Kanab Things To Do – Attractions & Must See

Kanab Things To Do

The red rocks of the Kanab desert is a rugged and wild landscape for any visitors who come to tour the area. If you’re heading through Utah and want a scenic and adventurous place to explore, here are some great things to do in Kanab.

Coyote Butte Lottery

Many visitors come to Kanab to see the area known as Coyote Butte, located in Vemilion Cliffs National Monument. The area is famous for geological features such as “The Wave.” To enter this area of the park, a special permit is needed, which you can apply for this four months in advance online. If you are not lucky to receive the date you wanted that way, there is one more option. You can go to the Kanab BLM visitor center and take part in a lottery. Funnily enough, it is an actual lottery with the spinning cylinder and balls with numbers.

Applications for the lottery are accepted between 8:30am to 9:00am for the north section and ten lucky winners are selected 9. There are only ten permits, so if a group has four people, there are only six permits remaining. If you get a permit, it is good for the following day only. The south section is done by the same process at 10am with a new application. Needless to say, if you really want to see this area apply early online!

Moccasin Dinosaur Tracks

This trip is only recommended if you have a 4×4 vehicle. If you drive the two-mile-long sand road ,it does take some experience and skill to drive on that deep sand. Driving the sand road is more exciting than looking for the dinosaur tracks, according to some visitors. It may be more difficult than you’d think to find the tracks, and may turn out differently than photos after time spent looking around. However, it’s a beautiful area and with the right vehicle it is worth a little exploration.

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

The Kanab Office of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is worth a visit. They have nice archeological and geological displays and exhibits relating to the area. They also have a great book store with maps for sale. This is recommended if you are planning on hiking around the area. Backcountry permits are also obtained here, especially for Coyote Butte via the lottery system.

Editor’s note: The information contained on this page was compiled using real traveler reviews about things to do in Kanab.