Hard · Full day
The Wave (Coyote Buttes North)
The most photographed sandstone formation on Earth. Lottery odds are brutal — White Pocket is the no-permit backup.
Slow Days
Yant Flat / Candy Cliffs
Swirled orange-and-white sandstone formations comparable to The Wave — no permit, no lottery, almost no people.
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Duration
- 2–3 hours
- From the lodge
- ~50 min via I-15
- Type
- Photography hike
Yant Flat (also called Candy Cliffs) is the local secret photographers don't want spreading. Swirled orange-and-white sandstone formations carved into a hilltop plateau outside Leeds, comparable in beauty to The Wave but with no permit, no lottery, and on most weekdays no other humans in sight.
The trail is 3.3 miles round-trip, moderate effort, no real navigation challenges. The formations are concentrated near the high point of the plateau — the 'Yellow Top' dome at sunrise is the photo every Yant Flat regular has on their phone.
**Why this isn't more popular:** The road in is dirt and rough enough to scare rental cars, and the hike requires self-navigation through some sandstone domes that don't have a marked trail. Both are perfectly manageable; both keep the casual visitor away. For photographers willing to do their homework, it's a top-five sandstone shoot in Utah.
Before you go
- Dirt access road can be rough — high-clearance recommended
- No marked trail — orient by GPS or downloaded map
- Take only photos — Yant Flat's beauty depends on people not climbing or breaking the formations
Pair it with
← Back to all experiences
Ready for your yant flat / candy cliffs day?
Book your cabin and discover the area at your own pace. The trails start at the door.