COYOTE BUTTES SOUTH, 2.TOUR discovery

The details about location, permit and how to get there can be found on the page about the Coyote Buttes South, Info & 1.Tour and on info pages linked from there so I will skip that here. Less than a year after my first hike into this wonderland of sandstone I went back to one of the most fascinating areas in Arizona - and my favorite. Who ever has been there will know why. This time I hiked with a young guy from Switzerland who had been several times in the Southwest, loves to hike but had never been in the Coyote Buttes near Page. We planned our hike for the day after his tour to the famous Wave (Info & Photos) in the Coyote Buttes North.

The evening before we had talked about the Cottonwood area which is the most interesting part of the Coyote Buttes South. Both of us had specific interest in some 'spots'. He wanted to get to Cottonwood Spring and onto the plateau. I was seeking for new, less known parts - an area I call Cottonwood East and also the Cottonwood Cove which I had looked down into on my first tour from the west rim of the Cottonwood Plateau. Our considerations were easy to combine but the hike would take more than 6 hours - most of the time without any shade and about a third of it on sand. See the enlargeable map on the right and follow the line of this hiking route (2.Tour, green) counter clock wise, starting on the bottom right.

The Drive. Early in the morning we drove in a high clearance 4WD the same directions I had used on my last trip. From Page westwards on US 89, then south on the House Rock Valley Road (Note: Early 2004 the House Rock Valley Road got a road sign), passing the Wire Pass TH, to the Lone Tree TH. From there on the 'road' towards the Poverty Ranch and our final driving destination, the Cottonwood Cove Trailhead, is deep and most of the time sandy. Yes, we got stuck in deep sand but only once and the shovel I had brought came handy for a few minutes.

For detailed driving directions visit my page Coyote Buttes South Trailheads.

At the gate near the Cottonwood Cove Trailhead we parked the car, filled our backpacks with plenty of water, some snacks, map, compass and other usefull things for a long hike in a remote area on a very warm day.
Finally we stored the location of the car in the GPS and were ready for an interesting hike.



Melted Rocks, Cottonwood East area (enlargeable)


The Hike. On the page about my 1.Tour you could read: From our trailhead we hiked up a hill along the 'road' towards the Cottonwood Spring TH first. From there you have a good view around.
Facing north you can see an impressive group of teepees to your right. To your left there is the elevated plateau surrounded by teepees - like a fortress. Here we left the road, explored the teepees first and then hiked up the plateau.
We did the same this time. We hiked up a hill following the road and on top we went east towards the teepees. I call this area Cottonwood East (which is actually outside the Coyote Buttes permit area) but there is no official name for it (at least not in any maps).

COTTONWOOD EAST

The last time I had explored only the nearest teepees which are 'very nice' but not really special - too many similar teepees can be found in the Coyote Buttes.

Cottonwood East area (enlargeable)

On this day we went farther and higher up where we saw soon an interesting about 5 feet tall sandstone formation. It looks like a multi-layer pancake stack on top with a turned-over plate for protection, surrounded by many 'melted rocks'.
Encouraged by this finding we looked for more and got rewarded. And how we got rewarded!

Victory Tower (enlargeable)

There on the north side of the elevated sandstone group we found an amazing tower - about 40 feet tall (my hiking partner's guess was even more) with an incredible shape. Stunned by the view we took a short break.
I have not seen either one's picture on the net or in a book before. So we decided to name at least the tall and proud standing rock. We called it Victory Tower.

We looked a little bit more around but nothing came even close to what we had seen already so we decided to hike to our next destination, Cottonwood Spring.

View towards Cottonwood Plateau (enlargeable)

It was already close to noon and getting hotter, and a wind came up - not really what we were hoping for in a very sandy area.

Tipp: Wind carrying sand might not only give your skin an unpleasent 'peeling' but can also damage your camera (especially lenses). Keep your photo equipment protected!

So we hiked from Cottonwood East in northwestern direction to Cottonwood Spring. It doesn't seem to far but it takes quite some time to get there, hiking on sand.
On our way we saw some beautiful yellow blooming flowers.

Once in a while we looked up to watch the clouds in the sky. Were they getting more and darker? It seemed to.

COTTONWOOD SPRING

This area, our most northern part of this day's hike, is known for the location of the Altar of Sacrifice, a sandstone formation photographed by Michael Fatali. I better should say was known because the upper part of the fragile sculpture is gone and now not worth to take a picture anymore.

Are there any other interesting spots? This question motivated us to look around, searching the surroundings, and the answer is: yes.
Here you can see two of the photos I took there. Does the one on the left remind you of something?

Cottonwood Spring area (enlargeable)

Cottonwood Spring area (enlargeable)

It was time to move on to our next hiking destination - the less known Cottonwood Cove.

COTTONWOOD COVE

View southwest into Cottonwood Cove (enlargeable)

I had looked down into this valley between the Cottonwood Plateau and the southeastern part of the Top Rock during my first hiking trip, seen the many teepees from high above and the very southern end of the cove which had caught my interest.
Now our goal was to get to that end though it was a long hike in southwestern direction.

A last view north to the near seeming teepees of the Coyote Buttes North then we increased our speed following the wash in the middle of the valley. Talking about teepees - this valley is 'teepee country'! Everywhere you can see teepees in groups of two to about a dozen.

'Frosted' Teepees (enlargeable)

Small and big, shaped in almost geometrical perfection and others with off-centered peaks.

The wind had not calmed down. The fine sand was still penetrating our skin and only sometimes the moving clouds protected us a little bit from the pounding sun. Now getting closer to the hottest daytime we were glad that we carried plenty of water.

Tipp: On long hot hiking days it is very important to eat and to drink enough and on a regular basis.
Eat before you get hungry. Snack about every 2 hours so your energy level doesn't get too low. Drink often (I prefer water) to avoid dehydration. If your lips get dry you have waited already way too long. Look for shade, drink and rest.
Usually I drink some water every 15 minutes and more when I take a break and snack. On the beginning of our hike I had almost two gallons of water in my backpack and another gallon stored in the car for my return.

Fascinating stone (enlargeable)

Almost in the middle of the Cottonwood Cove we found some interesting stones in the wash. They look like a three dimensional lattice structure with 'holes' about an inch in diameter.

I had seen similar fine stone structure at the east rim of the Cottonwood Plateau. But there the structures were less multi-structured, more layered.
I assume that these stones here in the wash broke off a long time ago from a rim high above. During heavy rain the flushing water carried them into the middle and the softer rock material got washed out over time - leaving and showing now the more tense and complex structured stone material. Fascinating!

Southern end Cottonwood Cove (enlargeable)

Finally we came close to the end of the cove where a large group of teepees almost block off the very end. Hiking around them seemed to be the fastest way to pass them.

Then we stood at the bottom of the high and steep sandstone wall. Dead end? Not yet, there was a narrow section leading up a path to the left - a drainage, almost like a small slotcanyon, where flushing water finds its way down the mountain into the valley during heavy thunderstorms.

There we found another interesting geological feature.

First it looked like some black heavy plastic foil in the sandstone wall. As an geology amateur I can tell you only that it is harder than the surrounding sandstone, almost black in color and (of course) not made of any man-made material. I assume that it is a layer of iron or manganese, dating back at a time when sanddunes and/or an ocean covered this land. Yes, that was a long time ago!

Iron or manganese (?) deposits at the very southern end of the Cottonwood Cove,... (enlargeable)

...in the lower part of a steep and narrow natural rain water 'drainage'. (enlargeable)

West side of the Cottonwood Plateau (enlargeable)

It was getting late so we decided to turn around - the Cottonwood Plateau was waiting for us.

The next part of our hike would be strenuous. We hiked back along the east side of the Cottonwood Cove looking for a suitable spot to hike up the west side of the plateau to the rim.
After about 30 minutes we started the ascent. It was steep but sandstone provides perfect grip for hiking shoes. Higher and higher we got and at the rim we took another break, enjoying a last view down into the Cottonwood Cove.

COTTONWOOD PLATEAU

Brain Rock formations (enlargeable)

Soon we picked up our tour again, first along the rim and then moving east, crossing the plateau. It is the most visited spot of the Cottonwood area and provides stunning views to the hikers visiting this wilderness.

It's a true sandstone wonderland. We passed incredible sandstone structures and massive 'Brain Rock' formations. Every few minutes you can see another mind-striking gift of nature made of sandstone.

I had been up here for several hours on my last trip, so I showed my hiking partner the most beautiful spots I knew. Unfortunately it was not enough time to show him all.

Here two new photos of very interesting sandstone sculptures on the Cottonwood Plateau:

Cottonwood Plateau (enlargeable)

Cottonwood Plateau (enlargeable)

For more photos of the plateau please visit my pages Coyote Buttes South, Info & 1.Tour and Photo Collection 1.Tour.

Finally we went down on the east side of the plateau, back to the trail in deep sand and to our car. We were tired but smiling. It was a great hike in one of natures most beautiful places in the Southwest.

The drive back was without any problems and the shovel didn't get a job this time. ;-)
I remember that we didn't speak a lot at first. Our thoughts were still in the amazing Cottonwood area - slipping from one beautiful impression to another.

FYI: The hole trip from our start in the morning in Page to our return took us about 10 hours.

Final Thoughts. Back in Page we resumed the day and my hiking partner meant: I didn't think that this tour would top my hike to the Wave - but yes, it did by far. I have to come back. Didn't I promise something similar after my 1.Tour? I did.

Note: You hike on your own risk. Be aware of your ability and your own responsibility. Ware appropriate clothing and shoes, and carry always more than enough water.
And ... LEAVE NO TRACE! Take everything (!) out you brought in or hasn't been in this beautiful part of nature before you arrived.


More pages about the Coyote Buttes South and hiking:
[Photo Collection 2.Tour]
[Coyote Buttes South Main Info Page & 1.Tour] [Photo Collection 1.Tour]
[Trailheads / Maps]

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