Desert Outdoor Scavenger Hunt Printable

Heading out on a desert adventure soon? Whether you’re exploring the red rock trails around Moab, wandering through a Utah national park, or hiking in western Colorado’s high desert, this scavenger hunt is such a fun way to keep kids engaged while soaking up the beauty around you.

I put together this free 2-page scavenger hunt with 24 desert-themed items to find. It has everything from plants and rocks to wildlife and natural features. Some items are easy to spot (especially on the first page), while others take a little more searching. My kids love that it turns an ordinary hike into an outdoor game, and I love that it sparks family conversations, builds memories, and even sneaks in a little learning.

Learning through Exploration

🦕 We’ve made so many wonderful discoveries through scavenger hunts like this. Petroglyphs and dinosaur fossils are plentiful in western Colorado and eastern Utah. You can find them with a quick Google Maps search—or, if you’re observant, you might just stumble upon them while exploring. For us, dinosaur discoveries always spark a wave of curiosity. The kids love checking out dinosaur books from the library and never miss a chance to visit a museum.

🪨 Another fun learning opportunity with this scavenger hunt is geology! Our kids loved learning about geology by experiencing it firsthand, from spotting rock layers to asking questions about how the desert landscape was formed. Visitor centers at national parks and monuments have been such a helpful resource, too, for diving deeper into desert geology and history.

🌵 The plants are another favorite part of scavenger hunts! I love watching how quickly our kids can now spot and identify plants on our everyday hikes. You can take plant identification even further by looking into how different plants have been used throughout history. For example, the yucca plant had a wide range of uses: its sharp points were be used as needles, its fibers were woven into baskets and sandals, and its roots were made into shampoo. (Let me know if this interests you—perhaps I’ll create a supplemental post exploring the historic uses of common plants!)

What’s Included:

To give you options, I’ve included both:

• A color version that’s easy to print and take along
• A black-and-white version that doubles as a coloring page (perfect for car rides or quiet time back at camp)

That means you’ll get 4 total pages—two in color, two in black & white.

Ideal For:

• Desert hikes
• Family adventures and road trips
• ️Homeschool and classroom use
• ️Fun for all ages
• ️Screen-free outdoor fun
• Sparking curiosity

Works especially well in:

• Utah’s national parks (Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Zion, Bryce Canyon)
• Moab and nearby trails
• Dinosaur National Monument
• Colorado National Monument
• Colorado’s Western Slope
• Any high desert adventure spot

Scavenger hunts are a fun and easy way to encourage observation, foster a connection with nature, and make hikes feel a little more magical. And the best part? You can download and print them for free right here!

Grab your free printable below and get ready for a new layer of fun on your next desert outing.

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