Guadalupe Mountains National Park guide · 1 min read
McKittrick Canyon to Pratt Cabin and the Grotto
The McKittrick Canyon Trail begins at the back of the visitor center, so park there first.
The opening miles are easy going, with only a slight rise. Desert scrub yields to a moister, greener stretch along the water. Expect to cross the stream many times, since the trail weaves back and forth over it.
Pratt Cabin sits about 2.4 miles up the canyon from the visitor center. Geologist Wallace Pratt put up the stone building in the early 1930s, and his family made it their summer home from 1932 until 1945. In the 1960s he gave his land to the National Park Service, and in 1975 the cabin was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Turn right through the stone gate to see the cabin up close, or stay on the main trail up the canyon.
Beyond the cabin, the riverbed gravel yields to a narrow dirt path that keeps climbing beside the stream. About 3.5 miles from the visitor center, you reach the Grotto, a small cave with rock benches and tables in its deep shade. It is a comfortable place to stop and eat. A metal trail sign marks the side path down to the Grotto, which bends left and drops over rough rock. Hunter Line Shack sits just beyond, roughly four to five minutes on foot.
Many visitors plan around the fall foliage, which usually peaks from late October into early November. The canyon's foliage turns red, yellow, and brown against the dry Chihuahuan desert, where century plants and prickly pear grow. The riparian oasis along the stream makes the canyon feel distinct from the dry land around it. Hikers with more energy can keep climbing toward the Notch, where the grade steepens and the trail doubles back in several switchbacks.
