This little hike is so random -- I saw it by chance looking ahead on the map while driving from…read morePage, AZ back toward Hurricane, UT by way of Zion NP. There is a dust/sand and gravel parking lot with a state sign denoting where this trail is just off the freeway, so it's very easy to find. I took off one star solely because it was very windy the day I came and because there is so much sand it will absolutely kick up into your eyes, nose and mouth unless you wear a mask and sunglasses/eye protection. Come prepared! The trail itself isn't long though, maybe 1-2 miles I think? And the view at the end of the toadstools is nice; it's not like goblin valley, but there are some cool formations and you can get some nice pics. Most of the trail is pretty flat, but there is a bit of a hill toward the end. There are also some rocks but it's not too bad, you could make it fine in tennis shoes rather than full hiking boots. The trail wasn't crowded the day I came, but there were enough other folks I ran into 3-5 groups each way, and a couple folks that were hanging out at the end of the trail. Of note, it is not a loop, it's out and back the way you came so plan accordingly if you're short on time! That said, if you want a nice detour/walk for an hour or so (depending on how fast you go), it's a nice, easy, and free stop.

The Toadstool Hoodoos are cool rock formations formed by differential erosion. They look like…read moremushrooms, as the harder rock caps the softer rock underneath. The trailhead is marked by a sign on the side of the road, with a small parking lot. It was pretty busy when I went, with only a few spots remaining, although there was a good number of people arriving and leaving at the same time. The hike is an easy 1.5 miles that is well marked - although since this is a quite popular trail you can just follow the people ahead of you if you're worried about getting lost. Huge families with little children were walking this trail with ease. The views at the end are worth it, and you can get close to the rock formations as you like (although don't topple the rocks!).

The interpretive center has displays about the historic and modern bridges, as well as a gift shop…read moreand toilets. The washrooms are vault toilets so there's no running water, although hand sanitizer is provided. The center is single story building that has the usual NPS gift shop offerings. There's also more information about the history of the bridge, as it replaced a dangerous ferry crossing between Utah and Arizona. This bridge then had to be replaced as automobiles and trucks became larger, wider, and heavier. A new bridge was constructed and the historic bridge is now used as a pedestrian bridge. There are also displays about the California condors which are often spotted here, a loom displaying a partially woven Navajo rug, and dinosaur footprints. Quite eclectic. The historic bridge is right next to the parking lot, so it's only a short stroll away.

We visited the Navajo Bridge and stopped by the Navajo Bridge Interpretive Center to pick up some…read moresouvenirs. As with most souvenir shops, they have clothing, magnets, keychains, shot glasses, mugs, postcards, snacks, and all other kinds of stuff.

Sometimes, just sometimes, you should take an unexpected adventure!…read more My wife and I were on the tail end of a 7 day trip out West. We started in Las Vegas and migrated to Page, Arizona for the final 2 days. While there we decided to visit Marble Canyon. Something to know about me: I am a MAJOR planner, mostly because I never want to get home and discover I missed something I could have seen! However, in my plans I always allow for some good old fashion spontaneous exploration. Marble Canyon was not on my schedule, but I needed to make some last minute adjustments. My wife is not as passionate a hiker as I am and quite honestly I had exhausted ALL of her hiking grace! In my defense, I couldn't help myself. Arizona, Utah and Nevada are irresistible eye candy for Nature Lovers. Some places required very little hiking for euphoric scenery while many others required some endurance. I chose a solid mixture of the two leaning heavily on the easy side. But on this, the last day of our time in Page, Miss Thangs feet had reached their limit. My husbandly compromise was a drive along Vermillion Cliffs Scenic Highway. Most views could easily be seen from the car or roadside overlook, but to my surprise she remained open to a spontaneous hike IF we stumbled upon something worthy of the effort. Well, Cathedral Wash Canyon was such a hike. [ THE EXPERIENCE ] We had no idea how long of a hike it would be or what we would see, but the portion visible from the road made the decision to explore it an easy choice. We did not complete the entire 1.5 miles one way from the trailhead to the Colorado River. We only did about half that, but what we did hike was absolutely fantastic! The beautifully layered coloring and texture enveloped us like a warm hug. The young explorer inside me felt very much like Indiana Jones while the adult man on the outside relished in seeing this gorgeous creation with his wife and amazing friend of 25 years (27 together). When you love someone, it is an indescribable feeling to visually witnessing their eyes lite up as they experience new and wondrous things. Our ENTIRE trip had many moments like that, but especially everything we experienced on the drive from Vegas to Page. I honestly don't know how anyone can question if there is a God when you walk breathtaking creation with the love of your life by your side. Just beyond the midpoint we turned back as the canyon grew deeper and more rugged. Others returning from the end of the trail confirmed as much, but a video I found online made me wish we had continued. As spectacular as the portion we hiked looked, the second half was even more majestic and grand as the canyon grew deeper and its walls taller! I wish I had seen this video prior to our visit because I wouldn't have foolishly assumed the second half of the trail was the same as the beginning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxeiFOafJy8 [ PARKING & OTHER THINGS TO DO ] Parking is ample for about a dozen cars. The trail begins on the opposite side of the road from the actual slot canyon via a large drainage opening below Lees Ferry Road. Cost to enter Lees Ferry Road is $35/car at a self service kiosk. It was a cost that almost turned me away until a couple (OUT OF NOWHERE) pulled up beside our car and paid our entrance fee. Sound unbelievable? We couldn't believe it either! Also along this 5.5 mile road is BALANCED ROCK, PARIA BEACH, SPENCER TRAIL - a 4.4 mile hike to a spectacular overlook at the end of the road, and HISTORIC NAVAJO BRIDGE and Interpretive Center at the beginning. Nearby is BADGER CREEK CANYON, an erosion canyon near the start of the Grand Canyon complex. Be warned: it requires climbing gear and repelling skills. You need some expertise to navigate that trail because it is not for the casual hiker! [ FINAL THOUGHTS ] Whether you do the entire 3 miles round trip from the trailhead to the Colorado River or just the first half where the trail is easiest and flattest, CATHEDRAL WASH SLOT CANYON is sure to please. We encounter a young family with elementary school age children coming from the harder section unharmed, so I think its safe to say the entire trail is family friendly. ENJOY! 2023 / 6

My husband and I found this trail while driving along Lees Ferry Road in the Vermillion Cliffs…read morearea. We saw a few people hiking the canyon and decided to join the party. We didn't complete the entire trail which leads all the way to the Colorado River, but we did hike the majority of it up until it became more rugged and rough. We had done a lot of hiking during our vacation and honestly my feet were ready to fall off my body in protest. Still, the portion of the canyon we completed was an easy hike. Very picturesque with pretty rocks and interesting textures. The whole area reminded me of a layered sponge cake or Neapolitan ice cream. I actually got hungry walking the trail, lol

Everyone raves about this place, we hike a lot have done Angels and Half dome so gotta "Wave" right…read more? Took us 3 tries and scored hit early summer, bummer as you do need to plan your hydration carefully as it is dangerous out there when in the 90s We live close enough about a 4 hour drive to Page and overnight and early start to the trail head. Get a rental, you don't want to put your car thru the 9 rough miles and don't even think of doing it if it rains! Higher ground clearance is nice but not necessary but saw mostly SUV, drive your sedan at your own risk, we rented a compact SUV. Watch the weather carefully as for the two days we were there saw afternoon thunderstorms come in and the area did get a little rain the past day, saw some mud and standing water. As to the hike - summer is brutal! Start early, we did at 6am and did 8 miles but not all the attractions as we had to get back to Phoenix. Would it be worth the exhausting 13 miles to see it all, personal decision and gotta have the time. We've done 13 miles but wouldn't consider it here in summer or winter unless you are an Ironman Of course The Wave and Second Wave are amazing as does the arches and others look. We climbed past the second wave and ran outta time Must do, AllTrails or other offline map, the provided map and pictures are not enough. Consider a guide if you are a novice, but the guided tours were grouped and held back by what looked like the older crowd, YMMV. Four stars as between the difficulty with weather the slog the beauty not like Delicate Arch, Half Dome or Angels IMHO

I've heard the lottery permit for The Wave is one of the hardest to win. I had previously missed…read moreout on the advanced lottery for 3 dates I submitted for mid-May and sorta planned out my 9-day roadtrip in AZ without visiting here. I really only had 1 day to fit in a trip to The Wave while I was staying in Page for 4 days and took a shot with the daily lottery permit and won! I was super pumped when I got the email notification! The 2-day advance daily lottery permit can only be applied for while you are in a nearby geofenced area and you have to pick up the permit and go through orientation/training at either Page, AZ or Kanab, UT. One tricky thing about the permit application hours is that it is based on UT and Navajo time, not AZ time. If you are in Page, you'll have to ignore the local time and make sure you are 1 hour ahead of the daily application closing time. Anyways, this was one of the most jaw-dropping other-worldy places I've hiked. The journey to reach The Wave features some of the most unique terrains and landscapes I've seen. There are geologic features all around, everywhere you look. Once you reach The Wave area, you almost can't believe what you are seeing. Some areas look like the rings of Saturn. Some areas look like huge ocean waves. I was in awe the entire time I was there. I can't even explain everything I saw, as words can't describe the scenery. Just look at the pictures. I didn't really explore past the main area because I was on a tight schedule and needed to head back. I would have to say this hike may be too challenging if you only rely on the paper map provided during orientation. I would highly recommend GPS tracking app, I used AllTrails to track my hike and even then I went off trail a few times, as this is definitely not a straight forward hike. Not a long hike at about 3.3 mile each way, but I would start early as it can get quite hot in this area. Also, there was a gentleman from BLM that was checking for permits at The Wave, if you were curious about enforcement.

After years of trying to apply for a permit, our group finally got picked! Highly recommend hiking…read moreat least once. I wouldn't do it again though, mainly because of how hard it was to get a permit. We visited in April and the weather was fantastic. It was actually freezing in the morning but as the sun rose, it warmed up to the point where we would sweat a little when hiking. I can't even imagine doing this in the summer but if you win the lottery then, make sure everyone brings plenty of water. To get to the trailhead, I'd recommend having a high-clearance vehicle, especially if it just recently rained. The road off of the freeway becomes unpaved and there are some ditches that can be flooded. Download an offline map of the trail and area for when you lose service. It gets spotty but you'll find reception every now and then. At the beginning, there are a couple of vault toilets. The trail itself is difficult to follow without an offline map. There's only a handful of signs pointing in a general direction. And until the Wave, we were pretty much the only people around. Considering only about 60 people are approved each day, it wasn't surprising, and honestly, kind of nice to be alone in nature. The Wave was everything we hoped for. We had clear, blue skies and that contrast with the red and orange rocks was beautiful. It looked exactly like the Windows background! There was even a pond further up with a ton of tadpoles. Besides the Wave, there's other neat waypoints to stop by but because we were tired, we didn't try for many of them. The only one we went out of our way for was the dinosaur tracks but it was anti-climatic. They just looked like larger chicken feet prints. Despite this hike being only about 6 miles round trip, it took pretty much the entire day. We stopped a lot to take pictures but also the landscape was difficult to hike. Lots of sand to walk through and lots of weird inclines to walk across, which kept our feet, knees, and legs at weird angles. There might have been easier pathways but as I said earlier, there's no clear indications of a trail. There was also a BLM worker at the Wave asking for the permit holders. If you hike without one and get caught, you'll get slapped with some steep fines. Drones are also not allowed!

My friend won the online lottery for the permit 4 months in advance but after talking to the…read moreranger, it seems that there's a good chance you can win the daily lottery since a lot of people cancel every day. It's easier if you have less people (like two people). Anyways, the orientation the day before was useful for weather and road conditions. The hike wasn't too bad, can be a bit steep in some parts but for the most part, not too much incline. It's moderate for the novice hiker but easy for an experienced hiker. For experienced hikers, probably can get to the Wave in 1 to 1.5 hours. For the inexperienced, it might take 2.5 to 3 hours. Either way, if you're planning to spend a lot of time at the Wave (some people take 2-3 hours for their extensive Instagram photoshoots haha), definitely go there early and spend all day there. I would definitely come back if I win the lottery!

Looking at the reviews from years ago, I'm glad that the lottery system for The Wave permits is now…read moredone online, haha. This is a fairly decently sized visitor center that contains a lot of information about the geology and archeology of the area. There are also a lot of pamphlets about attractions in the area. When I visited, the officer was trying to handle planning an entire week's trip for things to do for someone who apparently did zero planning into the area. Seriously. She didn't know that The Wave needed permits and was upset she couldn't visit on a whim (and without proper hiking tools). She also did not have a high clearance, 4WD/AWD vehicle. So, a lot a cool things to do were closed off to her out of safety. The ranger was very kind and patient through all of it though. I finally got my quick question answered after. The exhibits were good to look at and quite informational.

great spot for getting local information on nearby hikes. it's not a huge visitor center, but the…read moreemployees are very knowledgeable and there are some small exhibits. special shoutout to dwayne who was very kind and friendly!

All I can say is I wish I had this kind of balance. The scenery all around is so incredibly…read morebeautiful that I think I must have said "this is amazing" 500 times during our trip to Page, Arizona and Zion National Park in Utah. So much natural beauty and amazing stone structures. Even if you don't get out and hike all the trails, the drive all by itself is wonderful. There is a fee per car to enter the Lees Ferry portion, but a couple at the kiosk to obtain a pass decided to bless us. We had never seen or met them before, but they singled me and my husband out and saved us about $35. It was especially timely because my husband was literally sitting off to the side debating on if the pass was worth the cost. We had seen so much on our 8 day trip out west and this was one of the last places on his list. Thank you Lord for your grace and mercy. Cathedral Wash Slot Canyon and Paria Beach are both nearby. There is also a campsite and hiking trail along the Paria River.

Easy access from road (which can be noisy but traffic was not that busy during our stay in July…read more2026). Well maintained and friendly camp hosts.

Beautiful campground!…read more We were driving east on Route 89A towards Marble Canyon and we were all tired and hungry. The sign for the campground was a welcome sight even though we were not thinking about camping there. We were looking for a comfortable picnic ground were we could have a festive lunch, a little nap and a couple of hours of rest before getting back on the road. So we turned right onto AZ-67 a little passed the campground entrance, and a few hundred yards, left onto the entrance of the no fee picnic area. The place is beautiful and well maintained. The picnic tables are nicely shaded by big trees and the public restrooms are clean. After filling our bellies we went for a walk exploring the surrounding, and I can tell you that the campground itself is just as well-kept and maintained. Right in the corner of Route 89A and AZ-67 there is the Jacob Lake Inn and Store. So if you want to stick around for the night, but are not big on camping check this place out, it is a good alternative to roughing it out under the trees! And the place is only 45 mile from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon!