Lower Courthouse Wash Route

Start at the paved pullout just north of Courthouse Wash Bridge. Walk back toward the bridge, cross at the road crossing, then find the worn but faint descent into the channel. Several little paths run through the brush at the entrance. Once you’re in the wash, follow it downstream. The first half-mile is shallow and fairly open; after that, sandstone walls rise several hundred feet around the creek.

Plan on roughly a dozen water crossings. Sandy banks, brush and slickrock make the walk slower than the small elevation change suggests, and the informal tread can shift as floods and beaver dams alter the wash. Four tributaries enter from the left at about 1.2, 1.7, 2.2 and 2.7 miles downstream. Slickrock shelves spill the creek into a large pool in the lower canyon; that water-and-stone view is the standout photo stop.

Courthouse Wash is an active drainage with unpredictable flow. Don’t enter when flooding threatens. Dogs aren’t allowed in the backcountry.

This is a point-to-point hike, not a loop. The wash opens near US-191, where you’ll need a pickup or a second vehicle; arrange the shuttle before you start. The Courthouse Wash Panel is nearby but separate from this route. Its own walk is about 0.8 mile round trip, and the long tapered figures are estimated to be 1,500 to 4,000 years old, with lighter shield-like figures added later. Keep that stop outside this trail’s distance.