Wire Pass and Buckskin Gulch

At the recommendation of a friend from Arizona we swung back north to hike in slot canyons of some tributaries of the Paria River which, in turn, is a tributary of the Colorado. Wire slot feeds into Buckskin Gulch and Buckskin Gulch feeds into the Paria. These tributaries are mostly dry or run underground, except when there has been recent rain. The rain comes in torrents when it does come and forms dramatic steep, narrow canyons just wide enough to walk through with a pack. The trail goes for miles like this: one to two meters wide and 30 meters straight up the sides. Warnings are posted to stay away from these canyons if there is a chance of rain because the waters can appear and rise in minutes. Of course it was overcast and there was a little drizzle on the way there but it was our only chance to see these places so we set a time limit on how deeply we would go into the canyons before turning around and coming back. Still it was edgy to look up and see the sky with clouds and wonder how possible it is to climb out to the top several dozen feet straight up.

	To get there we crossed the Colorado River at Navajo Bridge, and took in the view at Antelope Pass.
	Yes, We're going in there!
	<<==More Wire Slot. Wire Slot meets Buckskin Gulch ==>>
	Native American Petroglyphs, hundreds of years old, are on the rock walls at the confluence of Wire Pass and Buckskin Gulch
	Buckskin Gulch is wider and taller (over 100 feet) but no less strange and beautiful.
	Notice the log lodged about twelve feet above the trail by a previous flood. ==>>