Glen Canyon National Recreation Area · Arizona, Utah

Cathedral Wash Trail

1.6 mi of trail, end to end · Scramble down Cathedral Wash Trail: 3 mi round trip in the Service's write-up · about 50 ft of climbing · 400 ft of descent · 3,095 ft–3,437 ft · hiking

3,437 ft 3,095 ft · 1.5 mi high 3,437 ft

Scramble down Cathedral Wash Trail 3 mi round trip · the Park Service's write-up

3-4 Hours · no dogs · season During summer months temperatures can be extreme, reaching over <strong>100 ° F (38°C)</strong> by early afternoon.<strong> </strong>Do not hike during the warmest parts of the day. Bring plenty of water. Be aware of flash floods.

Start How to get to Cathedral Wash Trail Head

Two hikers descend steep lawyers of reddish brown rock on the wash trail.
Hikers descend the steep trail at Cathedral Wash. Photo: NPS

Scenic Hike

Canyon walls rise as you follow a mostly dry wash to the Colorado River. This adventure has no major technical challenges, but scrambling and careful decision-making are needed to choose safe routes over ledges and drop-offs. Named after church-like Cathedral Rock at the head of this small canyon, your journey will take you deeper and deeper through Kaibab Limestone and Toroweap Formations until ending at the river, where canyon debris created Cathedral Wash Rapid.

Come Prepared

While this hike is quite scenic and popular, please know your limits. The wash layout changes throughout the year due to flash floods, rockfalls, and weather. It is easy to cliff out, overheat, or get stuck in mud. Bring good shoes, water, and and any other hiking essentials you need. Securing ropes for technical climbing is not permitted. DO NOT enter this wash if rain is forecasted. Flash floods can be deadly.

Accessibility Steep trail descends multiple times onto uneven rock surface. Not recomended for anyone without rock canyon experience. No flat surfaces, no railings. Rock scrabbles, narrow ledges, soft sand and puddles found along the trail leading to a soft sand riverbank.

This hike on nps.gov

On the parks map

All 44 trails in Glen Canyon National Recreation AreaFind a trailOn the parks mapPark on nps.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the National Park Service's public trails layer, the trailheads and the waterfalls, views, peaks and historic places along them the Service's public points of interest, read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end. The write-ups are the Service's own "things to do" text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the park's own site before you go.