March 24th -26th 2018
Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
Northern Arizona
Slot Canyon Hikes at Vermilion Cliffs
Overlapping the border of Arizona and Utah is a lesser known National Monument called Vermilion Cliffs.
This area of Arizona and Utah is a hot spot for Slot Canyons. What is a Slot Canyon? Slot Canyons are narrow passages formed by rivers that are now mostly dried up. Slot canyons are significantly deeper than they are wide. Hikers can follow the dried river beds that pass through the canyons. Sometimes the canyons can be very narrow, filled with debris, or can fill with water in a flash flood. Meaning they can be dangerous and hikers must be prepared and not go solo. The tragic movie 127 Hours was about a solo hiker exploring slot canyons in this area of the country. The most famous slot canyon right now is Antelope Canyon near Page, AZ. Antelope Canyon is on the Navajo Reservation and access to this slot canyon is run by people who live on the reservation. Unfortunately, because this canyon has become so popular on Instagram the demand to see it has skyrocketed and the reservation charges a lot of money to see it. We’re not saying we’re mad at the people who run the sight, it’s not public land and they have every right to make money off of tourists. It’s just for the moment seeing Antelope Canyon was out of our price range. So, what are we to do?
Good thing this area of the country is packed full of similar if not equally as beautiful other slot canyons. This is how we became introduced to Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. This National Monument is huge! It’s also very different from any other National Monument we have been to yet. This place is managed by The Bureau of Land Management so it handles its funding in a different way. None of the roads are paved and there are only small ranger contact stations instead of a traditional visitor center. It is highly recommended to bring a four-wheel drive vehicle and stop by the ranger stations for the most up to date road and canyon conditions. Camping within reason is free anywhere just like a National Forest, but some of the trails require you to purchase a vehicle pass… even if you have a national parks pass.
Because this Monument is so huge and we only had a few days to spare we barely scratched the surface of this place. We loved our time here. It was named Vermilion Cliffs for a reason! So much red banding running through the layers of rocks. Plus, there were several marked and unmarked Native American petroglyphs to discover.
This place is also home to The Wave, a now Instagram famous place. Unfortunately, because it is now famous and a very fragile landscape one needs to win a lottery pass to see it.
Day 1
We only saw the Northwest corner. All of our hikes were in Utah, but we camped a few miles South in Arizona. Most of the monument is in Arizona, but the roads are rough and there just wasn’t enough time for us to see the whole place.
Starting our first hike. Taking in the beautiful color in the rock features.
And goofing off.
Paria Canyon Trail
Don’t worry, we stopped by a ranger station before starting our hike. A few canyons have water in them from a recent rain, so we know where to steer clear of.
So, with the recent rain, this trail had quite a lot of water, but we were able to stick to the high ground and see the canyon from above.
Lovely landscape.
Water has formed this place. Soft sandstone and shale rocks combined with colored with rich Iron Oxide minerals make up this landscape.
Cool rock.
Got one of Laura.
Wispy prairie grass. So many shades of brown. It’s dry here.
Nice Laura… Nice.
Old remnants of a cattle ranch fence.
Dried out Yucca seed pods.
Layers and layers of rock worn down by natures forces.
Looking up the canyon from above. Did we mention that trails here are not marked? One just follows the river channels.
OKAY. We think you have a pretty good idea of what this place looks like. The main color is Vermilion… a brilliant red.
Onward
Red dirt roads throughout the park. Once off the main highways, there is no pavement, no water, no amenities.
Buckskin Gulch Trail
This trail can be turned into a loop to connect with the Wire Pass trail if you’re up for a 16 plus mile hike. For us, we only did a few miles from the Buckskin trailhead. We walked for miles hoping to get into a canyon, but we pooped out and turned around at 3 miles in.
Let’s do this!
Follow the creek bed. At least this one isn’t as wet as the Paria’s.
This place is so cool.
“What’s that over there?”
Camrin made a friend. :/
Okay, She’s pretty cute.
The rock features are stunning. Layers upon layers.
It looks like an abstract painting.
Camrin’s going up.
In her happy place 🙂
Laura is not impressed.
Time to head back.
Campsite for the Night
Set up camp just in time for a beautiful sunset on the Vermilion Cliffs.
Day 2
Navigating the rough roads.
Made a short stop at the Maze Rock art Site. A newly developed trail and only a mile long.
WOW! Some of the best-persevered rock art we’ve seen yet. And so many drawings in one spot!
Big Horn Sheep. One of Laura’s favorite animals.
Nice view too.
Cool clouds hope they don’t turn into rain clouds.
Wire Pass… Slot Canyon Time!
The start of Wire pass is a mile of following a dried creek bed.
Getting closer to a slot canyon the walls gradually go up.
And then you are led into a slot canyon!! A narrow passage, high walls.
Camrin tries to clean up graffiti. Thanks for caring!
This is so cool!!!
And we found some rock wall art on cthe anyon wall.
Then the canyon opens up and you can view a giant arch forming.
Its kind of hard to see from this cell phone pic, but the left hand side of this photo is the slot canyon we walked out of.
One little plant surviving at the bottom of the canyon.
Laura’s happy 🙂
And then we turn around and walk back to the trail head.
Sandstone!
Climbing on the rocks just outside of the canyon.
The rock formations are so amazing. It’s like walking through a Dr. Seuss book.
The Wave… we didn’t go 🙁 but we thought we would mention it.
On our way back to the parking lot at the trail head we passed by this sign. Its the trail marker that points hikers towards The Wave. The Wave is an amazing rock feature here, but it can only be seen by a few people each day, who have a permit. Permits are either won in a daily lottery system or try to sign up for online six months in advance. This feature has become so popular, thanks to social media, that Monument managers have had to limit the number of people who see it. It has become extremely difficult to obtain a pass and we were not prepared enough to get one.
Rangers frequently patrol the feature and any one near the feature with out a pass will get slapped with a hefty federal fine. It’s no joke! We heard tons of stories of people getting busted trying to sneak back there. It’s all for a reason. The sandstone rocks in this area are very fragile and with out federal regulation, the feature would be destroyed. So, best we can do is try to see it at a later time and respect the land.
Enjoy Nature. Respect Nature!
Thanks for reading our blog! Up Next… Zion National Park where Laura’s fear of heights comes back!
