How to get a permit to hike the Wave in Coyote Buttes North
If you want to explore one of northern Arizona’s iconic geological landmarks, now is the tine to test your luck. The Bureau of Land Management office in Kanab, Utah, will resume its in-person lottery for hiking permits at the Wave on June 15.
Because of concerns about the new coronavirus pandemic, the daily in-person lotteries were suspended in March.
Only 20 people per day can get a permit to hike Coyote Buttes North, where the Wave is located, in the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness that straddles the Arizona-Utah border. Visiting is day-use only. Overnight stays are not allowed.
The Wave gets its name from its striking smooth, undulating layers of sandstone that were once ancient dunes.
How to apply for a permit in person
Starting Monday, June 15, hopeful visitors will once again be able to enter the in-person drawing for a chance to be one of 10 people to receive a next-day permit. The lottery drawing will be moved from the ranger station to a larger location in Kanab to promote social distancing. The location hasn’t been announced yet.
There is a nonrefundable $5 fee to enter the in-person lottery, and if you
are lucky enough to win, the permit costs is $7 per person.
How to apply for a permit online
Ten additional daily permits are available through a lottery that must be entered four calendar months in advance at https://www.recreation.gov/ permits/274309. For example, to have a chance at a permit for November 2020, you need to enter the online lottery between July 1 and 31, 2020.
Each individual can submit one application per month and select up to three trip dates, but only one will be authorized if the application is successful. There is a nonrefundable $9 fee to enter online in addition to the $7 permit
fee.
More facts about Wave permits
❚ Coyote Buttes North and the Wave are only accessible by an unpaved minimally maintained road.
❚ It is a strenuous 6.4-mile roundtrip hike.
❚ For the in-person lottery, only one member of each group may enter, and groups are limited to six people.
❚ Permits are nonrefundable and nontransferable.
❚ No overnight stays are allowed at Coyote Buttes North.
❚ Permits are issued for every day of the year and cannot be transferred for inclement weather.
❚ In addition to the fees for people, it is $7 per dog per day.
Reach the reporter at Shaena.Montanari@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @DrShaena.