The third of four hikes on day four (June 25th) of our family vacation to Utah, Arizona, and Nevada, wasn’t much more than an in-and-out of our car, been-there-seen-that sort of jaunt. We had decided to stay in Southern Utah for the day and the Kanab / Grand Staircase Escalante region provided plenty of opportunities for short hikes. From our Airbnb in Washington, Utah the four locations varied in distance from 57 to 81 miles, making it easy to hop from one excursion to another without too much driving.
Finding Belly of the Dragon
The parking lot for the Belly of the Dragon hike is about sixteen miles north of Kanab on Highway 89, just past mile marker 80. When you see the Zion National Park sign on your right, turn left onto the dirt road across the highway. Follow that dirt road for about a quarter mile until you come to a fork in the road which will lead you up to the parking lot on the left.
From the parking lot, you’ll see the entrance to the Belly of the Dragon straight ahead.
Belly of the Dragon, the Short Version
It’s a quick walk along a dirt trail from the parking lot to the entrance of the Belly of the Dragon which has an elevation of 6,000 feet. Once at the entrance of the tunnel, hikers must make a significant scramble down a couple of rocks to get on the carved tunnel trail that goes under US Highway 89 – the belly.
Inside the Belly
Inside the tunnel, the sand trail narrows down to single file width, and the uneven walls and ceiling give the tunnel an eery feeling of being inside a belly.
Photo credit: Bill
Photo credit: Bill
Photo credit: Bill
Beyond the Belly
After the short hike through the belly, hikers come out the east side to a flat and easy to navigate trail.
Photo credit: Bill
We hiked a very short distance beyond the tunnel before we turned around to make our way back to our car.
Photo credit: Julie
Back on the west side of the tunnel, I captured Joseph climbing back up from the belly level to the trail that leads back to the parking lot…
I took a short hike below the dirt road to capture the Belly of the Dragon from another angle, watching of course, for rattlesnakes with every step.
Extending the Belly of the Dragon Hike
We were on a tight schedule to fit all four of our hikes into our day so we didn’t have time to extend this hike very far beyond the tunnel. The trail continues for another four to five miles where it ends in a small slot canyon.
Final Thoughts on Belly of the Dragon
The Belly of the Dragon was a fun, easy hike which only took us about 15 minutes to complete. We would have loved to have the time to continue our hike on to the slot canyons, but that just wasn’t in the cards. Of the four hikes we took that day, it was my least favorite.
Questions:
- • Have you had the opportunity to visit any slot canyons?
- • Are you claustrophobic?
- • Have you visited Southern Utah?
I haven’t been to a slot canyon. Not sure if I’d like it. And not sure Mr. Judy would be up for it, but if it’s highly scenic, maybe.
We went to one place in ID, I think, where there was a creek with lava rocks. The creek was very low (sometimes it’s high enough to cover the rocks), and we had a lot of fun climbing around on the rocks.
It wasn’t until later that we read it’s a prime area for rattlesnakes . . . thankfully we didn’t encounter any!
In a few weeks I’ll post a recap on the slot canyons of Lower Antelope Canyon on Navajo land. I think you’d love them!
Yay for not seeing any rattlesnakes. That’s always a good thing!
What a beautiful place to hike. Bill, the boys, and I visited Zion years ago but never did this hike. It would be worthwhile to pay another visit and do some of the many hikes we missed!
Laurie recently posted…Love Is Not Always Easy
It really was beautiful, and Sand Caves was even more picturesque.
No I don’t think I’ve been to any of those types of tunnels. That looks really cool! I need to get my family out there to do more hiking
Deborah Brooks recently posted…Eat Seasonally Meatless Fall Recipes To Make Now
Our family really enjoys hiking together. We also enjoy laying around on the sofa and floor watching sports together, too. 😉
[…] Thursday – Belly of the Dragon Hike, the Shortened Version […]
That’s looks both interesting and creepy inside!
That’s a pretty good way to describe it. The pictures make it look creepier than it really was, and the good news is that it’s short so you’re not stuck in there too long if you don’t want to be.
Ahhhhh, I was staying in Kanab but somehow didn’t find out about this place! I definitely would’ve loved to hike it–it looks so cool (and I love the name, hehe)! I’ll add it to my “next time” list because I’d love to go back someday!
Yes, it was pretty cool and very easy to make the short hike through the “belly.”