Middle Entrance and Cobra Arch

When you live in this area long enough, you begin to hear of a place so often that it almost has a mythical sound to it. For me, Middle Entrance is one of the places. It is an important landmark because one of the most popular hikes in the Kanab area is Buckskin Gulch. And Middle Entrance is the only way into the gulch between the entrance at Wire Pass and the exit at the Paria River.

When I was a tour guide, I ventured into Buckskin Gulch on many occasions. It is purported to being the longest canyon in the United States, some say in the world. On a guided tour, we would just scrape the surface of this amazing place, never going more than a few miles before returning to the trailhead.

So, for me, Middle Entrance was a place desired, yet unseen, a destination close to my travels but never within my grasp.

That is until my friend Thad and I decided to plan the trip. Thad is a strong hiker, I knew that long before we planned this trip. He was born and raised in Utah to a family of adventurers. I picked him up at four in the afternoon on a fall day with a full moon awaiting after dark. We headed east in my Jeep to House Rock Valley Road, turned south, and then took a sharp right turn out of the valley on a twisting four-wheel-drive road. Out of the valley we entered a beautiful and remote plateau in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness. Heading toward the Middle Entrance trailhead, I thought about the daylight we had left in the now-early evening. The hike to Middle Entrance was not long and I knew from my research it was not difficult. The challenge was at the very end of our hike when we had to scramble down to the base of Buckskin Gulch. During my many hikes into the gulch via Wire Pass I often looked up and wondered what Middle Entrance might look like. The gulch walls from Wire Pass and heading right into Buckskin Gulch are almost entirely vertical and often extend more than a hundred feet high. I could not imagine a place where one could access the gulch from the side.

We arrived at the upper edge of Middle Entrance and Thad took the lead. There were a series of ledges on the way down and some steep rock faces joining them. Thad had no problem, his long legs, hiking experience and youthful confidence had him scrambling down the slope in short order. I took a more measured approach but the dry conditions and lack of loose sand on the ledges made my descent possible. Just above the gulch floor, we arrived at a crack in the wall and followed it to the bottom. As I approached the bottom of Buckskin Gulch, I, for the first time, considered the name Middle Entrance again. Never had I heard it called Middle Exit. We got to the bottom, looked around for a few minutes, and then returned to the crack in the sandstone wall. Thad again took the lead and almost immediately spotted a tarantula in plain view. It was an amazing sight to see, and for a moment it took my mind off the task at hand, Middle Exit. Thad scrambled up the crack and started ascending the ledges and walls in quick fashion. I, on the other hand, got my foot stuck at the top of the crack. With my chest against the wall and my foot jammed in the crevasse, I paused to consider my situation. I consider myself fit for a sixty-three year old, have some experience hiking in southern Utah and northern Arizona, and do not have a significant fear of heights. On the other hand, slipping from here or the ledges above would mean a nasty fall and probable injury. I steeled myself, wiggled my boot free from the crack and headed for the first ledge. The word ledge is a mislead one here, as although it is flatter than near vertical wall above and below, it still has enough slope to keep one pinned against the wall for stability. I stopped at the first ledge and looked for a hand and foothold to hoist myself up to the next ledge. I imagine this access to the gulch was created over time by water falling into the crack in the sandstone until eventually the route was made possible. Although it made it possible to access the bottom, the flow of water also wore down the sandstone over time, making hand holds and foot holds difficult to find.

I scampered up from the ledge until I approached the last wall. Thad was somewhere above and currently out of sight, but he called down to check on me. With his long legs, I imagined he got up this last wall with no problem. I, on the other hand, was relieved to see that someone had carved some shallow handholds into the near vertical sandstone wall. I took my time, thankful again for dry conditions. I could not have made this ascent had that not been the case.

As we started towards Cobra Arch, I realized that we might run out of sunlight before we reached it. Looking east, I could see a wide flat area with a large mesa on the north edge. The mesa edge was jagged and looked like an ideal place for some amazing formations. We picked up our pace and followed the flat and sandy terrain east. As we got closer to the edge of the mesa, I watched the shadows get longer and longer on the sandstone walls ahead. We were making great time, but distances can be very deceiving. At last, the trail took us along the rock formations and around each bend we hoped to find the arch.

Cobra Arch is breathtaking as you approach it. Although every arch has its own personality, I was impressed by its grace and size. We were now fully in the shadows of early evening. We lingered for a while and enjoyed not only the arch but the amazing colors and shapes of sandstone formations all around us. When we left the arch, we headed north and hiked among some amazing teepees and then reconnected with the trail back to the Middle Entrance trailhead and the Jeep.

There is little more magic than hiking by moonlight among the red rocks. The trail is well trodden but as with all trails in the area, it is full of jutting rocks and the occasional exposed tree root. A mile into our hike back to the trailhead the sky became fully dark. The moon, however, immediately became our beacon. For a while I hiked only but moonlight but after stumbling along a particularly rocky section, I got out my flashlight. After a few hundred feet I clicked off my light, determined to enjoy the moonlight even if it meant banged up knees. For the remainder of the hike, Thad and I hiked by the soft glow of the moon. By the time we got back to Kanab it was eleven at night. Dropping off Thad and heading home, I reflected on the hike. I had found Middle Entrance, conquered Middle Exit, wondered at the sight of the reclusive Cobra Arch, and hiked in the moonlight. Overall, it was a spectacular way to spend afternoon and evening in southern Utah.

Cobra Arch

This photo shows the base of the Middle Exit with a crack indicating

the start of the ascent.