About Desert Highlights
Desert Highlights has been a pioneer of private guided canyoneering in Moab since 1997, exploring some of the most dramatic and remote slot canyons in the Colorado Plateau through trips that combine rappelling, scrambling, and hiking in environments of extraordinary geological beauty. What sets Desert Highlights apart from other guiding operations is their exclusive focus on private outings — every trip is conducted for a single group, ensuring personalised attention, flexible pacing, and an intimate connection with the landscape that larger group tours simply cannot provide.
Canyoneering trips are their speciality and range from beginner-friendly half-day descents into accessible slot canyons to technically demanding full-day adventures that involve multiple rappels, exposed traverses, and route-finding through narrow, twisting passages. The beginner trips require no previous experience and include thorough instruction in rappelling technique, harness use, and canyon safety, making them accessible to anyone with reasonable fitness. Advanced trips challenge experienced canyoneers with longer rappels, more complex anchoring systems, and the physical demands of navigating through tight, obstacle-filled canyons.
Guided rock climbing is also offered, with outings tailored to all skill levels from first-time climbers to those seeking multi-pitch desert tower ascents. Hiking tours through Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park provide a less adrenaline-intensive but equally rewarding way to experience the region's famous landscape, with guides who bring deep knowledge of desert geology, ecology, and human history to every outing.
The private format means that trips are tailored precisely to the group's fitness level, experience, and interests. Whether you are a family with teenagers looking for an introduction to canyoneering, a couple seeking a romantic desert adventure, or a group of experienced outdoor enthusiasts ready for a serious technical challenge, Desert Highlights will design an experience that matches your abilities and exceeds your expectations.
