The Wave & Coyote Buttes North
Day One - The Wave, White Pocket, & Valley of Fire S.P. - 2025
Some additional admiration of The Wave before exploring the beauty that is the Coyote Buttes North section of Vermilion Cliffs National Monument.
1. The Wave #1
The Wave is a large bowl of sandstone rock formed by flowing water and further deformed into its current appearance by the wind; the striations in the rock itself was created by deposits of sand carried by strong wind during the Jurassic age 100-200 million years ago.
Before I knew it, the first rays of daylight began to creep above the walls of the cliff behind The Wave. Deep down, I was incredibly thankful no one and their headlamps had showed up during the night and -after a quick cross-check- I knew I had at least an hour of really good data to work with. I could now transition into “daytime mode,” and from my perspective I was playing with house money at this point since I had gotten what I came for.
I assumed that if nobody else was there by this point, it was unlikely anyone would arrive for at least another hour if they set off from the trailhead at first light. And wouldn’t you know it, my assumption was correct! This meant I had even more time to enjoy this amazing place to myself. I took all matter of tripod timer selfie and walked up and down the nearby hills scouting out possible photography set-ups.
From the time I first arrived until the time the next visitors arrived, five-and-a-half hours passed. It is hard to put into words what a surreal experience that is, but if it helps: imagine having Machu Picchu, The Louvre, the Taj Mahal, Angkor Wat, or Uluru all to yourself for 5.5 hours.
The following eleven photographs of The Wave are from this amazing period of time.
2. The Wave #2
3. The Wave #3
4. The Wave #4
5. The Wave #5
6. The Wave #6
7. The Wave #7
8. The Wave #8
9. The Wave #9
10. The Wave #10
11. The Wave #11
12. The Wave #12
Finally, the silence was broken by the presence of a sole traveler lucky enough to secure a daily lottery permit. He hadn’t expected to get one and was speed-running his visit armed only with a water bottle and a cellphone. After giving him some Wave time to himself, he disappeared into the hills of Coyote Butte.
Around this time I remembered that I had brought along my 360-degree GoPro, and I figured I’d give it a go in order to capture the beauty of this place in high resolution. You can see the solo visitor here, and -towards the end- hear two additional explorers nearing the entrance to The Wave.
Editor’s Comment: I recommend turning up the resolution of this video to the 4k maximum to really appreciate this amazing place.
13. The Mini Wave
Upon the arrival of the two other visitors, I similarly gave them space to explore and have some time in The Wave to themselves. Before long, the remaining permit holders were arriving into the bowl, and the three of us decided it was a good time to go and explore the nearby Coyote Butte area. We decided to proceed north out of The Wave, turning east past the Mini Wave before heading up towards Melody Arch.
The following fifteen photographs are from this journey in Coyote Buttes North.
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14. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #1
15. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #2
16. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #3
17. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #4
18. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #5
19. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #6
20. From the Mini Wave to Melody Arch #7
21. Melody Arch #1
22. Melody Arch #2
23. The Teepees
24. A Sea of Red and White Stone
25. Above The Alcove #1
26. Above The Alcove #2
27. Looking Across Coyote Buttes North
After reaching The Alcove, my two new travel companions decided to try and reach the nearby Top Rock Arch, which requires some ledge-walking to access. I am not terribly shore-footed; also, I had been on-site around nine hours at this point and noticed by once abundant water supplies were running low. I decided to leave them to their exploration and instead head down the rock face back in the direction of The Wave.
Not going to lie, this was an incredibly stupid idea. This rock face is unbelievably steep and at one point I got pseudo-rimrocked in a spot I didn’t feel comfortable climbing down but from which I was unable to easily climb back up. Thankfully, a BLM volunteer was able to give me a foothold to climb down. Lesson learned for next time: after exploring The Alcove, circle back the long way to rejoin the Top Rock Loop trail.
28. Looking Down at The Wave
Once I was able to get to a safe spot, I did some calculations and realized I had about two liters of water remaining for my return hike across the desert. Despite being late March, the sun was beating down quite strongly. Despite every desire to continue on exploring, I did the right thing and made my way down to The Wave for one last look before heading onto the trail to head back.
32. One of the Saddest Moments of My Life
The walk down the long sandy hill was honestly one of the saddest moments of my life. Would I be back to The Wave and Coyote Buttes North again? Hopefully so, and -since I find myself in Arizona and Utah quite often- I will certainly apply for another permit at some point. But the fact remains: I got what I came for, and despite the malaise I felt on top of the world. And, on the upside, I was finally able to see the landscapes I had missed out on seeing in the darkness!
Hindsight being 20/20, what would I do differently? First things first, I’d use a wider angle lens for my night photograph: I am very happy with my 18mm composition, but the bowl of The Wave is much more claustrophobic than I anticipated and I would like to try the same setup at 10mm. Second, I would have done some more research on the other landscapes in Coyote Buttes North - it is so, so, so much more than just The Wave! And, third, I would have brought maybe an extra liter or two of water, which would have bought me another hour of exploration.
I was beyond exhausted when I reached the trailhead at around 4PM. Slowly (but safely!) returning to my hotel in Kanab, I took a much-needed shower then set my head down on my pillow, not to awake again for another ten hours.
