Coyote Buttes North, AKA The Wave, is the most sought after permit in the US National Park System / Bureau of Land Management. Each year about 200,000 people apply for the 7300 permits available. That works out to 20 people getting to experience ‘The Wave each day. There are two ways to get a permit. The online lottery awards 10 per day about 3 months in advance, and the in-person lottery awards the other 10 permits per day the day before they can be used. On his eighth try Joe got a permit at the in-person lottery. He made the short trip (every place is a short trip in Kanab; conversely, every place is a long trip once you leave Kanab) to apply for the lottery every day we didn’t have something else going on at 9 am when the lottery occurs. Each day between 30 and 50 groups representing more than 100 people participated in the lottery. Your odds aren’t all that great.
Unfortunately for Joe, he won his Wave permit for the hottest day of 2020 so far. The hike to Coyote Buttes North is a hard hike, especially in the heat. It is about a third deep sand, two thirds slanted slick rock, and includes 1100 feet of elevation gain in its 3.2 mile one-way route. The sand is hard hiking and the slick rock can reach temps of over 120 degrees in the summer, so you get heated from above and below! So despite starting the hike almost an hour before sunrise Joe got about 2 hours into North Coyote Buttes, which needed to include rest and lunch, before he had to start back to avoid the worst of the heat. Even arriving back at the truck by 12:30 pm it was 102 degrees.
So how do you prepare for a 7-8 mile hike in these temperatures? First, determine a return time and stick to it. The other key is to stay hydrated and not lose all of your electrolytes. For this trip Joe ate a Cliff Bar (supposed to replace electrolytes), ham, turkey, and cheese sandwich, and some salty trail mix. He also drank nearly 5 liters of water and 40 ounces of Gatorade.
It is best to not hike in extremely hot (or cold) weather alone. Joe was fortunate to arrive at the trailhead at the same time as three young French women who have been working in the US for the past few years. We joined forces and did the hike together. They were on a vacation together before Marine returned to France. It was a lot of fun to hike with them. After The Wave they were off to a ranch in St George, UT then to Nevada.
The Wave was made famous by Microsoft during the Windows 7 era when they released a screen saver composed of images from North Coyote Buttes. It was a hit, and due to its new popularity limits had to be put on visitation in order to protect the resource. Per the BLM trespassing on The Wave (they WILL check your permit) can cost you as much as $10,000.
The beautiful patterns found in The Wave are eroded rock layers formed by windblown sand millions of years ago. As Jurassic wind patterns changed, different sand dunes blew across the southwest desert, cementing into the striations that we now admire. The water drainage that carved the two main chutes dried up a long time ago, so now wind is the Wave’s primary erosion force.
The Bone Yard is another feature at Coyote Buttes North. The stripes are wider and weirdly eroded rocks sit randomly on the stripes. It is different from anything else we’ve seen, which seems to happen a lot in Vermilion Cliffs.
The Wave was a great experience for Joe. If we are ever in the area again he would like to get a redo in cooler weather so he can stay longer and see some of the other formations. If you want to see The Wave, December and January are the months your odds are best, both for the online and in-person lotteries. One other note, the trailhead is 8 miles down an unmaintained gravel and clay road with fairly severe ruts and washboarding. Joe saw one small car lose its bumper when it fell into one of the ruts, so plan to drive something with more clearance than a Prius and go slow. Plenty of cars make it out and back just fine, just be cautious.