Parking and Trailhead:37.21159, -112.68501
Belly of the Dragon: 37.21111, -112.68479
This is a fun little adventure to see a culvert tunnel that goes under Highway 89. Would I go out of my way to see this? No. But, it’s still neat to see.
The Belly of the Dragon is just a culvert tunnel that was dug to bring water from the other side of highway to East Fork of the Virgin River. (the East Fork of the Virgin River is on the west side of where you park).
The tunnel goes all the way under Highway 89 through solid sandstone.
How long is the tunnel?
The entire tunnel length is about 280 ft. or so from end to end. It’s pretty wide and it’s tall enough that anyone could easily stand up with room to spare.
Are there fees to visit the Belly of the Dragon?
There are no fees associated with the Belly of the Dragon. It’s free!
When is the best time to see the Belly of the Dragon?
Anytime! We visited in winter and had no problems getting here. The road to the trailhead is dirt, but graded. I would recommend 4-wheel drive in the winter since it can get muddy.
Is Belly of the Dragon a popular destination?
Yes! This can get very busy in warmer months.
How to get good photos of the Belly of the Dragon?
I would recommend bringing a tripod to get good photos. Be prepared to have people be in your photos though. This is a popular place.
Is this a good adventure for kids?
Yes! Kids love the Belly of the Dragon! The only challenge is at the beginning where you need to do some minor rock scrambling that isn’t difficult, but it would be easy for a kid to slip. We did this in the winter, and didn’t slip at all.
Would you recommend a flashlight?
A flashlight would be a good idea. We used the light on our phones and that worked fine too.
I see lots of names carved on the tunnel. Does that mean I can carve my name too?
No! Do not carve your name on the Belly of the Dragon. This completely ruins the experience and is wrong. We love visitors seeing our beautiful state, but we want to protect it from vandalism and trash.
You can get to the Belly of the Dragon in about two minutes. You just park and hike the 150 ft. to the entrance to the tunnel. The parking has plenty of space for small and large vehicles. We didn’t see any signage to the Belly of the Dragon, but we could see the entrance to it from where we parked.
The entrance is where some very minor rock scrambling is required. There are some steps to help you down and up, but just keep an eye on kids during this time.
The water has eroded the bottom part of the tunnel, so you will need to scramble back up the main part of the tunnel here. Again, it’s pretty easy, but just watch kids.
The Belly of the Dragon is a pretty glamorous name for just a culvert going underneath Highway 89. It’s just a 280 ft. tunnel that brings water from a wash that doesn’t have a name, to the East Fork of Virgin River.
The East Fork of Virgin River goes through Parunuweap (a protected and mostly off-limits area in Zion National Park). It eventually meets up with the Virgin River at Springdale.
After hiking through to the other side, we just turned back around through the tunnel.
The water has eroded the bottom part of the tunnel, so you will need to scramble back up the main part of the tunnel here. Again, it’s pretty easy, but just watch kids.
The Belly of the Dragon is a pretty glamorous name for just a culvert going underneath Highway 89. It’s just a 280 ft. tunnel that brings water from a wash that doesn’t have a name, to the East Fork of Virgin River.
The East Fork of Virgin River goes through Parunuweap (a protected and mostly off-limits area in Zion National Park).
After hiking through to the other side, we just turned back around through the tunnel. You can keep hiking up the wash if you want.
[…] this we drove up to Mt. Carmel junction to check out the Belly of the Dragon. This is a neat adventure that won’t take longer than 15 […]