Long Dong Silver, Utah, Adventures of Nicole

Long Dong Silver Hike, Utah

Updated September 2026, Long Dong Silver, Utah: A Hilariously Named Hike Off of Highway 24 was originally published in October 2023

Long Dong Silver is a rock spire and hiking destination near Hanksville, Utah, just off Highway 24. With its hilarious name and surreal desert setting, this unusual formation has become one of my favorite quirky stops along Utah Highway 24.

I first heard about Long Dong Silver while exploring the area around Moonscape Overlook, when a family cruising by in their side-by-side suggested I check it out. Naturally, I couldn’t resist.

There isn’t much information about the Long Dong Silver hike online, so I set out to find it myself.

The scenery surrounding Long Dong Silver is pretty stark and surreal, the people who told me about it said, “Yup, you’ll feel like you’re walking straight Mordor!” (A quote wasted on me since I’m not a Lord of the Rings fanatic- however, I get the reference ?).

It wasn’t hard to find Long Dong Silver, he’s just tucked out of view off of Highway 24. And whatever middle-earth looks like, I’d guess it’s strikingly similar to the valley Long Dong Silver boldly is erected in.

I stared at Google Maps’ satellite image of the area for a while before setting off when I spotted what had to be the Long Dong Silver Spire based on the topography surrounding it and what looked to be its pinnacle.

Here’s everything you need to know to find Long Dong Silver, including where to park, GPS coordinates, hiking distances, and what to expect on the way.

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Long Dong Silver Hike at a Glance

Location	Near Hanksville, Utah, off Highway 24
Longer route	About 4.2 miles round trip
Shorter route	About 2.2 miles round trip
Difficulty	Easy
Terrain	Loose clay and dirt
Trailhead	Highway 24 pull-off
Long Dong Silver coordinates	38.393828, -110.832310
Shade	None
Facilities	None

The Best Time to Visit Long Dong Silver

So for the best lighting, I’d say just like all the other treasures littered around Highway 24, sunrise or sunset will give you the most ethereal views of the Long Dong Silver Spire.

Because of how my day panned out, I ended up walking to Long Dong Silver in the late afternoon, starting at about 2 pm. It wasn’t too hot since I did the hike in early May, and it was quite windy.

In summer, I would avoid the Long Dong Silver Hike in the middle of the day due to the extremely high temperatures and intense sun out here, as there is no shade en route.

How to Get to the Long Dong Silver Hike

There are a couple of options for reaching Long Dong Silver I found, hike in from Highway 24, or continue into the valley a little further to shave some distance off of the hike.

The Longer Route to Long Dong Silver

Long Dong Silver is located just out of view from Highway 24, and there is a “pull-off” if you will, to park at just off the highway.

The pull-off is roughly 7.6 miles west of Hanksville. You can easily locate it and get routed to it by punching in (38.369585, -110.843570) into your mapping app.

From this pull-off, it’s roughly a 2 mile walk.

The Quicker Route to Long Dong Silver

Or you can continue along the rough tracks leading from the above-mentioned pull-off about another mile before reaching signs clearly stating that no motor vehicles are allowed beyond this point (unfortunately I forgot to mark this point on my GPS but you’ll see the signs and I had already started walking when I did flip it on).

The walk to Long Dong Silver from these signs is only about 1 mile, so if you don’t want to walk as far you can shave off about 50% of the distance by driving to this point.

Long Dong Silver Hike

The hike to Long Dong Silver is more of a stroll than anything else as you’ll be walking along a valley.

The valley floor is made up of a loose, dusty clay, so I would suggest sticking to the tire tracks for ease of walking (despite not being allowed to drive beyond a certain point, there are some rather well-trodden 4×4 tracks all the way up to Long Dong Silver).

If you start from the pull-off at Highway 24, it will be a 4.2 mile walk to the Long Dong Silver Spire (2.1 miles each way). Those who drive until the signs will need to walk about 2.2 miles total.

The GPS coordinates of Long Dong Silver are: (38.393828, -110.832310).

Where to Stay Near Long Dong Silver

There are plenty of places to freely camp near Long Dong Silver, as much of this area is BLM land. There are established campgrounds in places like Goblin Valley, which isn’t too far away.

If you’re looking to stay in a hotel nearby, head to Hanksville. The only place I could find online was the Whispering Sands Motel.

If you want more options and don’t mind being a bit far away from Long Dong Silver, you can check out lodges over in Torrey on the other side of Capitol Reef National Park.

Long Dong Silver Hiking Tips

Bring sunscreen: The sun gets intense out here midday, and there is no shade.
Don’t forget water: It gets quite hot out here, so make sure you have some with you.
Download an offline map: Or bring a GPS device to help you navigate your way to Long Dong Silver.
There are no facilities: You won’t find anything out here, so plan to bring everything with you and use the toilet before you head out here.
If it has rained recently, don’t drive beyond the pull-off: Unless you have 4WD and are willing to risk getting stuck. The clay of the valley seems like it would turn into a giant mess once wet.
You can rock climb: Long Dong Silver Spire is a place that rock climbers frequent, so if you plan to climb it, bring your gear with you.
It can get really windy: I would have loved to take some drone shots of Long Dong Silver, but it was quite a windy day with strong gusts, so I opted not to. Take care of the electronics you bring because of the dust the wind kicks up.