Parking and Trailhead: 37.08593, -111.89149
The Nautilus: 37.08971, -111.88581
This was an interesting hike. I wouldn’t say that this is a must-do adventure, but if you are nearby and looking for something to do that won’t take more than an hour, consider hiking to the Nautilus.
While on the way to Lake Powell, I stopped to hike the Nautilus. The Nautilus, is a unique rock formation northwest of Page Arizona, that features a unique spiral slot canyon experience. It’s really not a slot canyon, it’s just a very narrow spiral rock formation that you are allowed to hike in. It’s kind of neat to see, but it’s basically the only thing to see in this canyon.
The trailhead is along the White House Road. I just found a small pull-out off the side of the road and began hiking up the canyon. On my particular visit, the wash in the canyon was muddy, so I stayed up on the sides of it the entire way. Once you are at the canyon entrance, you will come to a cattle fence. There are two gates here: one on the left side and the other on the right. I went through the one on the left. I unhooked the wire gate and went on through with no problems. Just make sure to hook it back up.
Once beyond the gate, I went back towards the wash to hike to the Nautilus. Most of the trail will be just sand. It wasn’t difficult hiking by any means.
After about 0.45 hiking, I saw the Nautilus. It really is quite a unique formation that has been carved by wind and water over the centuries. You might be wondering what Nautilus even means. A Nautilus is actually an ocean creature that is a type of mollusk that has a spiral shell. Whoever named this rock formation had quite the imagination to name it the Nautilus. I probably wouldn’t have been so creative in my naming of it.
You can walk through it from one end to the other. It isn’t difficult, just pay attention to younger kids in this part because it can be slippery.
It’s really neat to see, but I quite enjoyed the colorful sandstone swirls on the inside of the Nautilus.
Please keep this canyon clean. Please do not carve your name or deface the Nautilus or other rocks in this canyon. Pick up any trash if you see any.
