Big Round Valley

Sinkholes are surface depressions or holes created by the collapse of an underlying cave. We've all seen stories on the news about sinkholes in Florida swallowing cars and entire houses, but most people wouldn't expect to find them in Utah. However, sinkholes do occur in Utah. Some have even swallowed and diverted rivers. For several months in 1985, a sinkhole diverted the entire Virgin River, 2 miles east of Pah Tempe Hot Springs. A similar occurrence happened in 1996 when La Verkin Creek disappeared into a sinkhole for nearly a week. These holes were eventually backfilled to restore the water flow. Big Round Valley trail travels to an area where multiple large sinkholes can be seen and even driven through. The most spectacular of the sinkholes is large enough to swallow several houses. It occupies over 1/10 of an acre, measuring approximately 80 feet in diameter and 60 feet deep. This and other nearby sinkholes are found in stream-terrace sediments that were deposited by the Virgin River before it carved out its current channel.