Copyright © 2014-
All Rights Reserved
Updated 02/11/23 7:04 PM
Coyote Buttes North - ‘The Wave’ 2017
The Wave, officially known as Coyote Buttes North, in the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, is the most beautiful and interesting hike I have ever taken. Limited, at that time, by lottery to only 20 people a day, those lucky enough to secure a permit are rewarded with unbelievably beautiful sights that defy description.
Vermillion Cliffs, Utah -
2017
A Perfect 10 Hike - Reprise
After hiking the Wave in 2016 we showed the pictures to some friends of ours who were absolutely blown away by them. They knew we were going to this place but they really didn’t know exactly what it was and never bothered to go onto the web and look at any pictures of it. They immediately said they want to go. I said that we could both try the lottery online and see what happens. Having taken me two years to get the two permits that I had in May of 2016. I really didn’t expect that I’d see any more permits any time soon. As luck would have it we were in the lottery for a few months and lo and behold on January 1 we were notified that we got four permits for April 19.
This was quite an unexpected surprise and we immediately started making plans to fly out to St. George, Utah and drive to Kanab for a five-
We booked rooms at the Canyons Boutique Hotel where my wife and I had stayed on last year’s trip to the Wave. We also had stayed there previously with our friends with whom, at that time, we went to the Grand Canyon North Rim and drove to the Toroweap overlook in 2013.
We rented a Ford Expedition thinking that, in the absence of rain, we would have no trouble driving down House Rock Valley road to the trail head.
April 19th was a bright sunny day, not as hot as it was last year, perhaps 80° in the sun. At the trail head we put on plenty of suntan lotion and packed lots of water for the hike. I had everything programmed into my GPS and having done this trip last year I knew that there was little chance that I really needed it. Of course when you’re out there you can wander around and possibly have difficulty finding your way back to the point you need to be to hike back. I had also programmed into my GPS a number of the points of interest that are out there and not necessarily easy to find. Things like the boneyard, dinosaur tracks, lace rocks, petroglyphs and a number of different arches and other interesting formations.
The first mile or so of the hike is not really very interesting. The trail takes Buckskin Wash about a half mile until you reach one of the few trail markers that tells you to head up the hill to go to the Wave. When you get to the top of the hill you cross a sandy desert area heading for what they call the small saddle. Once you climb over the small saddle that’s when the hike gets interesting an incredibly beautiful. The view opens up on a land of slick rock, buttes, rock formations and desert vegetation. We soaked it all in and thanks to the bright sunny day were able to take some beautiful pictures.
We arrived at the Wave around noon and was somewhat surprised at the number of people that were out there. It appears that all 20 permits* made it out there that day along with three guides. Last year we saw no more than about six people all day. We hiked May 4 last year and the temperature was a good 10° hotter which made for a tougher trip. This trip was cooler and there was often a nice breeze that made for easier hiking.
Arriving around noon at the Wave, on a bright sunny day, made for some great pictures since you don’t have the afternoon (or morning) shadows. Everything is lit up nice. I do realize that shadows can enhance certain pictures and people who are really into photography wait for such things and take beautiful pictures. I personally am more into the experience of being there and the pictures for me are just for the memories (and now this website and, regrettably, some of the pictures from earlier trips were taken with sub-
The bright overhead sun really lit up the Wave and all of the formations around it. We wandered around and saw the second wave, the boneyard, the swirls and some other interesting formations. We tried to find the dinosaur tracks around the time we were leaving but were running out of time since we’ve had an idea of what time we would have to leave the Wave to hike back to the trail head, drive back to Kanab and make it to our dinner reservation at the Rocking V Cafe. Personally, I would’ve stayed longer, winged it for dinner, and found the dinosaur tracks but I was part of a foursome and that was our plan. We’d been on the move since 7 A.M. and wouldn’t be getting back to the hotel until around 6 P.M. and some of our group were getting weary.
There’s many different things to see out there and some of them are not easy to find even with GPS coordinates. The Wave is on the side of a mountain-
Basically it’s not the kind of place where you can see everything you want in one hike or, as it turns out, two hikes.
The hike back was uneventful, save for a small wasp sting, and otherwise enjoyable. We did run into some people, at the bottom of the hill where you enter Buckskin Wash, who were hiking with a guide and didn’t have enough water and an older gentleman in their party seemed to be suffering a bit from dehydration. I gave him a bottle of Gatorade and while we were back at the car we saw that he and his party had made it the last half mile back to the trail head. That was a relief because I thought, at the time, that I could drive up the wash and get him but, I realized that it was an impossibility when I walked back to the parking area.
For us the only problem was aching feet. Sore toes from walking down slick rock slopes, sandy desert and too many hills. According to my GPS we hiked 9.16 miles and it certainly felt like it to four people with an average age of 68.
*Note* In 2021 the BLM increased the number of permits from 20 to 64 with 48 available in the monthly online lottery and 16 available at the Kanab BLM office lottery for the following day. Until then it was 10 online and 10 at the BLM office.
The Wave Photo Gallery - 2017
Other Resources
Recreation.gov -
The Wave -
National Parks Zone