How to Explore the Amazing Canon Blanco Puerto Rico

Nestled in the mountains in Utuado, Puerto Rico sits Canon Blanco. This glowing, white rock canyon, stands out against the lush rainforest and bamboo of the mountains. Carved from years of water running through the rock, Canon Blanco Puerto Rico is the perfect place to stop to explore, swim and soak in the sun. Becoming increasingly popular, this destination is worth the drive up the narrow mountain roads.

The information below shows you exactly how to find the canyon and what to expect once you get there. If you are looking for other amazing places to visit in Puerto Rico, check out our 7-day Puerto Rico Itinerary.

Where is Canon Blanco?

Canon Blanco (or White Canyon, also sometimes called Utuado Canyon or Canyon Blanco) is located in the center of Puerto Rico directly north of Ponce. Since it is centrally located you can visit it as a day trip from almost anywhere on the island, or make it a stop on your drive across the island. You can see the location on the map below. We parked at the El Sofa Trailhead and walked from there. When we visited midday on a Wednesday there was only one other family there, but it can get crowded on weekends.

How to Drive to Canon Blanco

Depending on where you are coming from, the road to canyon will be windy, narrow, and take longer than you might expect. Despite this, there is no need to have a 4×4 to get there as the road is well maintained. You can see the location on the map above and we found google maps gave excellent directions to get us to Canon Blanco. Below are the driving times to expect although we did need to take several alternative roads due to construction.

From Ponce it is about a 1 hour drive .

From San Juan it will take about 2 hours and 15 minutes

From Utuado, the drive is about 30 minutes

As you approach Canon Blanco, look for this sign at the top of the road.

Walking the El Sofa Trail to Canon Blanco

The trail to Canon Blanco is called El Sofa and is really a walk on a road, a short walk on a trail, and then you walk on the rocks of the Canyon itself. The only change in elevation is a slight up and down along the rocks and the entire trail is easily under 1/2 mile each way. Although I consider the trail easy, the walk along the rocks can be slippery and steep so having good shoes is helpful. We wore a combination of sneakers and hiking sandals.

There are several parking spots once you are on the final road. We parked at the first spot, but as we walked on the road there were 2 other places to park. There is excellent signage on the road. From this parking spot, follow the road and you eventually see more signs where the trail goes off the road. From here it is just about 100 feet to the start of the canyon itself.

After just a short time on the trail, the canyon opens up before you. The views are instantly stunning. Follow the canyon and trail along and you will find several places to swim and explore. We did jump off some of the very low rocks but avoided the bigger jumps and the waterfalls. In the middle section of the canyon, you will find tall rock walls that are too high to jump from, but if you stay to the far right of the canyon, you can see the easiest trail continuing downward.

If you continue to follow the trail along the canyon, you will come to the bottom of the canyon where there is a small sandy beach area. From here you can swim back up into part of the canyon.

There were lots of small fish swimming around our feet and you can also go across the river and up onto the canyon walls on the other side of the gorge. There are supposedly a number of petroglyphs on the walls of the canyon, but despite looking, we were never able to find any.

If you visit the gorgeous Canon Blanco, please respect the signs and leave no trace on your visit. As with any river, always check the weather and be aware of changing conditions. There are also signs for people to keep the music down and listen to the sounds of nature which we loved!

You can find some additional information on All Trails and may see if there are changes to the trail conditions or recent updates.

If you are looking to explore Canon Blanco as a day trip from San Juan, there are several tour companies that can take you to the canyon. We saw one other family while we were at the canyon, and they were there as part of a tour like one of the ones below:

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Common Questions about Visiting Canon Blanco in Puerto Rico

Is Canon Blanco worth visiting?

If you are in Puerto Rico and looking for some non-beach activities, visiting Canon Blanco is absolutely worth it. It is a driving commitment so you if you are short on time, this may not be the best activity.

Is Canon Blanco Safe?

You should use caution at Canon Blanco as the rocks are slippery and jumping from there rocks can be dangerous. Always make sure to check the water below before jumping off even a small rock.

Other Places to Explore in Puerto Rico

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