You’ve probably seen The Wave all over social media. Its vibrant colors and rock formations make some awe-striking photos. While there’s millions of people who see these photos all the time on social media, there’s way less who have seen it in person.
Fun Fact: Only 64 people are allowed daily into the Wave. The lucky 64 are chosen through a lottery system– and somehow, we got it!
So alas, here’s everything you need to know about the Wave! What it is, how to apply for the permit to see it, and what it’s like when you finally get in.
So, what is The Wave?
The Wave is a part of the Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness. It’s specifically found in the Coyote Buttes North, which is an undeveloped backcountry area filled with stunning rock formations and slot canyons. It’s found on the northern border of Arizona, an hour north of Page.
How to Apply for the Wave
The main way people have a chance to see The Wave is through the Advanced Lottery on Recreation.gov. This lottery lets you apply for a permit 4 months in advance. You have the entire calendar month to register for the lottery. The results are announced and emailed to you in the morning on the first of the following month.
For example: If you want to go in July, then you can apply anytime in March and the announcements are made on April 1st.
When you submit your permit you get to pick 3 possible dates you’d like to go. The more dates you put in, the more chances you have of winning the lottery. The total cost for applying is currently $9 no matter how many dates you select, so you might as well pick 3 dates!
How We Won the Lottery
To be honest, we have no idea how we won! They say the chances of winning are about 5%, so luck probably played the biggest role in our results. But here’s what we did to try and help our chances (even though, like I said, it probably had nothing to do with it)
- Try, try, and try again.
- We went for about 3 years straight of getting rejection letter after rejection letter. We set a reminder every month to send in our lottery application to make sure we didn’t’ miss our chance.
- The worst dates are the best dates
- Try to pick days that aren’t commonly picked by others like Saturdays and Sundays. Weekends tend to be easier for most people, so maybe try weekdays
- Fun fact: we’ve been to a lot of national parks, and we’ve noticed they’re usually the LEAST busy the day after a holiday. Maybe this will work for this situation too!
- Group size
- The lottery chooses a maximum of 48 people, 12 groups maximum. We never travel in big groups – our group size is anywhere from 2 to 4 people. Sometimes smaller groups can be worked into the numbers easier than bigger groups. (You can choose anywhere from 1 to 6 people per date that you choose)
Alternative Options for The Wave
What some people don’t know is that there’s actually another way to get into the wave, but it takes a bit more commitment in order to do it.
There is a daily lottery, which is different than the advanced lottery in 2 different ways:
- You apply for the lottery 2 days in advance
- You have to be on a mobile device and in the area in order to do this lottery. This is because they are making sure you are local to the Wave before they issue you a permit.
They allow 16 people daily through this option. So availability is smaller, and you have to commit to already being in the area. It’s not the best option, but it’s an option nonetheless.
Our Experience With the Wave
We know we are incredibly lucky to have seen the Wave in person. It was worth the wait.
The hike itself is moderate 6.4 mile roundtrip hike. Because the land is undeveloped area, there’s no trail to follow. When they mail the permit to you, it also comes with pictured instructions on how to follow the trail. There are trail markers along the way to the Wave to help make sure you’re heading the right direction, but it’s definitely important to make sure you’re prepared and have GPS in case something goes awry.
You walk along a mix of rock and sand along the way, so there are times where it can feel moderate in difficulty. Overall, the trail is very doable. Make sure to bring plenty of water and to pace yourself.
With the limited number of people allowed daily, there are times where it feels like you have the entire place to yourselves. It’s truly a sight to take in – raw, untouched nature.
Have you guys been to the Wave? What are your thoughts on it? Let us know!