Springdale, Utah
Dark · Milky Way overhead, hazy lower down
3 stays nearby →Snow Canyon State Park, an Urban Night Sky Place
Navajo sandstone cliffs and old lava flows in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, certified as an Urban Night Sky Place, with its campground open to the sky after hours.
- How dark?
- Some light pollution · Constellations, not much Milky Way
- Entry
- $20 per vehicle ($15 Utah residents) · day use until 10 pm
- Food & town
- Santa Clara · about 4 mi
- Certified
- Urban Night Sky Place · 2025
How dark is it, really?
The Milky Way is hard to make out here, though the main constellations and bright planets are easy to find. (For the detail-minded: Bortle class 5–6, an estimate.)
When should I go?
Pick a night when the moon is down. The next stretch of moonless evenings is Nov 5–12.
| Best nights | Moonlight | Worth staying up for |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5–12 | Mostly none · thin crescent on the edge nights | A sky full of stars, and extra shooting stars (Leonids) |
| Dec 5–11 | Thin crescent, sets early | A sky full of stars, and extra shooting stars (Geminids) |
| Jan 3–9 | Thin crescent, rises late | A sky full of stars, and a meteor shower peak (Quadrantids) |
More dark windows, through Oct 2027
| Best nights | Moonlight | Worth staying up for |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 1–8 | Mostly none · thin crescent on the edge nights | A sky full of stars |
| Mar 3–9 | None · darkest skies | The Milky Way core |
| Apr 1–7 | Thin crescent, rises late | The Milky Way core |
| May 1–7 | Thin crescent, rises late | The Milky Way core, and a meteor shower peak (Eta Aquariids) |
| Jun 1–6 | Thin crescent, sets early | The Milky Way core |
| Jul 1–6 | None · darkest skies | The Milky Way core |
| Jul 30–Aug 6 | Mostly none · crescent on the edge nights | The Milky Way core, and a meteor shower peak (Southern Delta Aquariids) |
| Aug 29–Sep 4 | Crescent, sets early | The Milky Way core |
| Sep 27–Oct 3 | Thin crescent, sets early | The Milky Way core |
Computed from public astronomical data for this location. Updated monthly. How it's computed
Milky Way season here: Mid Feb to mid Oct. Out of season until mid Feb. In season now, through mid Oct.
Meteor showers ahead: Leonids on Nov 17–18 (half moon, sets around midnight), Geminids on Dec 13–14 (thin crescent, sets early), Ursids on Dec 22–23 (full moon, up all night), and Quadrantids on Jan 3–4 (thin crescent, rises late)Lyrids on Apr 22–23 (bright moon for most of the night)Eta Aquariids on May 5–6 (none · darkest skies)Southern Delta Aquariids on Jul 30–31 (thin crescent, rises late)Perseids on Aug 12–13 (bright moon for most of the night).
Email me before the next dark window at Snow Canyon State Park.
About one email a month, a few days before the moon goes dark: the dates here, the moonlight, and what's worth staying up for. Unsubscribe in one click.
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What it's like
Snow Canyon is a 7,400-acre park of orange-to-cream Navajo sandstone, cut into cliffs up to 2,500 feet tall and laced with lava flows from nearby cinder cones. It lies within the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, where the Mojave Desert, the Great Basin Desert, and the Colorado Plateau meet, and it was certified as an Urban Night Sky Place in 2025. Every one of the park's 49 light fixtures has been retrofitted, replaced, or removed, and staff take regular sky quality readings.
Know the hours before you plan the night. The whole park is open 6 am to 10 pm, and after 10 the day-use trailheads, parking areas, and facilities close. If you want to stay out under the sky, book a site in the main campground, which stays open to campers after day-use hours.
Fall and winter give you the longest window, with short days and early darkness settling into the canyon. The park has run dark sky education programs for more than two decades, and seasonal ranger programs are listed on its events page. The canyon is also home to ringtails, kit foxes, roadrunners, and the protected Mojave desert tortoise.
Getting in after dark
Park hours are 6 am to 10 pm daily.
Food, fuel, and supplies
Santa Clara, UT is about 4 mi away in a straight line, with groceries (Harmons Grocery, Harmons, Frei's Fruit Market), 4 gas stations, and 11 places to eat on the map. The nearest gas is closer: Chevron, about 2 mi away in Ivins, UT. Nearest places to eat on the map: FeelLove Coffee (about 2 mi, in Ivins, UT), Las Palmas (about 2 mi, in Ivins, UT), and Club 73 (about 3 mi, in Ivins, UT).
Distances are straight-line and approximate. Places on the map may not be open. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Night sky tours near Snow Canyon State Park
Dark Sky UTV Tour with Stargazing in Greater Zion
Mad Moose Rentals and Tours · starts in Hurricane, Sand Hollow, about 35 min · checked Sep 2026
These are affiliate links: we earn a commission if you book a tour through them.
✓ Certification verified Jul 2026 against DarkSky International registry (Internet Archive capture) · entry fee from Utah State Parks (Sep 2026) · after-dark access from Utah State Parks (Sep 2026) · darkness: Bortle 5–6, estimated (Sep 2026) · nearest town from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) (Sep 2026)
Dark sky places near Snow Canyon State Park
For a trip with more than one dark night: the closest within 150 miles, nearest first. Distances are straight-line, not driving.
Dark Sky Community Dark Sky Park Zion National Park
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3 stays nearby →Dark Sky Park Pipe Spring National Monument
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3 stays nearby →