Otherworldly
Coyote Buttes South is the little sister of Coyote Buttes North aka The Wave. To say the entire area is amazing doesn’t do it justice. No words can describe the in person experience. In today’s social media world I’m surprised more people don’t know about it. The North, in our opinion is a little more impressive with more varied terrain, but the South is still very impressive.
They only allow 20 visitors a day: 10 by advance reservations and 10 by lottery. Once again we lucked out and won the lottery. We only saw two other guides, both with small groups. Occasionally our paths would cross, but we felt like we had all the beauty to ourselves…the complete opposite of a National Park.
We used the same guide service as last year. We consider ourselves frugal folks, but hiring guides was such a good decision. The knowledge they impart makes all the difference. We definitely recommend Dreamland Safari Tours.
Orion was our guide. He’s from North Carolina and years later still has a heavy accent. He’s a self described bearded, tie-dye wearing Hippie that guides in flip flops. And yes, of course he’s in a jam band. His stories were fascinating.
The Coyote Buttes South are very remote and two hours from Kanab. If you’re familiar with the area, we drove a loop. From Kanab we drove south into Arizona on the 89A through Fredonia, then east past Jacob Lake, before Marble Canyon we turned onto House Rock Valley Road and passed where they release California Condors from the Vermillion Cliffs. A few more turns and many miles later, we arrived at the Cottonwood Cove trailhead where the hike started. When we left, Orion maneuvered us through lots of deep sand to a short second stop at Paw Hole. Eventually we ended up back on House Rock Valley Road, to the 89, and west to Kanab.
I took over 300 pictures! It took a while to whittle it down to what you see below. I’m sure I’ve mentioned this in years past; I never use filters on my photos.
The winning ticket!
Literally the middle of nowhere, that’s definitely part of the charm.
And the trek begins with our Hippie guide leading the way. It’s about a mile to the buttes.
The first view, you end up walking between, through, around, and over the buttes.
Not as dramatic as the wave, but still mind blowing.
Perfect weather
This might be my favorite shot.
Such warm vibrant colors
The colors were constantly changing with the lighting.
Buttes
❤️
Reflection
Dinosaur tracks
In the distance is Coyotes Buttes North aka The Wave.
This strange line continued for yards.
Amelia leading the way.
The Hat
Peek-a-boo view
Pottery shards…Orion was an expert at finding them.
Amelia following Orion up a pitch.
Amelia taking the high line towards the Pillows.
The Pillows
This trippy little formation is the size of an iPhone.
Reminds me of Wonderstone.
Fresh Big Horn Sheep scat: Orion explained that if it looks like a clump of sticky raisins it’s super fresh!
A perspective shot
Reflection
Off the rock there were patches of sand and vegetation that cows graze. Orion kept flipping over the dried cow patties hoping to find scorpions, finally at Paw Hole we found three! This is the biggest one.
Strange formations everywhere
Truly amazing
Orion and Amelia
These rock layers were wafer thin. We intentionally avoided walking on them.
All the pictures are amazing, and it’s even more amazing in person.
We consider ourselves to be very lucky to have experienced both the Coyote Buttes, North & South!
You giys are great adventure travelers! If I ever grow up I want to be just like you two!!
your guide is wearing flip flops! Wow!
He sure was!!
Wow, wow, wow! I can see why you took 300 pics. The landscape is so friggin amazing and I love your guide…perfect. Really want to get there one of these days. Thank you for sharing your adventures! Big hugs!
😍