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| Slot canyons of the Paria River and its tributaries.
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The Paria River flows from the foothills of the Paunsaugunt Plateau near Bryce Canyon in Utah to the Colorado River at Lees Ferry in Arizona. It is the main drainage of the western part of the Grand-Staircase Escalante National Monument and while it has fewer good side canyons than the better known Escalante River system to the east, there is still plenty to explore. The lower end of the river from the state border southwards is now within the new Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. In particular, the Paria is famous for its tributary the Buckskin Gulch - the longest slot canyon in the world. Near the confluence, the river also flows through a deep long section, and the multi day hike through here to Lees Ferry is, together with Zion Canyon Narrows, one of the two premier canyon hikes in the Southwest.
Upstream, the Paria crosses US 89 and divides into various tributaries. The main canyon is not too interesting - it is deep in places but easy and level enough for 4WD vehicles to drive all the way to the head of the valley, exiting to UT 12 near Tropic. Side branches offer more excitement and variety; two slots quite often explored are Bull Valley Gorge and Round Valley Draw plus there are other shorter canyons, less well known and harder to reach.
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