Epic Travel → North America → Mountain States → Utah → Kanab → Upper Catstair Canyon

Location: Kanab area, Utah

Time Required: 1 hour

Distance: 1 mile round trip

Elevation Gain: very little

Red Tape/Notes: Parking is just off US89, on a little dirt road/pullout area just east of mile marker 25 (west of Big Water, Utah). The lower canyon can be accessed from the dirt road/cattle gate about half a mile past mile marker 25.

What’s Nearby?: Paria River Valley, ⊗ Catstair Canyon (Complete), Johnson Canyon Movie Set, Toadstool Hoodoos

This is a pretty nice little slot canyon with some interesting features – the main one being the two large piles of crushed, stacked cars which appear to have been added to help support the road above. This would be a worthwhile outing without the interesting car features though – the hike is immediately pretty once you park at the turnout area and begin following the wash down towards the canyon and to the left through some pretty desert scenery. The sandy wash will quickly turn to slick rock and you’ll see the cars, crushed and stacked into a somewhat precarious looking pile. Beyond the cars is a fun little canyon with some nice sculpted walls. Scramble through the canyon around some minor obstacles and short down climbs until you reach a large chockstone which requires about a ten foot downclimb. You can turn around here (this shortens the canyon to about 0.6 miles round trip) or make the down climb (a partner assist may be helpful). The canyon continues on after this for a short distance, until you reach a large drop off (about 25 feet to a small flat, and then it drops again). Unless you’re carrying a rope and harness (in which case you should be reading the Catstair Canyon Complete post), this is your turn around. If you’re interested in rock art, you can drive to the other side of the canyon – about a mile further down US 89 is a dirt road and cattle gate where you can pull out and park. Hike about a half a mile up the dirt road to the mouth of the canyon, where a petroglyph panel can be found just inside the mouth of the canyon on the left side.

Epic Travel → North America →Mountain States → Utah → Kanab → Upper Catstair Canyon