We vetoed the 110 mile HDT detour to visit Bryce Canyon just because it is a national park (Sections 8 & 9). Too many "commuter miles" just to visit a corner of Bryce Canyon. Besides we had previously been to Willis Creek Slot, which I imagine has to be the highlight of all that otherwise generic wash and valley walking. Although we had cached enough supplies to hike from Kodachrome Road to Hwy 89 via Round Valley and Hackberry Canyon, we took a fortuitous hitch down Cottonwood Road instead to put us back on schedule for our Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness permits (also we had been to the good part of Round Valley slot canyon and Lower Hackberry up to Stone Donkey on previous hiking trips). This route connects the HDT to Hwy 89 via either the Paria River or Cottonwood Rd (faster). If walking follow the Paria River the last 3 miles to Hwy 89. The Paria Ranger station nearby has an outside water faucet (and can sort you out for Paria camping permits).

This route leaves the HDT at Section 8 Mile 23.1 and joins the Long Canyon Road alternate at Hwy 89, about 15 road miles southeast of where the HDT crosses Hwy 89. From the Cottonwood/Paria confluence, the Cottonwood Road route is 8.9 miles long.

Good stuff. Pleasantly surprised. The road made for quick and easy travel, even passing on a bench above a neat looking slot canyon for about a mile (although we did not check, it looked like there was a large dryfall that would prevent upstream progress otherwise it would be an awesome detour). The road then climbs a ridge to gain a sparsely vegetated plateau. There is a large water trough that looked modern, reliable and clean up here if you were too lazy to go to the ranger station. From here the road turns into a trail bee-lining for the edge of Buckskin Gulch. Although there are many ways to get down from here, we pretty much followed the nearest drainage down some beautiful slickrock stretches, including some friction-y slab downclimbs and pothole avoidances. Down towards the bottom there are some nice teepee rock formations reminiscent of those in the Coyote Buttes. Fantastic geology through here (and this is only the set up for what is to come). This route is 6.5 miles long and joins the HDT at Section 9 Mile 59.3 in Buckskin Gulch.

Tested.
Nicolas Barth
Ryan "Tuna Helper" Weidert
September 2013

Big Spring- fantastic flow to quickly fill bottles but slightly alkalic.
Last Reliable Spring- best tasting water but half dozen slow drips, utilize all water storage containers simultaneously.

Tested.
Nicolas Barth
Ryan "Tuna Helper" Weidert
September 2013

The Paria River now has an entirely different character to the last time you saw it up on Section 8 where it was a trickle down a wide and open wash. Here the river has you and there is no escape from the majestic sheer walls for miles around. Bliss. The river is extremely sinuous, like the Escalante, but so much easier travel with wide weedless benches, a gravel streambed and an ankle-biting river. Adorned with beautiful walls, alcoves, springs, gardens, and delicate reflections, there isn't a bad moment on this hike. The stretch from the confluence to Big Spring has some of the best campsites around (some are hidden up on hills, others are in alcoves, or obvious ones down on sandy flats near the river). Springs also become less abundant downstream of this point. Savor this part of the hike, you will not find another canyon like it until you reach Parunuweap near Zion NP, hundreds of miles away. The canyon will gradually open up as you head downstream. Just when it looks like it might be possible to climb out of the canyon, you do. Downstream of Bush Head Canyon the Paria opens up to a wide and comparitively uninteresting wash for 11 miles to where it joins the Colorado at Lees Ferry, Mile 0 of the Grand Canyon. You would then find yourself many miles away from the HDT with only a busy Hwy 89A to get you back on track. So instead climb up to the seldom-visited Vermillion Cliffs via the Bush Head route. The Paria Canyon route is 17.8 miles from the Buckskin/Paria confluence to the base of the Bush Head Route onto the Vermillion Cliffs.

No permit required for private party on river from Hwy 191 bridge to Canyonlands park boundary.

22 miles to last exit

Tested.
Nicolas Barth
Ryan "Tuna Helper" Weidert
September 2013

Flatwater the whole way. We did it in $20 Intek Explorer 200s.

Great route!

Tested.
Nicolas Barth
Ryan "Tuna Helper" Weidert
October 2013

We found this to be a great and surprisingly easy route down through the cliffs. There is some information available on it online but again we found it to be very straightforward with a lightly worn trail most of the way. It is probably worth having a GPS coordinate for the top of this route though. Descend 1800 ft through the cliffs. Then follow the old road at the bottom of the scree slope to Jacobs Pool (ruined house) and then on to Vermillion Cliffs monument at Hwy 89A. This route is 4.1 miles long.