Three Falls Canyon

Story and Photos by Phillip Moore

The Hurricane area has many splendid hikes and points of interest. Within a very short drive, you can be out exploring nature. It’s a great place to visit or live. One of these fascinating places is Three Falls Canyon. The trailhead is easily found by driving down Main Street, past the Main Street Café to 400 South. The road rises a bit at the junction. Turn left at 400 South, then a quick right at 60 East, the very next road. Proceed down 60 East to the very end. The last 100 yards or so is a graded dirt road. A sign at the trailhead displays three options, depending on your time and fitness. The canyon is plainly visible, to the left. The hike begins on a dirt trail, then you will pick your way over cobbles and boulders in the wash. Use caution to avoid turning an ankle or tripping. You will notice a thick layer of black rock topping the cliff on the right-hand side of the mouth of the canyon. This is a lava rock type called basalt. It was molten lava about 380,000 years ago and it flowed to this place from a volcano located across the Hurricane Valley. The lava filled the bottom of the wash, then cooled and hardened here. Later, movements along the Hurricane Fault moved the lava flow upwards in relation to the valley floor, leaving it perched up on the cliff. You are actually walking through the Hurricane Fault Zone, a large normal fault that can be traced to the south and across the Grand Canyon. The fractures produced by the fault movements provided pathways for water to erode this canyon. This stream channel is called Gould’s Wash and only has flowing water after heavy rains. It is amazing that such a small, semi-permanent stream could erode and produce a large and deep canyon-like this. Along the hike, you will see structures associated with the Hurricane Canal. These include remains of the old canal, a tunnel, an iron pipe, and the remnants of a bridge that crossed the wash at the mouth of the canyon. The first settlers of Hurricane worked long and hard to bring Virgin River water to the valley. There would be no city of Hurricane without their sacrifice. You can learn more about their accomplishments at the museum in the center of town. The walls of Three Falls Canyon are the same formations that form the rim of the Grand Canyon, the Kaibab Limestone and Toroweap Formation. Along the way, you will pass cave-like grottos formed from the dissolving of the limestone by water. These grottos are unfortunately marred by paintballs.

This is a view of the main falls area and the end of the short hike. You can continue by scrambling up and over to the left and see the second falls up close, or make it a longer hike up the wash to the third falls. The choice is yours…enjoy your adventure.

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