Water flowing through this narrow chasm over many years have cut through massive sandstone rock formations, revealing the multiple layers in the rock walls and cutting impressive contour features into those rocks.
Mind the Step 3The Bend Ahead 2
Footprints of previous hikers cover the sandy path.
Wire Pass slot ends at a wide opening at its confluence with Buckskin Gulch. The Alcove is a massive feature carved into the rock wall near this junction.
Wire Pass is a narrow slot canyon, about 3/4 mile long that feeds into Buckskin Gulch, reportedly the longest slot canyon in the world. The trailhead for Wire Pass is about a 45 minutes drive, if the road conditions are good, from White House Campground.
This is a fee area, requiring a small fee for day use. The first time we came here in 2009, the parking lot was small. This area is much better known and much more visited now than it was back then. Now the parking lot is much larger and fenced with a metal bar/pipe type fence. This parking lot is also for the trailhead to The Wave, which requires a permit for access. Permits for The Wave are awarded via a lottery. I have registered for this lottery numerous times, in person and online, over the years, including for this trip, and I’ve never been successful at obtaining a permit.
For photography, the best time to be in the canyon is around mid-morning to maybe mid afternoon. So we did not need to get here super early, but we did want to beat the crowds, so we arrived in time to hike the mile in the sandy creek bed to the entry to the slot by mid-morning. There were already quite a few folks out, but not a big crowd.
It was a cold, but sunny morning. There had been snow fall the previous day, but the dirt road, going south from highway 89 was in fair condition. This road is impassable when it is really wet.
Just into the entry point, the first obstacle, a twisted, broken tree trunk spans across the slot, requiring either crawling underneath or climbing over. I went under one part and over the other. I don’t remember in which order.
This wedged in tree trunk was high enough on the wall to walk beneath and is an indication of why one does not want to go into such a canyon, when there is a chance of a flash flood.
Wire Pass is a typical slot canyon with varying widths through which to pass, but is never extremely narrow. But it is narrow enough that folks have to stand aside to allow others to pass.
Many years of flash flooding have eroded the walls into nicely contoured features and shapes. Light, which varies through out the daylight hours, from the top of the canyon provides varying color to the rock walls.
We were informed about a rock feature not far from our White House Campground by another visitor. So one afternoon we hiked to that feature from our campsite.
The hike was fairly short and relatively easy, requiring about 2/10 – 3/10 of a mile hike on the road into the campground, then another 1/4 mile or so in a sandy, dry creek bed.
This rock feature is called The Nautilus, due to its twisting opening through a rock. That slope at the base of the hiker is much steeper than it looks in this image and the loose sand in it makes it a bit treacherous to walk up. Then there is another climb out on the other side that is not as steep. [This first image was chosen for Flickr’s Explore Page].
The Nautilus, Lower EndThe Nautilus, Looking down the lower slope
This image gives a better indication of the narrowness of the lower section. Climbing up the narrow channel and making the sharp turn can be a little tricky with the slippery sand on the rock. At least this is true for adults. Small kids can easily and quickly navigate the slope and turn. It is easier and safer for us old kids to go around to the top, rather than going through the crevice; but I went through, anyway. I’m told by others that small kids like to slide down through this feature. Old kids might accidentally slide down and through, if they are not careful.
The Nautilus, Lower Wall DetailsThe Nautilus, View Through
Hugging the wall on the left, it is possible to get a view through to the other side of this twisted rock crevice.
Base camp for my spring 2025 photo outing was White House Trailhead and Campground. This site is on BLM land south of Highway 89, near Big Water, Utah, west of Page, Arizona.
I don’t know why the name “White House”. Maybe it is because of the white rocks at the campsite and all around this area.
When choosing a campsite, I use online apps and websites with reviews and photos from the campsites. I’m nearly always disappointed in the photos. It seems most campers and RVers mostly like to photograph their tents and RVs in a campsite, maybe the facilities and signs, but often don’t photograph much of the area around the campsite.
The White House Campground is not a large one, with only a few sites suitable for RVs; but it is in a beautiful location with massive rock features. There are more walk in tent sites past the end of the road at the campground. The pit toilets are well maintained, too. The campsites are on a first come, first serve basis, but there were plenty of open sites, when I arrived. Payment for the campsites is via an automated kiosk at the site. No need for a check or cash, as in the old days. Now a credit card is all that is accepted and discount cards such as Senior Passes for the National Parks and Public Lands are honored.
Sportsmobile in Campsite
After setting up in my chosen site, I walked around with my iPhone to capture a few images of the area.
My wife and I made a road trip from our Indiana cabin lodging to Madison, Indiana, during our traditional fall stay in Indiana.
Madison is a picturesque, small city in Southern Indiana. There are a number of enticing antique and craft venues, favorite shopping for my wife, in Madison. A river runs through the area and one of the larger antique markets is located within sight of the river, maybe a block or two away, with open areas between that venue and the river and the park along the river. This provides me with an opportunity to walk around by the riverside, while my wife shops.
There were many of these trees with their red/yellow fall foliage along the streets and in the yards of homes in Madison and many fallen leaves beneath the trees and in the streets. This is probably a mundane fall event for those in this part of the country, but rare for one from Texas.
We were here a couple of days before Halloween. I noted natural features in the trees along the riverside that would make good Halloween photos. I captured images of a number of these features, but did not get the images processed in time for a Halloween post.
This is a continuation of my photography of 2024 fall leaves that have been arrested on their way to the ground, hanging tenuously onto some natural object.
