Kanab to Page
Hoodoos, Canyons, Water, Arches, Red Rocks, White Rocks, What's not to like?
What better time of year to get away than mid winter. It was just a few weeks ago, late January, and we were considering our options for a February getaway. I had three ideas, If we could hit a nice winter storm hitting the coast, we could head that way for some wave watching. Of course this meant that the weather would be windy, wet, and wild. Windy, wet, and wild comes with giant waves crashing against the coast, so that is an option I can take that. The other option was a few days in the Yosemite Valley. We have been there many times from spring through late summer. We have never been there in winter. And a final option was for sunny, but cool, weather somewhere in the desert southwest. From the image above, you can guess our destination.
Yes we have been here countless times. And by here I mean far southern Utah and northern Arizona. I had a few places I wanted to visit that I had seen on a map and always wanted to check them out. Being mid February, we weren’t expecting to see a lot of people either. And indeed, I think we’ve seen more rabbits than people. It is just 74 miles (120 km) between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona. You can easily make this trip in just over an hour. Or, you can spend days, weeks, even months, exploring and never see the same place twice.
Perhaps the easiest hike is to the Toadstool Hoodoos shown above (well, two toadstools are shown above and next).
A harder hike to an area near the Toadstool Hoodoos takes you to the Hoodoo Forest, also known as the Upper Rimrocks area. I hiked to the spot below at sunset, spent about 2 hours there, then hiked back out in darkness. Not recommended for the feint of heart. Plenty of rocks to trip over, fall off of, etc, especially on a moonless star filled night.
A longer hike is to the Wahweap Hoodoos.
There are 2 hikes to the Wahweap Hoodoos, both are relatively easy hikes. One involves a short drive and a long walk, the other is a long drive and a short walk. For both hikes it is an easy walk through a wide (very wide) wash. With no water in the wash it is an easy hike taking between 1 and 2 hours depending on the route taken. Add water to the wash and it becomes a potentially deadly hike. When we first started this hike (we chose the long drive, short walk version), my initial thought was this is among the widest washes I’ve seen in Utah. By the lack of vegetation in and near the wash, my guess is this wash fills at least once every 10 years. A sight I would love to see (from a distance).
Words just don’t do justice to this place. All the hoodoos are tucked into the side of the wash up against the cliff. As you first see them it just takes your breath away. What an incredible world we live in.
I had one other site I wanted to see on this trip. I have an idea for a future star photo from this place and I wondered how the road would be to get to it. Well I found out two things, yes you can drive there (the last mile requires high clearance 4 wheel drive), and yes, it would make for a spectacular star photo. Here it is under a mid day sun.
In the same general area of the above location is a wonderful arch, Skylight Arch, that is a relatively easy walk after a short drive on a gravel road. The trail leads slowly up across the mesa above the surrounding valley with spectacular views of the surrounding red rock walls with Lake Powell and Navajo Mountain in the distance. You don’t see this arch until you are literally a few feet away. You really don’t realize you are there, until you are there. A large hole opens up and there is just this narrow bridge across the opening.
If you have any comments, questions, criticism, or something you’d like to share about this area, or anything related to this post, please leave a comment. If you enjoyed what you read, hit that like button at the bottom, it means a lot.
Once again a great set of photos. Thanks for sending.
Will we see one of these pics in next calendar? Very interesting pics! thanks for sharing.