weather and excessive water flows and...

In July the supposed cave was a disappointment (not really a cave). It looks from the sign they have on the trail that winter/early spring is a better time to go see Mossy cave.

The Mossy waterfalls on the way to the cave was the most interesting thing to see. Of course the scenary itself in Bryce Canyon National Park is so very majestic. Come about an hour or two before sunset to get some beautiful pictures. Wear watershoes and bring a towel so you can go in the water under the small waterfall. The hike to the cave is less than a mile round-trip, the waterfalls less. If you are out of shape like me it is a doable hike, I was huffing and puffing a bit though. 😢 Definetly take water and use the restroom at the beginning of the trail before you start the hike. You don't enter the national park yet so you don't have to pay a park entrance fee to see these two things. You can get to it from another location but the hike will be much longer. Parking is limited so be prepared, have fun!

FYI, using Google maps and typing in Mossy Cave it directed me to the the longer hike location. My beautiful, wonderful, amazing wife 😍 used her IPhone, typed the same thing in and it directed us to the shorter hike...