Explore the Worlds Longest Slot Canyon
The Arizona Adventure Institute presents an all inclusive 3 day backpacking adventure for healthy adults and families through the beautiful Buckskin Gulch and Pariah River Canyon March 27th through 29th in Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. Experience Adventure in one of the most amazing places in the world, rated one of National Geographic Adventure’s worlds best hikes in 2005
From start to finish, the Buckskin Gulch offers a subterranean tour of the layer cake that is the Colorado Plateau, beginning with the dramatic red rock of the Navajo sandstone and ending with the strata of the Moenave and Chinle formations. Traveling downstream through each layer, it meanders between fluted rock walls that reflect indirect sunlight in quintessential desert hues. Buckskin is the most impressive slot canyon hike in North America and likely anywhere: a 13-mile (21-kilometer) corridor of stone so deep you can barely see the sky and so narrow it sometimes forces you to remove your pack to get through
The gulch lies near Kanab, Utah, smack in the middle of the nation's finest region fordesert hiking: It's north of Grand Canyon National Park, south of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, east of Zion National Park, and west of Lake Powell. But in the entire region, there's no start to a hike as dramatic as Buckskin Gulch's two-mile (three-kilometer) squeeze through the two-foot-wide passage of Wire Pass. Hikers then follow the sandy bottom of the gulch 13 miles (21 kilometers) to its confluence with the Paria River Canyon,a bizarre underground intersection of two drainages that's as hauntingly beautiful as it is abrupt.
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Hiking upstream, the narrows of the Paria River extend another five miles before widening and returning hikers to blue sky at the trail's end. In both the gulch and the Paria River Canyon, obstacles like deep pools, rock jams, and quicksand come and go, created and cleared by the frequent flash floods that make the Buckskin different each time you descend it.
Many people rate Buckskin as their favorite hike. Theunique beauty and adventure leave you breathless and leave you with wonderful memories that will last a life time.
This trip includes professional and experienced naturalist guides, with wilderness medical training. Transportation to Buckskin Gulch from Flagstaff Arizona. Trail meals prepared by our experienced guides and fun and adventure for all.
Itinerary 
Friday March 27th.
Travel from Flagstaff to Buckskin Gulch.
Hike Wire Pass to Middle Trail
Camp near Middle Trail
Saturday March 28th Hike from Middle Trail to Confluence of the Pariah River Set up camp near confluence and explore the area
Sunday March 29th Hike up the Pariah River Canyon to Whitehouse Trail Head Return to Flagstaff
Hike Description
From the Wire Pass Trailhead, walk across the road, past the trail sign to the dry wash on the other side. Turn left and follow the trail down the wide wash, then through a stile as it travels through red-rock, pinyon pine country. After 15 minutes, you will come to a sign pointing down the wash for Buckskin Gulch. A trail on the right leads steeply up a slope heading towards The Wave. Stay in the wash, which soon enters the narrow slot of Wire Pass. A short hike through this slot will bring you to the confluence with Buckskin Gulch. There is a small petroglyph panel on the smooth wall on the right as you enter the confluence. Turn right and head down Buckskin Gulch.
The narrows begin almost immediately as you head down canyon. Walking conditions in the canyon can varyfrom dry, slogging sand, to slippery mud, to loose rocks to cold pools and wading. There is little in the way of noticeable elevation change throughout the hike. Buckskin features beautiful sculpted narrows throughout its length. The color of the canyon will vary from gray, to gold to orange and red depending on the depth, and amount of light reaching into the canyon. Because the canyon is so deep, much of the time you will be hiking in shade. After several hours of hiking, you will reach a point where there is a break in the cliffs on canyon left which is often marked with a cairn. This is where the middle route enters and it is possible to climb out of the canyon. There is a small petroglyph panel high on the wall on the left just downstream from the entry point.
Below this point, the canyon widens somewhat and becomes more shallow. As you continue down stream, the walls of the canyon slowly deepen and eventually close in to form narrows once again. Eventually you will arrive at a drop off formed by some large boulders. There is often a rope fixed around a log that will allow you to perform a 15 foot climb to the bottom. There are also some moki steps cut by ancient inhabitants and a climbing route just to the left of the log. Lower your pack down this obstacle and have the guides assist the other members of your group down. Continuing down canyon, water soon appears underfoot and soon thereafter you will arriveat the confluence with the Paria River. There are campsites on benches in Buckskin Gulch just up-canyon from theParia. There is also another decent campsite a short distance down the Paria on the left. Watch where you step, thearea around the confluence has been heavily impacted by inconsiderate hikers.The Paria is relatively wide compared with Buckskin, but is quite scenic. As you head up-canyon you will soon arrive at Slide Rock, a huge boulder that has fallen into the canyon forming an arch. After about an hour of hiking, the canyon walls diminish and the river becomes a wide floodplain. Continue up-canyon, avoiding deep sand which slows your progress. After some hiking, keep an eye on the right hand bank for a fence line. Soon after the fence is identified a trailleads from the river up to the White House Trailhead.
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