Huge views, colorful rock, geology on display, nature exposed, fresh clean air, massive amazement...these are all included in a trip to this Sandstone Wonderland. In far northern Arizona there is a vast area of rugged and beautiful locations known as the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. An area covering 280,000 acres, the monument includes the Paria River Canyon, Buckskin Gulch, the Paria Plateau, the Vermilion Cliffs, and Coyote Buttes. The area is under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). This article focuses on the northwestern part of the plateau where such destinations as Coyote Buttes North and South and White Pocket are located.

Sandstone outcrops of Jurassic-aged Navajo sandstone are prevalent in the area, and the wind has carved a plethora of unique shapes to visit and photograph. Striated layers of fossilized sand dunes, towers of sandstone, cones, fins, crossbedding, teepees, hoodoos, “brain rocks”, and other wild shapes of rock in orange, yellow, red, purple, pink, ocher, tan, and other indescribable colors pervade this region. The hiking experience in all of these areas is more “wander and explore” than following established trails. Plenty of time is needed to meander, backtrack, and take pictures. It's a place of changing light and scenery around every bend of the rock.

Vermilion Cliffs: The Beginning

Over several years in the early 2000s, I had seen pictures of this bizarre and wonderful rock outcrop called “The Wave” and had made it my goal to see it. I try to go on a mountain bike trip at least once a year with a group of friends, and for this trip I had managed to acquire two passes to The Wave (this was before the current lottery system and before it was widely known). The Wave is a truly unique location, and thanks to the limited access, remains a serene and peaceful place to visit. On my first and only visit on that sweltering July 4th day in 2007, we only saw a handful of people on the way to and at The Wave. Hiking the three-mile (one way) cross-country route to The Wave is an experience in itself, aided by the excellent map and photos provided by the BLM with your permit. The hike begins fairly normally – on a narrow trail from the parking lot on House Rock Road. Soon the trail drops down into a dry streambed and follows this for part of a mile – but a difficult part, as the sand is deep and loose – you often take two steps forward and one step back. Once free of the stream, the route becomes one across a combination of solid sandstone and loose sand. This part of the hike is a couple miles long, and there are numerous ledges, short steep slopes, and angled sections that will test your knees and ankles.

The hike is mostly exposed to the hot desert sun with virtually no shade, so be sure to pack your sunscreen and a hat. Just before you arrive, there is one last section of deep sand and a steep climb, and then you are rewarded by your first views of The Wave. On the day of my hike, we arrived in mid-morning, and the colors of the rock were revealed in their full beauty. After some time shooting pictures and exploring the rather small area that is The Wave proper, we climbed the sandstone hills to the east and saw two large wind-carved alcoves, plus Top Rock Arch and Melody Arch (which is more like a cave composed of two arches and a window). I did not find the climb up and back down to be difficult provided I watched my step. Surrounding The Wave, there are numerous brain rocks, teepee formations, various twisted rock layers, and even a “Second Wave”. One could spend all day here and not exhaust picture-taking possibilities. If you stay until sunset, be aware that you still have a three mile hike back across mostly unmarked rock to your vehicle at the parking lot… and remember that the last part of your route is in that dry streambed! Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), there is no camping at or near The Wave.

The larger area surrounding The Wave is known as Coyote Buttes. This restricted wilderness is on the northwestern part of the Paria Plateau and includes both the northern section in which the famous Wave is located, as well as the southern section where the somewhat less-visited Paw Hole and Cottonwood Cove areas are located. All three of these areas require a hard-to-obtain permit. In 2017 there were over 300 to almost 900 persons applying per day for one of the 10 available daily permits to The Wave! And this was for August, one of the hottest months! In other words, you had less than a 1 in 30 to a 1 in 70 chance of getting a permit – but nevertheless, it's a chance worth taking – if you can get a permit, you'll remember it forever.

Checking Hikes off the List: Coyote Buttes and More

Over the next couple of years, I had developed a list of other places in the nearby desert, including Paw Hole, Cottonwood Cove, White Pocket, and several locations in the nearby southern sections of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. In 2009 I was able to return to the area for a visit to the southern part of Coyote Buttes. The first area that we visited was Paw Hole. This is a relatively small area of teepee-shaped red-orange mounds of sandstone at the far southern reaches of Coyote Buttes. It’s a fairly short drive from the main road to Paw Hole, but the sand is deep. Even driving a 4-wheel drive vehicle, we still had trouble with one especially steep hill of extremely deep and loose sand. It would be possible to hike to Paw Hole along the sandy road from a pull-off near House Rock Road if you are in a 2-wheel drive or low clearance vehicle. Once near Paw Hole, you can camp outside of the wilderness area and be a short distance from the formations. From the southern edge of the wilderness, the hike to the formations is really quite short – probably less than a quarter of a mile.

There is an abandoned road that leads along the eastern side of the area, and this can be used to access the main formations. In this area, there is evidence of its former use, in that there are a few fences remaining where cattle and horses were corralled, some of the scant remains of man's attempts at using this tough environment. We spent the afternoon and evening exploring, set up camp under some large junipers, and saw more stars that night than you can see in most of America. The next morning I woke up before sunrise, intending on getting some “golden hour” light, and found some especially interesting cross-bedded rocks with the sun at a low angle, making for some spectacular photos. This early morning period is a time of extreme quiet and solitude, and as I awaited the sunrise, I experienced some of the quietest moments that I have ever experienced – it was so quiet I even realized that I have a bit of tinnitus in one of my ears, something that I don't notice in the “real world”.

After exploring Paw Hole for part of the morning, we broke camp and headed to Cottonwood Cove. This is a large area with many bizarre hoodoos, twisted layers, a couple Wave-like spots, lots of loose sand, and tilted and eroded 'fossilized' sand dunes. Several of these outcrops have been named informally on various websites: names such as 'The Control Tower' and 'The Sentinel'. The route to Cottonwood Cove passes several other areas that are worth exploring, including Red Pocket and Poverty Ranch, an abandoned ranch house with several outbuildings.

The route is fairly straightforward, but includes several areas of rough rocky outcrops and deep sand. We arrived at the end of the road and parking area where we set up camp and then and spent the rest of the day exploring, hiking several miles in the process. The parking area is located along the eastern side of Cottonwood Cove, with a sign indicating the wilderness boundary. I would advise carrying a GPS here and marking the location of your vehicle, as you are required to park quite a distance away from the main outcrops, and you will be out of sight of your car when you are ready to leave. You really don't want to get lost in this sandy waterless desert! The hike from the parking lot to the formations is across about a half mile of rolling sand, scrubby trees, and brush.

There are a few places where a trail is obvious, but for the most part, you just aim yourself to the west from where you parked, heading toward the sandstone mounds seen in the distance. Our hike the first day went in a meandering semi-circle around the main area of rock. Once we returned to the car, we set up camp and did some additional hiking just outside of the designated wilderness boundary, and enjoyed an amazing night sky and quite a few shooting stars. The next day, we got up early and hiked back into the wilderness and explored more of the area, focusing on seeing parts that we had not seen the day before, and even found a few lonely cottonwoods, after which the area was presumably named. To the east of Cottonwood Cove there is a large light-colored hill visible a few miles away… quite intriguing! This is White Pocket, a unique and beautiful place. Our plan was to go to White Pocket next, but we had spent so much time at Cottonwood Cove that we had to move on to get home and return to work (bah!).

A Continuing Theme: More Trips to the Vermilion Cliffs

Time-travel ahead to 2012, and it’s time for another visit to the Vermilion Cliffs. First up: a return visit to Cottonwood Cove… I just can’t get enough sandstone, it seems! This second visit consisted of more wandering about and amazement at seeing so many new things. We hiked in a different direction from the parking area this time, and were rewarded with new views of things that we had seen before and many views that we had not seen during the previous visit. It's definitely worth more than one trip! Again, our next destination was White Pocket. This time we drove away from Cottonwood Cove, and tried to reach White Pocket thinking we were following the correct roads. We apparently made a wrong turn (the roads on the plateau are not always reliably marked). We drove for several miles, nearly got stuck in the sand, and it finally became apparent that we were going the wrong direction. Turn around and try again. This time we were on the right road, but again got stuck going up a hill in deep sand. We dug out, turned around, and gave it up for this trip.

Two years later to April 2014, and it’s time for yet another trip to northern Arizona and southern Utah, this time the primary goal being White Pocket. This time, we had no problem getting there, and we spent two days wandering around and enjoying the unique views, which are quite different from any of the other places that we had previously visited on the plateau. White Pocket has large areas of very light gray rock that appears white from a distance. This light rock covers swirly and twisted layers of browns, rusts, and reds. In some cases, large white outcrops have a single burst of reddish rock showing through (rock aneurisms?), which can make a rather boring photo really “pop”.

There is a large sandy parking area on the east side of the main formations, and from there a fairly wide trail that leads a few hundred feet into the midst of the main scenery. At this point, our hike went in a clockwise direction in and around the hills, with lots of side trips to look at other interesting rocks. More than half of the hiking at White Pocket is on solid sandstone, and other than the short trail leading in, there is no designated trail route. There are a variety of hoodoos and swirls, many brain rocks, and a few lonely juniper trees scattered about. My favorite part of my time at White Pocket was at sunset, when the sun was at a low angle and really highlighted the swirls and layers of the rock. I was literally running from spot to spot as I saw potential photos...quite a rush! We camped near the parking area and got up early the next morning for some sunrise shots and some more wandering before we had to leave.

Coyote Buttes and White Pocket are by far not the only things to see on the Paria Plateau. Also worth a visit while on the way to or from Coyote Buttes South or White Pocket is Double Barrel Arch, which is accessed by driving on House Rock Road and then turning east onto Pine Tree Road (BLM 1017). The hike to Double Barrel Arch is easy – follow an old sandy road to the south for about a mile until you see a rocky mound with a hole at the top on the right. This hole is Double Barrel Arch. Climb up and around this mound on the south side, and you can get up into the small arch. Near the arch are some truly bizarre rock shapes, including one that I call “The Beast.”

Another less-visited place in this same area is called Edmaier’s Secret. There are a couple of different ways to approach this area, and we approached it on dirt roads from the east. Coming in this direction, the roads are pretty good until about a mile from the formations, at which point it is advisable to set off on foot. Like many of the other areas in this article, the hike is on mostly solid sandstone, without a trail to follow. Our hike here went in a counter-clockwise direction, starting at the upper part of the hills, and working our way down and then back up. This area is full of more bizarre rock shapes and layers. One of my favorites is a rock that looks like a resting dragon. Other rocks are full of thin eroded layers and fins, some forming three-dimensional box-shaped structures. Of the locations in this article, Edmaier's Secret is somewhat less interesting than the others, but still has its charms and unique qualities…and is definitely worth a visit if you're in the area and have the time. The place is also known as Brown Pocket, or West Clark Bench Water Pockets.

Sandstone patterns at sunset in Vermilion Cliffs National Monument

Final Thoughts

Vermilion Cliffs National Monument is an area full of unique and beautiful sites, rock formations and – being so far from 'civilization' – is a place where one can enjoy true solitude and quiet. One of the joys of the monument, at least to me, is the almost total lack of amenities and the fact that most of these areas are discovered by wandering randomly. New things will be seen around every corner; these locations are but a small portion of the plateau on which the monument is located. And no matter how many trips one takes here, it always seems as though another trip is needed to discover the additional secrets that one of the United States' finest national monuments holds.

Need to Know

Information

Permits are required for Coyote Buttes North (The Wave) and Coyote Buttes South (Paw Hole and Cottonwood Cove). Permit information is available here and here respectively. As mentioned above, there are limited permits available although some areas in this article will not require a permit as of the time of this writing.

Getting There

Getting to these locations: difficult, but not impossible. House Rock Road is graded to varying degrees and passable by most vehicles (although a high clearance vehicle would be better) unless wet. Once away from House Rock Road, unmaintained rough rocky and sandy (sometimes deep!) tracks lead to most of the destinations in this article. Miles of deep sand-filled roads lead to other destinations all over the plateau. The Wave is accessed by a 3-mile (one way) hike from House Rock Road. For the other locations in this article, four-wheel drive is necessary for all but Paw Hole (if you have a permit and the stamina for hiking in the sand) and Double Barrel Arch which is close to BLM 1017. The side roads are not all well-marked on the plateau, so be sure you have a good map and GPS with turns and destinations pre-loaded. You CAN get lost out there!

Best Time to Go

It is possible to go to these locations at any time of the year, but know that summer will be EXTREMELY HOT, and there is NO reliable water source (water is occasionally found in natural catch basins in the rock, but this water doesn't last long in the desert, and cattle graze in the area and use the water. Carry lots of water! I have been to the monument in late fall (October) and in spring (both April and June), and both were great times to visit. My visit to The Wave was on July 4th and it was HOT!

Maps and Books

USGS 7.5 minute quads: Coyote Buttes and Poverty Flat, Arizona. For planning and getting to and from hiking destinations, the Utah Delorme Atlas & Gazetteer as well as the Arizona Delorme Atlas can be very useful (alternatively / in addition see the Utah Benchmark Atlas). Many destinations in the surrounding area can be found on the Trails Illustrated 859 map, and for further hiking ideas in Utah, see the Hiking Utah Falcon Guide.

The Author

Steve Ancik is a landscape architect by profession whose hobbies include mountain biking, photography, hiking, and backpacking. He lives in Edmond, Oklahoma. All photographs in this article © Steven L. Ancik.

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in Issue 33 of TrailGroove Magazine. You can read the original article here for additional photos and content.