THE WAVE, UT & surrounding places
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2016 8:03 pm
We actually got the Wave walk-in permit against all odds! Snatching those 4 spots out of 10 available out of 150+ people was probably the highlight of our trip, perhaps more so than the actual hike itself, lol.
Our original plan to squeeze in another winter backpacking in the Sierra changed at the last minute because of my wife's back condition. So we planned to go to Oregon, and do some hiking around Columbia River Gorge. On the north bound 5 fwy, we suddenly decided to give Wave another shot, and took the detour to 605 - 210 -15 toward Kanab, UT. 2 years ago we tried the Wave permit for 2 days unsuccessfully, but still have much fun in the South Butte, White Pocket, and other places. Arriving at Kanab around midnight, we slept in the visitor center parking lot (not sure if it was allowed, but we spent 2 nights there), hoping for the walk in permits the next morning. There were about 175 people for the lottery of 10 spots, and we did not get it. Not much expectations anyhow, so we went on to explore the nearby area around Page, AZ.
We visited the Lower Antelope Canyon with required Indian guide paying $20 per person. What a zoo... 100s of people in that small canyon at any given time... we literally had to fight through traffic in some of very narrow and otherwise absolutely stunning canyon. It was the most beautiful slot canyon we saw, but not to be repeated. At least we crossed that one off.
Then we visited Glenn Canyon and explored the canyon on a rented speed boat. The canyon was not crowded at all, and we had a lot of fun. Then we headed to Horseshoes Bend to catch the sunset, wrapping up a pretty cool touristic day.
That night, we were faced with a decision - to (most likely) waste our time once more to try the Wave permit, or head on to Grand Staircase for a guaranteed quality all day hiking. It was a difficult decision, but we opted to give Wave another try. And lo and behold! We actually won the lottery (literally) the next morning for the following day entry. Again, that moment when the ranger called out my number was probably THE highlight of our trip. After getting all the paperwork done and paying $7 per person fee, we went on to Pink Coral Sand Dune and rented ATVs for a couple of hours. A lot of fun. We still had whole afternoon, so decided to go to Bryce Canyon for a quick afternoon hike. We originally planned to do Peekaboo + Queens Garden loop, but ended up doing only Peekaboo. It was late in the afternoon, and we only saw a few people down in the canyon. Very nice hike!
So the following day was the Wave which was about 3 miles of unmarked trail. We started at sunrise, and were the first and only ones until we left. We did count all 17 people on the way back (they gave out 1 extra permit to the party who grabbed the last single spot, since they didn't want to force a solo hike). Turned out that the shadow from the morning sun was not great for photo, so we waited there for an hour+ for the sun to rise higher. We took countless photos of that same place from the same angle that you see in google. We had fun, and no doubt it was a very special place, but having been there and taken that shot, I doubt if we will go back, even if the permit was not an hurdle. In fact if we had to choose, we would prefer nearby White Pocket and South Coyote Butte areas. After the wave, we took a quick detour to the Wire Canyon, a slot canyon accessible from the same trailhead.
All in all this was fun and successful touristic spring break trip.
Our original plan to squeeze in another winter backpacking in the Sierra changed at the last minute because of my wife's back condition. So we planned to go to Oregon, and do some hiking around Columbia River Gorge. On the north bound 5 fwy, we suddenly decided to give Wave another shot, and took the detour to 605 - 210 -15 toward Kanab, UT. 2 years ago we tried the Wave permit for 2 days unsuccessfully, but still have much fun in the South Butte, White Pocket, and other places. Arriving at Kanab around midnight, we slept in the visitor center parking lot (not sure if it was allowed, but we spent 2 nights there), hoping for the walk in permits the next morning. There were about 175 people for the lottery of 10 spots, and we did not get it. Not much expectations anyhow, so we went on to explore the nearby area around Page, AZ.
We visited the Lower Antelope Canyon with required Indian guide paying $20 per person. What a zoo... 100s of people in that small canyon at any given time... we literally had to fight through traffic in some of very narrow and otherwise absolutely stunning canyon. It was the most beautiful slot canyon we saw, but not to be repeated. At least we crossed that one off.
Then we visited Glenn Canyon and explored the canyon on a rented speed boat. The canyon was not crowded at all, and we had a lot of fun. Then we headed to Horseshoes Bend to catch the sunset, wrapping up a pretty cool touristic day.
That night, we were faced with a decision - to (most likely) waste our time once more to try the Wave permit, or head on to Grand Staircase for a guaranteed quality all day hiking. It was a difficult decision, but we opted to give Wave another try. And lo and behold! We actually won the lottery (literally) the next morning for the following day entry. Again, that moment when the ranger called out my number was probably THE highlight of our trip. After getting all the paperwork done and paying $7 per person fee, we went on to Pink Coral Sand Dune and rented ATVs for a couple of hours. A lot of fun. We still had whole afternoon, so decided to go to Bryce Canyon for a quick afternoon hike. We originally planned to do Peekaboo + Queens Garden loop, but ended up doing only Peekaboo. It was late in the afternoon, and we only saw a few people down in the canyon. Very nice hike!
So the following day was the Wave which was about 3 miles of unmarked trail. We started at sunrise, and were the first and only ones until we left. We did count all 17 people on the way back (they gave out 1 extra permit to the party who grabbed the last single spot, since they didn't want to force a solo hike). Turned out that the shadow from the morning sun was not great for photo, so we waited there for an hour+ for the sun to rise higher. We took countless photos of that same place from the same angle that you see in google. We had fun, and no doubt it was a very special place, but having been there and taken that shot, I doubt if we will go back, even if the permit was not an hurdle. In fact if we had to choose, we would prefer nearby White Pocket and South Coyote Butte areas. After the wave, we took a quick detour to the Wire Canyon, a slot canyon accessible from the same trailhead.
All in all this was fun and successful touristic spring break trip.
