Plan your trip using the Hiker's Guide to Paria Canyon
AZ Hunting Unit :
12b
Location Type:
Arizona Hiking Trail
AZ Region:
North Central Region
Location Description:
Paria Canyon offers a challenging and enjoyable 38- mile hike for a well-prepared hiker. For ill-prepared hikers, it can become an exercise in survival. Four to five days are recommended to hike from White House Trailhead to Lees Ferry. Please be aware of the Visitor Use Regulations for the area.
Hiking conditions change in the canyon with the seasons. During the popular spring season, plan on hiking in water ankle-to-knee deep. During May and June, the Paria River can be dry for the first seven miles, with the remainder below the Buckskin Gulch confluence flowing year round. This hike can be extremely strenuous and hazardous during months prone to flash flooding. For several days after a flood expect quicksand and mud to make hiking more difficult. Plan your trip using the Hiker's Guide to Paria Canyon, available through ASIA.
Generally, the route through Paria Canyon is the river bed itself; however, at Mile 28, large boulders clog the river, obstructing this way. Most hikers leave the river at this point and follow a route on the right (south) side of the stream where some scrambling through boulders is required. Choosing to follow the river through this section may not be possible during periods of higher water, and requires negotiating a route through many pools and over large boulders. Hiking in the lower canyon consists of traversing long silt terraces or benches with fewer stream crossings. The long-term or 14-day parking lot at Lees Ferry is reached by staying in the riverbed past the registration box at Mile 38.
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