| Wire Pass Trailhead | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Elevation | 4870 ft (1484 m) |
| Latitude | 37° 1′ 8.76″ N |
| Longitude | 112° 1′ 29.52″ W |
| Location | Kane County, Utah, US |
| USGS Topo Map | Pine Hollow Canyon |
| Facilities: | Parking and Restrooms – No water |
Wire Pass Trailhead is a recreation access point in Kane County, Utah that features several trails leading to natural points of interest.
The trailhead is located in Paria Canyon–Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness Area of southern Utah and northern Arizona, about halfway between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona. Located about 8.3 miles (13.4 km) south of US 89 along House Rock Valley Road on the Utah side of the Utah–Arizona border in Utah, the road is normally accessible in a passenger vehicle, though the dirt road turns slick and muddy with rain.
From this trailhead, some of the hike options are the North Coyote Buttes to the famous Wave, to Wire Pass Narrows and onward to Buckskin Gulch.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) limits access to the North Coyote Buttes Wilderness Area to just 20 permits per day. Ten of the permits are available in advance by reservation online, and the remaining ten are made available the day before at the Paria BLM Station from March 15 to November 14 or the Kanab BLM Field Office from November 15 to March 14.
The day hike to Wire Pass Narrows requires a $7 per person, per day fee paid at the trailhead. There is no permit system for this hike, and any number of users can hike to these narrows. The hike begins opposite the trailhead in the wash. Following the wash northward takes you to the Wire pass narrows and subsequently to Buckskin Gulch.
There is a pit toilet at the parking lot but no campsites. There is a campsite with pit toilet 2 miles (3.2 km) further south down House Rock Valley Road.
Kanab is a city in and the county seat of Kane County, Utah, United States. It is located on Kanab Creek just north of the Arizona state line. This area was first settled in 1864, and the town was founded in 1870 when ten Mormon families moved into the area. Named for a Paiute word meaning "place of the willows," Fort Kanab was built on the east bank of Kanab Creek in 1864 for defense against the Indians and as a base for the exploration of the area. The population was 4,683 at the 2020 census.
The Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument (GSENM) is a United States national monument protecting the Grand Staircase, the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the Canyons of the Escalante in southern Utah. It was established in 1996 by President Bill Clinton under the authority of the Antiquities Act with 1.7 million acres of land, later expanded to 1,880,461 acres (7,610 km2). In 2017, the monument's size was reduced by half in a succeeding presidential proclamation, and it was restored in 2021. The land is among the most remote in the country; it was the last to be mapped in the contiguous United States.
The Narrows is the narrowest section of Zion Canyon in Zion National Park, Utah, United States. Situated on the North Fork of the Virgin River and upstream of the main canyon, The Narrows is one of the premier hikes in the park and on the Colorado Plateau. The Narrows refers to both the 3.6-mile (5.8 km) bottom-up hike from the Temple of Sinawava to Big Springs, as well as the 16-mile (26 km) top-down hike from Chamberlain's Ranch back to the Temple of Sinawava.
The Paria River is a tributary of the Colorado River, approximately 95 miles (153 km) long, in southern Utah and northern Arizona in the United States. It drains a rugged and arid region northwest of the Colorado, flowing through roadless slot canyons along part of its course.
The Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness is a 112,500 acres (455 km2) wilderness area located in northern Arizona and southern Utah, United States, within the arid Colorado Plateau region. The wilderness is composed of broad plateaus, tall escarpments, and deep canyons.
Wrather Arch is a cave type natural arch in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness, in Coconino County, northern Arizona. The sandstone arch is located in the eponymous Wrather Canyon, a short side canyon of Paria Canyon. The Paria River is a tributary of the Colorado River, at its confluence down−canyon at Lee's Ferry. Wrather Arch was first spotted by a local pilot from Page, Arizona, Royce K Knight, as he flew over a remote gorge west of Glen Canyon. Reaching the arch by helicopter in 1963, Knight and National Geographic staff man Walter M Edwards calculated its height as 165 feet and about 250 feet across. A news bulletin from National Geographic dated February 4, 1966 states, "Tall as a 15 story building, Wrather Arch ... The Taj Mahal would fit comfortably into the arch..."
A slot canyon is a long, narrow channel or drainageway with sheer rock walls that are typically eroded into either sandstone or other sedimentary rock. A slot canyon has depth-to-width ratios that typically exceed 10:1 over most of its length and can approach 100:1. The term is especially used in the semiarid southwestern United States and particularly the Colorado Plateau. Slot canyons are subject to flash flooding and commonly contain unique ecological communities that are distinct from the adjacent, drier uplands. Some slot canyons can measure less than 1 metre (3 ft) across at the top but drop more than 30 metres (100 ft) to the floor of the canyon.
Buckskin Gulch is a gulch and canyon located within southern Kane County, Utah, United States.
Coyote Buttes is a section of the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), spanning extreme south-central Utah and north-central Arizona, south of US 89 halfway between Kanab, Utah and Page, Arizona. It is divided into two areas: Coyote Buttes North and Coyote Buttes South. Visiting either of the Coyote Buttes areas requires purchasing a hiking permit.
The Wave is a sandstone rock formation located in Arizona, US, near its northern border with Utah. The formation is situated on the slopes of the Coyote Buttes in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness of the Colorado Plateau. The area is administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) at the Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument visitor center in Kanab, Utah.
The Arizona Strip is the part of Arizona lying north of the Colorado River. Despite being larger in area than several U.S. states, the entire region has a population of fewer than 10,000 people. Consisting of northeastern Mohave County and northwestern Coconino County, the largest settlements in the Strip are Colorado City, Fredonia, and Beaver Dam, with smaller communities of Scenic, Littlefield and Desert Springs. The Kaibab Indian Reservation lies within the region. Lying along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon creates physical barriers to the rest of Arizona. Only three major roads traverse the region, I-15 crosses the northwestern corner while Arizona State Route 389 and U.S. Route 89A crosses the northeastern part of the strip, US 89A crosses the Colorado River via the Navajo Bridge, providing the only direct road connection between the strip and the rest of the state. The nearest metropolitan area is the St. George, Utah metro area, to which the region is more connected than to the rest of Arizona.
The Tanner Trail is a hiking trail located on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon National Park, located in the U.S. state of Arizona. The trailhead is located at Lipan Point, a prominent lookout located to the east of the Grand Canyon Village, and the trail ends at the Colorado River at Tanner Rapids.
Kanab Creek Wilderness is a 75,300-acre (305 km2) wilderness area located along the Coconino/Mohave County line in the U.S. state of Arizona, approximately 30 miles (48 km) south of Fredonia. 68,600 acres (278 km2) of the Wilderness are located in the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest, the remaining 6,700 acres (27 km2) are administered by the Arizona Bureau of Land Management.
The Whipple Mountains Wilderness is a 76,122-acre (30,805 ha) wilderness administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Most of the Whipple Mountains are within the wilderness area. It is located in the northeastern Colorado Desert near the Colorado River. Lake Havasu and Lake Havasu City are 25 miles (40 km) to the North. Earp, California and Parker, Arizona are 20 miles (32 km) to the South. The Parker Dam is 8 miles (13 km) due east.
Buckskin Mountain is a 16-mile (26 km) mountain ridge that spans from Coconino County, Arizona to Kane County, Utah in the United States, that is divided almost equally between the two counties.
The Kanab Plateau is a 45-mile long plateau located at the north of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States. The plateau is adjacent west of the Kaibab Plateau of the North Rim, with a basin containing the Kanab Creek watershed in between. The basin is the site of the Kanab Creek Wilderness, with Snake Gulch at its north perimeter, and at the base of the Kanab Plateau, forming its southeast border.
The Mangum Fire was a wildfire burning in Kaibab National Forest in Arizona in the United States. The fire, which started on June 8, 2020 approximately 16 miles north of the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, burned a total of 71,450 acres (28,915 ha). The fire threatened the community of Jacob Lake, Arizona, resulting in its evacuation. Select highways were closed, including Highway 67, which resulted in closure of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Additionally, areas of the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness were inaccessible due to closures. Four buildings were destroyed, including two historic cabins. The exact cause of the fire remains under investigation, however, fire officials have confirmed it was human caused.