Anyone with an interest in the great outdoors, and especially slot canyons, should make the effort to visit this site (Willis Creek Canyon). You will not be disappointed.

Who doesn’t like southern Utah slot canyons? Just as I thought, no one. What’s not to like? A narrow canyon slithering through Navajo sandstone enticing the traveler. Our destination for this adventure was Willis Creek Canyon, a slot canyon of course, in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Willis Creek Canyon is located in the White Cliffs area of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument which encompasses a huge section (nearly 1.9 million acres) of south central Utah. It is unique in that it is the first monument to be administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rather than the National Park Service. The remote and pristine Monument preserves a wealth of flora and fauna and Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi) artifacts and homesites, not to mention a geological sampler with a huge variety of formations and features. Approximately 1,000 miles of roads (mostly dirt) provide public access to the many jewels of this area. Our journey began in early May. We, my wife Deb and I, loaded our packs, snacks, water, cameras, and headed out about 9:00 am. Our first task was to make our way to Kanab via Colorado City and Fredonia. From Fredonia on Alternate US Highway 89 turn left (east) onto US Highway 89 at the intersection of these two roads. Set your odometer and at nine miles east of Kanab and just east of milepost 55, turn north (left) onto the signed Johnson Canyon Road. Stay on this paved road for 16.2 miles to a signed junction. At the junction turn right onto the good dirt road (Skutumpah Road) signed for Cannonville. Stay on the main road and at 26.5 miles from the end of the paved road you reach Willis Creek Wash and the trailhead. The area is signed and has a large parking area. While we drive a high clearance four wheel drive Jeep, a regular sedan should have no problem as long as Skutumpah Road is not wet. (Willis Creek Canyon can also be accessed from Cannonville in the north on Utah Highway 12.) Because the trailhead is about 5,900 feet elevation, the temperature was in the mid-60s, considerable cooler than St. George. Coupling cool weather with azure blue sky punctuated by white puffy clouds made for a perfect hiking day. From the trailhead we crossed Skutumpah Road and followed the wash downstream. Within a few minutes, the Navajo sandstone emerges and the wash becomes a slot. The canyon walls at this point are low, maybe 15 to 25 feet high, but the canyon is narrow, about six to eight feet wide. Willis Creek is a perennial stream, and we crossed it many times during the hike. The canyon floor is sand and small pebbles so walking was easy. And the creek is only a couple of inches deep, so crossing was not a problem. After a few snake-like bends, the walls, as if taking a growth hormone, are suddenly 100 feet tall. The canyon varies from fairly narrow slots to wider areas. The wider areas and canyon rims are a habitat for pinyon pines, juniper, and other trees. The several slot sections are narrow enough to be exciting, yet wide enough to not be intimidating. Within the narrows only a sliver of sky is visible and the walls almost seem to fuse overhead. Of particular interest in all the slot sections is the “swoopie” sculpted rock walls. They are grooved, grey-whitish-orangeish scallops and knobs—quite a sight. If a slot canyon can be sensuous, this is it. At about .7 mile we encountered a 15 foot waterfall. It can be easily bypassed to the left or right. We backtracked into a short slot section where the waterfall empties for some spectacular photos. Averett Canyon intersects Willis Creek Canyon on the left at about 1.2 miles. We checked it out and found a dry fall completely blocked by a huge rock. Enough of that and we continued down Willis Creek. We hiked in about two miles, not quite reaching the confluence with Sheep Creek wash in another half mile. We backtracked to the trailhead taking more photos in a different light. The entire hike took about 3 ½ hours. During most of our adventures we are the only people exploring. On this trip we encountered several groups of hikers—at least 15 people. And like virtually every encounter in the wilderness, all those we met were friendly and not local (from Utah). Deb and I are amazed that, excepting the major national and state parks, we almost never meet anyone from Utah. Unlike many other slot canyons in southern Utah, Willis Creek is easy to explore with no significant elevation gain and no serious obstacles. The drive from St. George is long, but through beautiful country. Anyone with an interest in the great outdoors, and especially slot canyons, should make the effort to visit this site. You will not be disappointed.