Cathedral Wash Trail, Lee's Ferry, Arizona
21,308
Published 2020-03-09
Had this one on the list for a while. We've driven through the Lee's Ferry area on many occasions, but never stopped and looked around. Until now. The plan was to drive up early Saturday morning and hike Cathedral Wash and then Spencer Trail. We'd then camp out that night and come home Sunday.
Which is what we did. Pretty much. (A wind storm about blew away our tent so we ended up leaving around 3AM.)
But this video is about Cathedral Wash Trail. I've read varying reports about how difficult this trail was. Not from a distance or elevation standpoint; it's a 1.5 mile, +-400 feet elevation change out and back. The difficulty is in the scrambling. Some people said Cathedral Wash Trail was almost technical climbing. Others said it was just a normal hike.
We found it to be fun. There were enough spots you had to climb around to keep it interesting, but nothing that was too exposed or difficult. Your definition of difficult may be different than ours, and that's OK. That's why I like making videos. This way you can see it and decide yourself. I would not recommend dogs on this trail due to the scrambling parts, but I guess that depends on your dog. I saw paw prints all the way to the river.
The scenery is incredible. The walls of the was get higher and higher as you go. It's not a tight canyon by any stretch of the imagination, but the rock formations and benches are unique and beautiful. The pay off at the end is the Colorado river. I always find it impressive. I really liked this location because (at least on our trip) the water was crystal clear and had a green tint.
Cathedral Wash Trail. Short, sweet, fun and beautiful. You can combine it with other hikes in the area to make a great trip. Yet another one that I highly recommend.
All Comments (21)
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Hoping everything is good with Jerry and Tina. They came to mind this morning so, watching the back catalog.
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Jerry & Tina I really love your videos. You give serious information but don’t take yourself seriously. Fun to watch.
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The Glen Canyon Dam opens the gates depending on how much power is needed and how much water is needed downstream henceforth the rise in the tide. Good Video
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Jerry and Tina we love your videos and are headed to St George, Kanab, and Page soon. This one is definitely on our list to do. Thanks for all the great content.
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What a great video. Thanks for charing it with us. 👍
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We hiked that this past 4th of July weekend. We are very inexperienced hikers and for some reason we went around noon. Terrible idea. It was 118F and no shade. We turned around and got a little heat exhaustion. For the rest of the vacation we called it the Cathedral Death Wash. Lesson learned. Thank you for all the great videos. The west is amazing.
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It's thanks to you that I found this hike Jerry! One of the best, most beautiful (short) hikes I've ever done.
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Did this hike a couple years ago (the day after we hiked the wave)! Loved it! It was “cool”! Great video!
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This was super helpful. Pulled over on a whim at Lee's Ferry and did a quick search. Your video led me to my new favorite hike.
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Another great hike to add to our list. Thanks for sharing.
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Cool trip and a great show JA.
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Makes me want t go bouldering there! Thanks for the video, helpful for planning my trip!
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I was going to make a smart ass "cool" comment until I caught myself saying it while watching the video. Thanks as always!
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Years ago we used to boat upstream of the boat ramp at Lee’s Ferry, some of the best trout fishing anywhere. You’re not too far down river of the Glen Canyon dam and Lake Powell. The water level will change relatively quickly with the demand for power and the subsequent release of water from Lake Powell. We used to boat all the way up to the base of the dam and drift back down a mile or so to fish. We’d beach the boats on a sandbar and camp. Sometimes in the mornings the water level would drop to the point or boat would be high and dry for a couple of hours.
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This video led me here in early October 2021. Fantastic hike. Lots of water and mud in October though. Interesting navigating around it but doable and super fun.
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Great Video guys! Looking forward to hitting this one.
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The second best thing in this video (after the colorado) was the moment u two walked hugged :)
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I'm in the area now and am thinking about trying this out. I drove from Kanab on 89A to Lee's ferry, what a magnificent drive, you see it all and then some just in the car seat. But I feel like that Ive scouted out the area and now get to hiking it....
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We did this trail in 2012, all alone, fantastic memory!
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All I can say is ... very cool!
