Buckskin Gulch is a gnarly rip in the desert that cuts a ragged path along the Utah-Arizona border.

At about 14 miles, it is the longest, deepest slot canyon in the U.S., maybe the world. The narrow labyrinth is strewn with obstacles — flooded passageways, quicksand, titanic boulders and rattlesnakes. It’s been called one of the best hikes in America.
As a slot canyon aficionado, I had to see for myself.

Slot canyons, formed by millions of years of water rushing over rock, are addictive. They draw you in, squeeze you between walls often just inches apart, then throw problems at you — water, mud, debris and the nagging threat of flash floods. Southern Utah has more than a thousand slots, the most anywhere. Some are easy, some are hard. Most are too short. Not Buckskin.