Vermilion Cliffs National Monument
Do you know what The Wave is? You'll have to look it up yourself because I was unable to capture it in person.
Hiking The Wave in the Coyote Buttes section of the Vermilion Cliffs was the only really touristy thing I wanted to do in Utah/Arizona. So, on a sunny Monday morning, I pushed the speed limit to make it to the BLM office in Kanab, UT on time for the daily lottery to get a permit to hike The Wave.
I arrived at the BLM office right on time after first going to the wrong office and then overshooting the correct office by 15 miles or so. How I missed the Wendy's (the landmark I was looking for) right across from the office is beyond me. Right on time, I was ushered into a small room along with 30 or so other people.
There were 104 people trying to get a hold of one of 10 available permits. The stars were not in my favor. Nevertheless, I stayed and hoped my less than 1% chance would come through. Honestly, I'd be more likely to get federally audited than get a permit to hike The Wave.
Three families made off with the 10 permits and I left deflated, but still ready to make the most of my day. Heavy rains had saturated the soil in both Grand Staircase Escalante and the Vermilion Cliffs, and it was advised to postpone driving on the trails until it had dried out. I'd watched a group of Japanese tourists try to get the muddy clay off their once stylish shoes and decided hiking was also out of the question. I left south excited to go to the Grand Canyon North Rim.
Grand Canyon North Rim
I'm still not sure why the South Rim of the Grand Canyon receives all the hype. Is it because the canyon views are grander and the temperature is warmer? I can say that both the North and South Rims will offer you breathtaking views which may cause mild vertigo if you stand on the edge. But, I can say that every time I've gone to the Grand Canyon, I've vastly enjoyed the North Rim far more than the South Rim. Why pay a $30 entry fee to get crammed on a bus full of other people on a hot day?
Can you tell which picture is which side of the canyon?
The Grand Canyon is a large hole in the ground which has been carved by water for a long time. Whether you think it's 5-6 million years old or closer to 70 million years old, it doesn't really matter. A lot of time has passed to create one of the most iconic landscapes in the whole world. The canyon is so big you can see it from space.
Besides it's incredible size, the most notable feature of the Grand Canyon is that it's the only place in the world where so much of the earth's history is laid bare. The walls of the canyon expose nearly 40 sedimentary layers which date between 200 million and 2 billion years old. Dinosaurs are historical babies in comparison as they lived between 65 and 230 million years ago. But, I digress.
The North Rim is a special place to me and I knew we'd instantly be friends as soon as I rolled my windows down and enjoyed the cooler air of the North side. This time, I was prepared for the cold nights. I even paid for a campsite! My first real paid-for campground spot. One thing I learned from the North Rim is that even if the entrance station says the campground is full, it never hurts to inquire within because the right hand doesn't always communicate with the left.
The most enjoyable hike I did at the North Rim was a small hike to a live seep spring. It was hidden under a cliff alcove, similar to the ones under which the Ancestral Puebloans built their houses under. Unlike the dry springs rumored to have sustained life at other sites, this one was still going! I spent a good while just listening to the drip drip drip of the water while enjoying the canyon landscape.
Drip drip drip
I did hike a portion of the North Kaibab Trail, about four miles of it. It's the trail you can take to cross from rim to rim if you choose. However, the mule tours must have just gone down because the trail was in piss poor condition and harder than hiking up 4 miles of canyon switchbacks is doing it with a lung-full of shit smell. So, that ended my romantic idea of doing much hiking on that trail.
Kaibab Trail
Fun Fact: Grand Canyon has 10 of the 12 types of springs identified in the whole world. You can read about that here.
