Red Desert Adventure

A friend and I went on a half day canyoneering trip in Lambs Knoll this past week. Since I am afraid of heights, I was hesitant to go canyoneering, but it seemed like the unique thing to do when visiting Zion National Park and I needed to give it a try. I did a lot of research on canyoneering tour companies and decided to book with Red Desert Adventure based on excellent reviews and many beginners who shared their experience and felt safe.
Our guide, Joel, is very experienced and has been climbing since he was 13. He guides full time all over the U.S. and is very experienced in not just canyoneering, but also rock climbing and other outdoor climbing activities. With his experience and number of guided trips under his belt, I knew I was safe.
With safety not an issue, I just had to face my fear of heights. I wish I could say I conquered the canyons, but I was still very afraid to go down each one of the 5 canyons. Joel was very patient with me, let me practice many times until I felt safe to step on the edge and coached me down each canyon. At one point, I lost my balance and completely freaked out but he was calm and helped me get back into position. At the last canyon, we had to climb up it and then rappel down it. With no arm strength, I was sure I would not make it up and gave up, but he threw me a hand line, coached me up and also help me when I needed it by pulling the hand line!
This was a trip of a lifetime! Not only did I get to try canyoneering, I learned a lot about myself and facing my fear. Joel was not just my guide, he was my coach in helping me achieve this! I highly recommend canyoneering with Red Desert Adventure — it may also be more than just a canyoneering experience for you too!

Terrific experience! Eric, the owner, was friendly and professional. He answered all our questions on the phone, and was prompt in answering emails as well. Jefe, our certified guide, couldn’t have been better. Polite, fun, intelligent, informational, gave clear instructions for canyoneering, and was very patient and encouraging for tasks that my husband and I had apprehension about. Super experience! Can’t wait to go back!

This was a fun fun fun experience. If you’re looking to go canyoneering, this company is excellent. We had never repelled before and did a half day with guide, Jefe. He was terrific and gave us the confidence to «step off the edge.» Do it! You’ll have the best time. Your review helps others learn about great local businesses.
Please don’t review this business if you received a freebie for writing this review, or if you’re connected in any way to the owner or employees.

2 buddies and I hired Red Desert for an all-​day of refresher training in Red Canyon before we headed out to a weekend of canyoneering in Zion. Joe was our guide, and our thoughts are mixed.
Pros:
–private groups only meant we could move at the rate we wanted to – speed through topics we were already familiar with, and spend more time with areas we wanted to focus on. No waiting for other groups.
–technically proficient instruction, answered our questions regarding pro’s and con’s of different techniques.
–reviewed gear, blocking, anchoring, and lots of other intermediate-​level applications of techniques.
–our guide was generally friendly and patient, even waited on us as we registered at a campsite for the night.
–Red Canyon was a beautiful spot accessed rather exclusively through a private gate, a great way to warm up for the days ahead.
Cons:
–Our guide repeatedly (~15−20 times) referred to tourists as TERRORISTS. We are tourists, and since the 3 of us are members of the military with 10 deployments between us – yes, often fighting terrorists – we were particularly insulted and offended by these casual remarks, no matter how lighthearted Joe thought they were, they certainly were not received that way.
–When referring to people who had recently died in the canyons, our guide had a disturbing irreverence. Chuckling about finding body parts in the canyon and insisting it was a good way to weed out the weak in canyoneering didn’t strike a chord with us.
–When we asked about the difficulty rating of other canyons so that we could have an idea about which canyons we should try on our own, Joe assured us that they were all very easy to him. Not particularly helpful or insightful, took a bit of effort to figure out which canyons were out of our skill level.
Bottom line — Red Desert charges slightly more for a private experience, but it seems the experiences on their tours vary a bit compared to more established competitors.

I highly recommend this adventure if you are a thrill seeker like my husband and I. We did a full day tour with Eric exploring Lambs Knoll and Yankee Doodle. The rappelling and canyoneering through the slot canyon was so amazing! Eric was our guide and he was very knowledgeable and safety conscious so we learned a lot from him. We had such a fantastic fun time! Thx again Eric and Red Desert Adventure… we’ll definitely see you again the next time we visit Zion! ;-)

These guys are amazing. We did a full day of Canyoneering with Jefe & Joe in Water Canyon with a group of 9. Not only do these guys know exactly what they’re doing — but they’re also pretty fun to spend a day with in the wilderness!
I would definitely recommend Red Desert Adventure to anyone!

I’m so grateful for having had this experience, it’s opened up a whole new world for my friends and I. My girlfriend, a good friend and I took a one day course/​adventure a little over a year ago to prepare ourselves to do the Subway on our own. We had a great time, learned a lot, and created a lot of memories. We felt more than prepared to do the Subway on our own but more importantly the one day class opened us up to the world of canyoneering for the past year. My friends and I now go out canyoneering on our own at least once a month and we’ve been able to teach other novices and have them go out with us on technical canyons.
They were extremely professional, tailored the experience to us and went out of their way to offer us a shuttle and rental equipment for our solo canyoneering adventure later that week. I couldn’t recommend them enough.

What an excellent adventure we had. Dan was our guide and was just terrific — my daughter is 9 and he really did a great job engaging her, answering ALL her questions and just making her feel comfortable enough to take an 80 foot rappel. She recently sent one of her teachers a letter about our trip and described the canyoneering as the best part — even above horseback riding and a two day backpacking hike in the Kolob canyons. We will definitely look to do another adventure when we return to Zion.

2 days of technical canyoneering with the whole family ages 6 – 49. Eric (owner) and Joel our guides were excellent. Exciting and fun.

We just came back from Zion and did a family canyoneering trip with a 5 and 9 yr old. Eric, our guide was fantastic, very patient with our young girls and knowledgeable about the area. We went to Lambs Knoll and it was so fun, the best tour we have been on. Our girls loved it as well and it will not be something we can forget. Eric did do 2 tandem rappells with my 5 yr old to lessen her fear but she was able to do the others on her own. We did a half day trip which started at 7:30am or you could also pick an afternoon one that starts at 1pm. Eric came to pick us up at our lodge, the Cliffrose. The communication was great, before and after the trip. We will use their guide again the next time we head back to Zion.

This was my first time cayoneering. Joel picked us up and we were off on a wild adventure. We did a half– day and went to this unnamed canyon off the grid, it required a little off roading to get there. The instruction and experience was unforgettable. Each repel had it’s own challenge. If you’ve never done it, you have to try it! Just remember to lean back and trust, let the mind be free, but stay focused.

Family Exciting Fun! Highly recommend this company. Our guide, Jeremy was very kind, patience, charming and knowledgeable. First time Canyoneering and want to go again. Met at Mount Carmel Junction at a great gas station with clean bathrooms and a freezer case of ice cream for after the adventure. Got picked up on time and within 30 mins we were parked getting out for our adventure. Hiked into the canyon. Got to rappel 3 times. Beautiful scenery. Jeremy told us about the vegetation, animals, and his other adventures. Felt the most beautiful sand. Went with my husband, 15 year old daughter and 12 year old boy. My son had the best time because 6^th grade is earth science and Jeremy provided supplemental instructions about rocks, formation and cliff drawings by native Americans. FUN!

My wife and I are novices in the canyoneering sport. Our guide, Jeffe, was great. He made sure we were safe and he clearly knew what he was doing. He also made sure we had a great time. We regret signing up for the half day instead of the full day experience. We will be back next year.

My boyfriend and I booked a full day canyoneering tour. Best money spent on the trip. Not only was the canyoneering amazing and fun but the hike and drive to get to them was breath taking. We went about an hour outside Zion, the backroads! Our guide, Joe, was funny — a dry humor but a great guide. He taught us about the land and the canyoneering techniques. We will do this again!

Fantastic experience with Red Desert. They were helpful and thorough answering questions before we booked our canyoneering tour. I loved that they arranged to meet us and pick us up near where we were staying. Dan, our guide, was very knowledgeable and conscientious. He explained everything to me, as a first-​time rappeller, to make me comfortable. I loved hearing all the history of the area as well. They provide backpacks, dry bags, and helmets. Very patient with me. By the end of the day we had completed a series of 7 rappels. Awesome! A first-​class experience for my first time canyoneering! Definitely recommend these guys.

My friends and I took a half-​day canyoneering adventure with Jeremy as our private guide and had an absolute blast. Jeremy was funny, articulate, super knowledgable, patient and calm (very handy when dealing with those of us afraid of heights!). He also was a font of information about the history and geology of Zion, the surrounding towns. Like I said, we had a total blast, and wished we had gone ahead and done a full day adventure instead of a half day.
Would absolutely recommend Red Desert Adventure!

Wonderful, personalized experience with our guide, Dan. The only outfitter in Springdale that picks you up at your hotel. Dan took us to a quiet, beautiful slot canyon, where we saw no one else the entire time. We were a bit nervous and scared of the 150-​foot rappel, but Dan was very patient and encouraging. He also went out of his way to show us the knots and explain how secure we’d be tied in. Dan was also patient along the entire canyoneering experience, taking time to explain the natural area and take our photo. Definitely a highlight of our trip.

Being scared of heights, it was a leap of faith for my brother & I but Eric made us feel so safe and secure that the fear quickly turned into fun. We went as a family 5 and even my 10 year old nephew was able to navigate the canyons and ropes with Eric’s techniques. He was so knowledgable on everything about Zion, Utah, Canyoneering & Hiking that even during a drive to and from the destination we had a fascinating time. I would ABSOLUTELY hire Red Desert Adventure again but next time I will book a full day instead of a half so we can have twice as much fun.

Jeremy was rad! Very knowledgable and catered to our experience level. These guys live and breath canyoneering, rock climbing and any adrenaline boost so it was nice feeling safe and getting to really experience zion the way the locals do. I will be back!

My daughter (8 yrs old) and I did a full day canyoneering trip with Zack, and it was great.
I had called other outfitters who said they would squeeze us in with other groups, making 10 people in a group, but Red Desert gives each reservation their own private guide. That meant that there was a 2-​to-​1 ratio on our trip that allowed us to get all the attention and instruction that we wanted.
There were 8 or 9 rappels throughout the trip, with the longest one being over 100 feet, and most in the 50 to 60 foot range.
The first two were through limestone which made for a tough start since it is so blocky, but after that it was all nice smooth sandstone.
The worst part was the hike in and out, but all the rappelling was top notch.
I felt totally safe with Zack giving instructions to my daughter, and the anchors seemed very secure.
Overall, I would definitely recommend.