Tripadvise: The Wave, Arizona, US

How immensely fortunate we were to be granted a permit the very same day we showed up at the Visitor Center in Kanab, Utah, to enter this most magnificent geological jewel, my God how lucky! I really hope you are given the opportunity also, should you be planning to visit.

For details on how to prepare and plan your visit, go here:

thewaveinfo

So, no, it's not as easy as showing up, for one, you will not, in a thousand years, be able to locate the place on your own, for two, you need a permit, by law, that way the amount of visitors is limited; as much of a good of an intention we human beings might have, c'mon, let's admit it, we are a destructive race, and even if it's just the impact of the un-natural rubber soles of your shoes, if not limited by the authorities, our impact would not take long to take a toll in the short term.
So, yes, we were the last ones showing up at the Visitor Center in Kanab that morning, and, Voila! (is that how you say it?.....), our names were drawn the last ones, along with other 8 lucky souls in the room.
So, with a big smile and a tiny vague map that the nice ranger ladies gave us, off we went, like little kids with new shoes, the whole crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, the jet lag, the economic impact in our pockets (money suddenly becomes just a symbolic asset when presented with opportunities like this!), all worth it now!

The hike begins at the Wire Pass Trail head, a place so remotely located in the middle of this vast and magnificent Land, that it would take a spiritual consultation and guidance from Higher Beings, to locate it, should it not have been facilitated by the kind rangers.
And even with precise directions and a map, we managed to get lost.

It all starts here

So you get there, park your 4 by 4, (you need a four wheel drive to get there), sign the sheet you are supposed to before leaving the parking lot, in case you get lost, so that it makes it easier for the rangers to locate you, I guess....?, you smile thinking that such a travesty would never ever happen to you, after all, it does not seem to be so complicated or difficult......... the hike begins.....

On the way

So far so good, you follow the sand wash, resting in the knowledge that the advise on the roughness of the terrain and conditions of the hike were simply exaggerations to add spice to this whole thing.... then you get lost. It is sooooooo easy to get lost on the way to the Wave, the little map provided by the rangers back at the Visitor Center only shows a few vague pictures of reference points that sometimes you see on the horizon, and sometimes you don't, depending on whether you have moved a fraction of a degree on the wrong direction, or not.

Once you get lost here, the whole adventure - freedom - one - with - nature feelings vanish as soon and as surely as the day turns into night.

The rangers advise to take pictures on the way, looking back, so that you have references on the way back, they did not mention what to do if you get lost on the way in, then again, they might not have imagined anybody getting lost on the way to The Wave, they clearly over estimate people.....
They do advise to stick into groups, but everyone else got a head start, as they did not get lost finding the trail head, we did..... and then we did again once we located the trail......

Getting closer now...

Luckily, we came across a couple that were already on their way back and pointed us to the right direction, God bless them whenever they are.

The entrance to The Wave

So taking as a reference the shadow of a massive crack between two even more massive rock formations on the horizon, we made our way to the bottom of where the mythic Wave abides. To climb up there was an epic endeavor of massive proportions. With already broken knees, mushed feet, twisted ankles, and every single bone hurting, we were yet to climb an almost complete vertical hill, covered on desert sand, the one where your feet sink to the level of your ankles, just for extra fun…… I do not know how I made it up there, for one up there, just when you think you can finally catch your breath and begin to enjoy the anticipation of the imminent presence of that jewel called the Wave, there is more to climb! And this time is not semi friendly desert sand, that could soften your fall, if that were to happen, this time is pure hard rock, with edges sharp as knives, and that you have to climb as if you were an expert in the art of rock climbing. I honestly will never understand how those folks that won the lottery with us that day, all of them averaging an age older than us, could have made it, I guess I under estimate people sometimes!

So with the final screams, similar to what I can only imagine is giving birth, I made my way to the top of that rock, to be greeted by the most spectacular geological formation I have ever had the privilege to visit, up close and personal. The Wave opened up right in front of our eyes, making us understand that all the effort and struggle to get up there, was worth it.

The Wave

It is hard to describe objectively, the sensations that one go under, once confronted with this majestic formation. I felt as if walking on those fragile eroded lines could break them, I felt guilty of walking over such beauty, I hope that the respect we observed on our short stay on the Wave, made our human impact minimum, and no trace of our physical presence remained in such sacred place, for only Spirit can earn the right to be part of it.

The strong wind announced the time to depart, back to more earthly settings, where we belong. For that brief moment in time, the few minutes that we remained up there, has forever marked me, and if there was ever a glitch of doubt over the existence of God, it has now been vanished forever.

Only God’s inspiration can create such magnificence.