The Maze Overlooks: Millard Canyon, Bagpipe Butte, and Flint Trail

Four hikers on the rim of the Flint Trail Overlook. Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Four hikers on the rim of the Flint Trail Overlook

There are three official overlooks along NP-633, the road between Hans Flat and the Flint Trail in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park. (If you want to know more about NP-633, be sure to check out this post.) If you happen to be driving the road, all three are well worth stopping to see – especially since none of them take much hiking to get to!

Quick Stats

Round Trip Length: About 0.3 miles Trail Type: Out & back Elevation Gain: N/A Pets: No Fees: None

Closeup of cliffs in Millard Canyon from the Millard Canyon Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Closeup of cliffs in Millard Canyon

The first viewpoint is the Millard Canyon Overlook. It’s less than a mile from the Hans Flat Ranger Station – so it’s walkable even if you can’t take your vehicle down NP-633 (though why you’d drive all of the way to Hans Flat if you aren’t either driving or backpacking the road…)

Arches in the wall of Millard Canyon from the Millard Canyon Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Arches in the wall of Millard Canyon

I’d also consider Millard Canyon to be one of the most scenic overlooks in this part of the park. The views are simply stunning down the canyon!

Views down Millard Canyon from the Millard Canyon Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views down Millard Canyon

From the sign, walk about 250ft. up the sandy path to the overlook. It’s that simple. Be careful near the edge, though, since there are no railings.

The La Sal Mountains from the Millard Canyon Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The La Sal Mountains from the Millard Canyon Overlook

Moving on down NP-633, you’ll pass French Cabin, French Spring, and the North Point Road. From here, it’s a long 6.4 mile drive over mostly easy roads to Bagpipe Butte Overlook, 8.9 miles from Hans Flat.

Bagpipe Butte from the Bagpipe Butte Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Bagpipe Butte from the viewpoint

From the sign, walk 250ft. or so on the sandy trail to the viewpoint. Again, it’s just a rock on the edge of the cliff with no railings, so watch yourself.

Views from the Bagpipe Butte Overlook to Elaterite Butte, Junction Butte, and the La Sal Mountains, Maze District in Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views from the Bagpipe Butte Overlook to Elaterite Butte, Junction Butte, and the La Sal Mountains

The great thing about this view is that you’re looking at a large butte sticking up out of the plain below. The spires on top of the butte reminded early visitors of the pipes on a church organ or the drones of a bagpipe. I visited late on a November afternoon, so the shadow of the Orange Cliffs was creeping up the side of the butte. I’m glad we didn’t visit any later in the day – or in the morning when the sun would have been behind the butte.

Closeup of Bagpipe Butte from the Bagpipe Butte Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Closeup of Bagpipe Butte

The third viewpoint is the Flint Trail Overlook. It’s 11.8 miles from Hans Flat (and 0.7 miles beyond Flint Seep Camp). The overlook is only 0.5 miles before the end of NP-633 (beginning of the Flint Trail).

The switchbacks of the Flint Trail from the Flint Trail Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The switchbacks of the Flint Trail

From the pullout, walk maybe 250ft. across the slickrock to the edge of the cliff. From here, you have a clear view down on the switchbacks of the Flint Trail as well as out to the Maze and the formation known as the Mother and Child (along the Dollhouse Road). You can even see into Island in the Sky, the Needles District, and across the way to the La Sal Mountains. Wow!

Views out to the Fins and the La Sal Mountains from the Flint Trail Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views out to the Fins and the La Sal Mountains

If you’re planning on driving down the Flint Trail switchbacks, I highly recommend that you stop here first to take a look at them – and possibly decide you’re out of your mind to try such a thing! We watched a Toyota Tacoma go down the switchbacks, and while they were taking it slow (which they should have been; it was pretty snowy), they didn’t seem to be having a lot of trouble on the tight corners – some longer vehicles find themselves having to back up on the sharpest turns.

Turning the corner on a switchback of the Flint Trail, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Turning the corner on a switchback (zoom lenses are good for something!)

You can wander for quite a distance along the top of the cliffs to the left. The views are slightly different as you go along the edge of the canyon.

Hiking along the rim of the Flint Trail Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Hiking along the rim of the Flint Trail Overlook

If you want more views, drive another half mile to the top of the Flint Trail (marked by a sign that says, “4×4 Required Beyond This Point” – note that you’ll need to bear left at the Big Ridge Road). A parking space is nearby. If you walk beyond the sign, a rock jutting out just beyond the first curve in the road makes a great place to look out at the Maze!

Views from the top of the Flint Trail, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Views from the top of the Flint Trail

I got carried away and walked down the Flint Trail switchbacks for a short distance. It was snowy (uncommon but not unheard of for early November), so I didn’t walk far.

Looking down at the first switchback of the Flint Trail, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Looking down at the first switchback of the Flint Trail

Another option for more almost-drive-to-viewpoints is to go to the Neck on the Big Ridge Road – but that’s another topic for another post!

The sign marking the beginning of the Flint Trail, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The sign marking the beginning of the Flint Trail

Round Trip Hiking Distance: About 0.3 miles if you do the minimum for all three overlooks. You can go further at the Flint Trail Overlook if desired.

Elevation Gain: Negligible. Millard Canyon Overlook is at 6,542ft., Bagpipe Butte is at 6,624ft., and the Flint Trail Overlook is at 6,841ft.

Bagpipe Butte near sunset from the Bagpipe Butte Overlook in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Bagpipe Butte near sunset

Facilities: None. The closest restrooms and picnic table are at the Hans Flat Ranger Station.

Fees: None

Closeup of the Mother and Child formation, the Fins, and the Land of Standing Rocks from the Flint Trail Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Closeup of the Mother and Child formation, the Fins, and the Land of Standing Rocks from the Flint Trail Overlook

Trail Notes: While most national parks allow pets in your vehicle and often on roads, the Maze District does not. So even if you plan on just driving through, you’ll need to leave Fido at home. The roads in this part of the Maze really do require 4×4, though I made it ok with my 2WD Ford E150 van and a good spotter (high clearance is helpful!) to the Flint Trail Overlook. While all of the viewpoints are worth seeing, my favorite was Millard Canyon. There are no guardrails at any of the overlooks, so use care next to the sheer drop-offs.

Trail

Road

Signs

Scenery

Would I go 100 miles out of my way for this?

Overall Rating:

Bagpipe Butte from the Flint Trail, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Bagpipe Butte from the Flint Trail

GPS Coordinates for Millard Canyon Overlook, Bagpipe Butte Overlook & Flint Trail Overlook

Millard Canyon Overlook: 38.2486780°, -110.1687890° (38°14.92068′, -110°10.12734′ / 38°14’55.2408″, -110°10’07.6404″) (6,542ft.)

Bagpipe Butte Overlook: 38.1602510°, -110.1366760° (38°09.61506′, -110°08.20056′ / 38°09’36.9036″, -110°08’12.0336″) (6,624ft.)

The Flint Trail winding its way down the canyon below the switchbacks, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — The Flint Trail winding its way down the canyon below the switchbacks

Flint Trail Overlook: 38.1216750°, -110.1286370° (38°07.30050′, -110°07.71822′ / 38°07’18.0300″, -110°07’43.0932″) (6,841ft.)

Top of the Flint Trail: 38.1178670°, -110.1245900° (38°07.07202′, -110°07.47540′ / 38°07’04.3212″, -110°07’28.5240″) (6,894ft.)

Closeup of the spires on Bagpipe Butte, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Closeup of the spires on Bagpipe Butte

Getting to NP-633 and Its Overlooks

The easiest way I can describe getting you to NP-633 is to tell you to go read my post on driving the Hans Flat Road. Basically, you want to take Exit 149 off of I-70, turn south, and drive UT-24 for 24.2 miles (or 0.6 miles south of the turnoff for Goblin Valley State Park). Turn left onto the road (it does have a sign for Horseshoe Canyon, Ranger Station, and Doll House 4WD, among other destinations) and drive 45 miles on the dirt road to the Hans Flat Ranger Station.

A truck driving along the Flint Trail below the switchbacks, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — A truck driving along the Flint Trail below the switchbacks

Drive straight past the Hans Flat Ranger Station, following the small sign for the Flint Trail. Millard Canyon Overlook will be on your left after 0.9 miles. Continue straight on NP-633 (toward the Flint Trail) another 8.0 miles to Bagpipe Butte Overlook on the left. If you drive straight another 2.9 miles, the Flint Trail Overlook will be on your left (if you reach the Big Ridge Road, you’ve gone too far). The end of NP-633 and views at the Flint Trail is 0.5 miles further down the road (take a left at the fork with the Big Ridge Road). For a better description of this route, see my post about NP-633.

Bagpipe Butte, Elaterite Butte, and views from the Flint Trail in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Bagpipe Butte, Elaterite Butte, and views from the Flint Trail

All of the viewpoints are just pulloffs by the side of the dirt road – you can often see the signs right about the time you’ve passed them by. So paying attention to your mileage is probably a good idea.

Map of NP-633 (Hans Flat is at the red arrow on the left) and where along it each overlook is at, including Millard Canyon Overlook, French Spring, French Cabin, Bagpipe Butte Overlook, and Flint Trail Overlook, Maze District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah — Map of NP-633 (Hans Flat is at the red arrow on the left) and where along it each overlook is at

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