May 23, 1999
Memorial Day Weekend is coming right up. And that means Utah's
best-known scenic places will be jammed.
So maybe you'd like to hear about a place *Off* The Beaten Path,
where the crowds never go.
Environment Specialist John Hollenhorst has the story of a special,
spectacular place called "Wire Pass".
Utah has hundreds of incredibly narrow and beautiful slot-canyons. But most of
them are for the rugged and athletic. We found one that's truly spectacular,
and easy enough for Grandma to hike into.
It begins with an easy walk down a dry wash. But it isn't long before we
come to a place geologist Bill Lund thinks of as a history lesson.
Bill Lund/Utah Geological Survey: "WHAT I FIND SPECTACULAR ABOUT THIS PLACE IS
HOW WELL EXPOSED THE GEOLOGY IS, AND HOW UNIQUE AND REALLY WORLD-CLASS IT IS.
AND ALL 0F THIS HAS BEEN CUT BY WATER AS WIRE PASS TRIES TO GET DOWN TO
BUCKSKIN WASH AND EVETUALLY TO THE COLORADO RIVER."
Wire Pass is a marvel of rich, reddish color and convoluted, corkscrew
shapes. The swirling sandstone is actually a massive deposit of sand-dunes,
petrified under ancient seas.
Bill Lund: "AS FLUID PERCOLATED THROUGH IT, IT DEPOSITED OTHER MINERALS AND
THOSE MINERALS CEMENTED THE GRAINS TOGETHER UNTIL WE COME UP WITH A NICE HARD
SOLID ROCK."
The toughest place in the hike is a short drop over a boulder. The rest is as
easy as walking on a sidewalk. Except that the walls close in on you.
Lund: "NOW WE'VE GOT A COUPLE HUNDRED FEET OF STONE ABOVE US. IT'S NARROW
ENOUGH THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO WALK THROUGH IT THIS WAY. YOU'VE GOT TO TURN
SIDEWAYS."
The many spectacular slot canyons of Southern Utah draw knowledgable hikers
from around the world.
Walter Lipton/Orford, New Hampshire: "IT'S VERY HIGH AND VERY NARROW. REMINDS
ME A LOT OF CAVING.THIS IS SORT OF 'CAVING', WITH THE ROOF OFF."
And yes, we even found a Grandma.
Barbara Holtsman/Tucson: "IT'S TOTALLY SPECTACULAR. AND I'VE BEEN SOME PRETTY
IMPRESSIVE PLACES. BUT THIS IS AMAZING."
A glance upward can be unsettling. Driftwood is jammed high above.
Lund:"AND JUDGING BY THAT ONE UP THERE, I'D SAY THAT FLOODS HAVE COME THROUGH
HERE AT LEAST 30 FEET DEEP."
Hollenhorst: "IF I WAS STANDING HERE WHEN THAT FLOOD CAME THROUGH, I'D BE
HISTORY MYSELF."
Lund: "YEAH. HAH, HAH. YES YOU WOULD."
Hollenhorst: "THAT GIVES YOU A LITTLE BIT OF RESPECT FOR THIS CANYON."
Lund: "YOU DON'T WANT TO BE IN HERE IF YOU THINK IT'S GOING TO RAIN."
At the end, a reward: Ancient Indian rock art where Wire Pass enters Bucksin
Wash. And there's a mystery. Is this a Woolly Mammoth painted by an
impressionist artist thousands of years ago? Or is it simply a freakish stain,
left by Mother Nature?
She seems capable of many playful twists. In the midst of all the swirls and
curves, one wall is impressive, simply because it's straight.
Lund: "THE VAGARIES OF NATURE. YOU MAKE A THOUSAND, A MILLION DIFFERENT CUTS,
SOONER OR LATER ONE OF THEM'S GONNA BE STRAIGHT."
Wire Pass is part of the Paria Canyon Wilderness, between Kanab Utah and
Page Arizona. It's right on the border.
You have to register at the trailhead and pay a small fee.
And they do have rangers who check.
But believe me, you'll think it's worth the money.
