THIS IS A VERY VERY ROUGH DRAFT, REALLY JUST A COLLECTION OF BRAINSTORMING...

'The Wave' - Tuesday, 29 October 2002Virtual Cache:The Wave

The Wave is a spectacular sandstone formation on the slopes of the Coyote Buttes in the beautiful and rugged Paria Canyon - Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness Area, several miles south of U.S. Highway 89, about half-way between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona, located in northern Arizona near the Utah-Arizona border.

A Permit is Required

The Wave is in a wilderness area -- a permit is absolutely required. You must obey the rules and regulations that apply. The area is regularly and thoroughly partrolled and the rules are strictly enforced. The rules help to preserve and maintain this and other wonderous national geological treasures so that they may be better enjoyed by all of us and by future generations.

Permits for hiking to The Wave cost $5.00 (US Dollars) per person. The maximum size of any group is six people. The Wave is located within the North Coyote Butte Wilderness Area, and a maximum of twenty persons in total are allowed into this area per day. Of the twenty daily permits into the north area, only ten of those permits can be obtained well in advance. The remaining ten permits are made available in person at the BLM field office one day in advance. Guided tours and/or commercial groups or organizations must obtain additional permits.

Two Ways to Obtain Permits

1. Up to seven months before your planned hike, visit the BLM's Online Permit web site at:https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/checklist.cfm You want to select the Coyote Buttes North area.
   
   At noon Arizona time, Mountain Standard Time ("MST"), which is GMT -0700 hours, on the first day of the month, permits are first made available for the month six months later. So if you want to hike in May, your best bet is to visit the online site or call at noon MST on November first.
   
   Here's a little chart to help out:
   Permits for January become available on 1 July
   Permits for February become available on 1 August
   Permits for March become available on 1 September
   Permits for April become available on 1 October
   Permits for May become available on 1 November
   Permits for June become available on 1 December
   Permits For July become available on 1 January
   Permits for August become available on 1 February
   Permits for September become available on 1 March
   Permits for October become available on 1 April
   Permits for November become available on 1 May
   Permits for December become available on 1 June
   Because permits are in such high demand, plan well ahead.
   
   
2. Ten permits are made available the day before the permits are valid. Or for Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, the permits are made available on Friday. These permits are made available only in-person, If you are in the area, the day before you would like to hike, visit the Kanab, Utah Field Office of the BLM which opens at 9:00 AM. It is generally a good idea to be there before the office opens. Permits are issued one day before they are valid, no sooner, no later, on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Information You Must Provide

To obtain a permit, you must provide the following:

• The trip leader's name, mailing address, and telephone number
  
• An emergency contact person and emergency contact telephone number
  
• The area you want to visit -- The Wave is in the North Coyote Buttes area
  
• Trip information -- you are doing a day hike to The Wave
  
• The entry trailhead -- Wire Pass Trailhead is where the hike begins
  
• The exit trailhead -- the day hike to The Wave finishes at the same Wire Pass Trailhead where you start
  
• Entry and exit date -- this will be same date for The Wave day hike
  
• The number in the group (maximum group size is six persons)
  
• The number of days to stay -- just one day for The Wave

If you are a commercial or guided tour group, you will have to provide an organization name and SRP number. Visit and read the online BLM permit web site (see above for the address) to be sure that I haven't missed anything.


$5 per person per day



AM MST the Kanab Field Office of the BLM
So to be sure you are able to obtain an advance permit, viSeven months before your planned hike, at noon (Arizona time - Mountain Standard Time, which is GMT -0700 hours)

Getting to the Trailhead

Waypoint: WV01TNOFOn Highway 89, about half-way between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona, turn south on to a dirt road, Rock House Road, and follow it south-by-southwest down Coyote Valley for about 8.3 miles to the Wire Pass Trailhead. A high-clearance two-wheel-drive vehicle should be fine except during rain or inclement weather.

Waypoint: WV02TRHDRestrooms are available at the trailhead, but there is no water, so bring plenty with you.

Parking lot and trailhead at about 4875 ft. elevation, in Utah
located of Rock House Road

The Hike

From the trailhead, the hike is over 2 1/2 miles one-way through the desert. The terrain varies from sandy, to slick-rock sandstone. Most of it is easy to moderate. Be ready to scrabble up a slope as necessary.

The elevation difference from the trailhead to The Wave is only about 350 feet, but the trail does quite a bit of up-and-down, so in reality, you probably climb 500-700 feet vertically over the course of the round-trip hike. The biggest climb is the last quarter mile just below The Wave where you ascend about 200 feet.

Most of the trail is in Kane County, Utah, but the last third of a mile and The Wave itsself is in Coconino County, Arizona

From the Wire Pass Trailhead, follow the trail as it skirts the edge, then soon enters the Coyote Wash and follows the wash bottom as it makes a large horseshoe bend.

Waypoint: WV03LWSHOnce the wash is headed northward again, having curved around the large horseshoe bend, about a half-mile or so from the trailhead, keep your eyes out along the right-hand side of the wash. Look for a sign and/or a trail/path that climbs up the hillside.

At this point, you leave the Wire Pass trail which continues along the wash bottom, and follow what was once an old road up the eastern hillside.

Continue along the path/road eastward over the hill, then southeastward down into the next valley for a little over a half-mile. As the trail approaches the bottom of the wash in the valley, it may fade.

Waypoint: WV04CLMBAhead is a north-south sandstone ridge that you will need to cross. There are two different sandstone saddles that people cross. My group crossed the northernmost saddle on our way out, then some returned over the other saddle further to the south, nearer to the Bull Pasture Reservoirs as labelled on the topgraphic map. My GPS waypoints are for the northern crossing.

Waypoint: WV05TRNSOnce atop the sandstone ridge, do not descend too far on the other side or you will regret it, even if you see a well-traveled path! Once over the ridge, you want to stay on the sandstone slopes of the ridge and follow the ridge south most of the rest of the way to The Wave.

Stay high and to your right, skirting the western side of the slick-rock ridge. The next waypoints should help you keep on the route.

At various points as you head southward, you may be able to see a black vertical crack in another sandstone ridge ahead of you in the distance. The Wave is just below that crack.


Waypoint: WV06SLRKWaypoint: WV07SLRKWaypoint: WV08SLRKHere's a photo by Majed Nnani's of the twin sandstone cones with the black vertical crack just above The Wave visible in the background.

Waypoint: WV09TCNSWaypoint: WV10DNHLWaypoint: WV11WSHBWaypoint: WV12THWVTURN SOUTH: North 36 Deg. 59.966 min., West 112 deg. 00.388 min. (5030 ft.)

Climb about two hundred feet up to "The Wave" at 36 deg. 59.764 min. 112 deg. 00.365 min. 5225


A half-mile around or so is the confluence of 37 degrees and 112 degrees. I didn't visit it (I didn't realize I was so close) so I don't know how rough the half-mile or so of terrain is to reach it.










Other web sites with information and/or pictures of "The Wave":

• Christopher E. Brennen's hike information page (with pictures and map): Coyote Buttes/The Wave
  (Thanks, Christopher, for your map. I used it on my hike, and borrowed some of your ideas for my own map.)
  
• Natural Born Hikers' informative description of their hike (with photos): The Wave
  
• O. Truman Holtzclaw's color photo: The Wave
  
• Peter Clark's black-and-white photo: The Wave, Arizona Wilderness
  
• Weiyang Zhou's 2003 photo: The Wave

(Tuesday, 29 October 2002)


St. George, Utah BLM office is 435-688-3200

Map of 'The Wave' hike

road goes down Coyote Valley and Fivemile Valley

WIRE PASS TRAILHEAD is 8.3 miles south of Highway 89 -- NO WATER - RESTROOMS! 5040 ft. elevation

Follow the dirt road south-by-southwest along western side of The Cockscomb for about 8.3 miles

BLM web site: https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/
Rules for Coyote Buttes: https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/coyotebuttes.html
Frequently Asked Questions: https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/cbfaq2.html
Obtain permits by phone/mail/contact info.: https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/contact2.html

No dogs allowed

* Obtain permits online at https://www.az.blm.gov/paria/checklist.cfm the Arizona BLM web site SEVEN MONTHS IN ADVANCE

You want a permit for COYOTE BUTTES SOUTH area

* Rules:
No dogs
Max. of 10 persons per day in the Coyote Buttes South area (where "The Wave" is located
Max group size is 6 persons
Group leader MUSt display permit on OUTSIDE of backpack
No campfires, no burning of trash, no toilet paper
Pack out ALL garbage and waste
Use existing routes, do not create new routes
Commercial groups or guided trips require another special permit/fee
$5.00 per person per day


COYOTE BUTTES NORTH AREA!!!!!!!!!






Follow the trail, follow the Coyote Wash through Wire Pass as it twists and bends.

LEAVE WASH: North 37 deg. 01.198 min., West 112 deg. 01.081 min. (4815 ft.)

Follow the dirt road/path up over the hill and down the gentle slope on the other side. Follow it almost all the way down to the bottom of the next wash.

CLIMB HILL: North 37 deg. 00.941 min., West 112 deg. 00.595 min. (4879 ft.)

Climb the hill to the east, up over the slick-rock ridge

TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.928 min., West 112 deg. 00.538 min. (4941 ft.)

Turn and head south for "The Wave" - Stay high (to the right, to the west) on the slick-rock as much as possible, staying as level as possible. Do not be tempted to follow any trails leading down to the left (east) even if they seem well traveled.
Some waypoints to help you keep on track:

TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.675 min., West 112 deg. 00.517 min. (5059 ft.)
TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.590 min., West 112 deg. 00.462 min. (5049 ft.)
TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.470 min., West 112 deg. 00.474 min. (5041 ft.)
TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.384 min., West 112 deg. 00.469 min. (5061 ft.)
TURN SOUTH: North 37 Deg. 00.246 min., West 112 deg. 00.440 min. (5101 ft.)
TURN SOUTH: North 36 Deg. 59.966 min., West 112 deg. 00.388 min. (5030 ft.)

Climb about two hundred feet up to "The Wave" at 36 deg. 59.764 min. 112 deg. 00.365 min.


A half-mile around or so is the confluence of 37 degrees and 112 degrees. I didn't visit it (I didn't realize I was so close) so I don't know how rough the half-mile or so of terrain is to reach it.