White Pocket

White Pocket is our destination today. It’s an emotional journey that we’ve done twice before. It’s 12 miles south of the Wire Pass Trailhead. Well, that is the start of the 20 miles of one lane sand road. It’s emotional because on our first time heading into White Pocket 3 years ago it was about the same time of year, but the previous December we lost our son, Max. Neither of us have many memories of the period from his death to when we were heading to White Pocket the first time. As we were driving along the 20 mile one lane sand road Marsha said, “Max would have loved driving on this road.” Where Wells replied, “Yes, but we would NOT want to be in the vehicle with him!” This was the first major healing point for us. We both could laugh and fond memories of Max flooded to the surface.

White Pocket is much like The Wave but does not require a highly sort after permit. No permit is required to go to White Pocket, but a high clearance 4 wheel drive vehicle is absolutely necessary. Without such transportation the other option is to hire a guide from Kanab to take you in. Both are viable options.

We decide to come in from the south from US 89A to reach White Pocket. It’s accessible from either US 89 or 89A halfway between Kanab and Page but the route from the south has about 10 miles of gravel road before the dreaded sand while from the north it’s 30 miles of gravel road and not easy gravel at all. From the south brings us past the Condor Release Viewing Site. We’ve seen tiny black dots way way up on the cliffs last year and don’t think it’s worth the stop to see black dots, AKA California Condors again this year. We stop just for the pit toilet, but there is an ornithologist there who works for the Peregrine Fund who oversees the Condor release program. As we chat with him we spot several Condors that are way bigger than tiny black dots. Moreover, a couple of the birds soar and get much closer! We have great views of the Condors.

On to White Pocket. We arrive earlier in the day then our previous two times here so we have more time to explore the roughly 1 mile by ½ mile intense rock formations. Area wise it’s considerably larger than The Wave. Exploring the rock shapes and sculptures lends more creativity to photograph here verses The Wave.

After several hours we head back and stop again at the Condor Release Viewing Site. There are three more people associated with the Peregrine Fund helping the Condors. The project director, Tim, and two volunteers. They suggest another location where we can see California Condors much closer. We store that information, thank them, and head back to Kanab.