Natural Bridges: Hiking to Kachina Bridge

Hiking to Kachina Bridge

Natural Bridges National Monument is a really cool area located in southern Utah. It pretty far off the beaten path, and a bit isolated but its beauty is right up there with Arches National Park. Just in a smaller version with less people! The second bridge that is available at the park is Kachina Bridge. Hiking to Kachina Bridge is a moderately challenging hike to a beautiful 210 foot wide by 210 foot tall bridge!

Getting Started

Kachina Bridge is the second bridge along the main park loop. There is an overlook at the top and access to the trail that takes you down to the bridge. The view from the top is really nice. Although, the bridge can get a bit lost in the trees and terrain. The trail to the bottom and the bridge is about a mile and half round trip and is very exposed to the elements. Make sure to have sun and wind protection as well as some good shoes to deal with some really rocky terrain on your way down!

The Descent

The hike down to Kachina Bridge is pretty fun but a bit of a challenge for those who don’t do a lot of hiking in this type of terrain. The trail starts off as a mostly standard trail with some dirt and rock cairns framing the trail. It is relatively easy to follow. Then it turns more into rock steps built into the side of the cliff. After the steps, the trail descends a bit on some switch-backing dirt trails that aren’t quite as steep but still have some elevation to them.

About halfway down the trail leads to a large rock face. (This shows up pretty well in the below video.) The path continues as you walk across and down the rock face and head towards the handrails that are attached at the bottom of the rock. At the handrails there is a ladder and some carved steps cut into the rock.

After you clear the rock and ladder there is a bit more of descent through some dirt trails before you reach the bottom section. The bottom section is more of a muddy sand with some bushes and trees scattered about. I’m sure this area fills up with water during parts of the year but around Labor day it was dry. The rest of the walk is just along this creek bed until you make it to Kachina Bridge!

Kachina Bridge

The Kachina Bridge was the most impressive of the three bridges at Natural Bridges in my opinion. It was huge structure with a thick rock forming the bridge portion. Kachina is about 44 feet wide! Some of the bridges are narrow or skinny but this one was just looked sturdy. There was also plenty of greenery around the bottom of the bridge that gave it an otherworldly feel. Like walking through the bridge was a portal.

I really enjoyed the time below Kachina Bridge and it sure was humbling and made me feel a bit small looking up at the 210 feet of height of the bridge. It was a really great place to just sit and relax and take in the wonder of nature. Probably my favorite of the whole park!

Video of the hike to Kachina Bridge in Natural Bridges National Monument

I have put this time-lapse video together of hiking to Kachina Bridge at Natural Bridges National Monument so other hikers can get a feel of what the hike is like. If you enjoy this video make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel. It is free to subscribe and you will get the latest outdoor content.

Distance and Elevation

If you don’t have the AllTrails app you might want to check it out, I really love mine. It records your progress and is a great way to search for hikes that are nearby and gives you difficulty measurements. According to AllTrails today’s hike was around 1.56 miles and had a total elevation gain of about 410 feet including undulations. That put the high point at around 6,015 feet. I was also moving for a total of 55 minutes.

Effort

The hike to Kachina Bridge is a mix between easy and moderate. It starts off not too bad on the upper trails but the then gets a bit steeper as you descend down the large boulders. That isn’t too bad but walking back up those rocks sure does get the blood flowing. The lower section end up being flat again and a nice easy walk to the bridge. So its one of the up and down hikes as far as effort but I am going to rank it as a moderate for the section in the middle.

Terrain

Hiking down to Kachina Bridge has a few different terrains as you make your way down towards the bridge. The top section of the trail is a mix of sandy and rocky terrain. Then the middle section is walking across some exposed slick rock. There is a small staircase carved into the rock and a handrail to help on the steepest sections. Once you make it to the bottom section the trail become more sandy and muddy as you walk on a creek bed. At certain times I am sure there would be water down there as well.

I would suggest a good pair of hiking boots that had plenty of traction to help with all of the walking on rocks for this one.

Access to Kachina Bridge at Natural Bridges National Monument

Natural Bridges National Monument is a bit in the middle of nowhere but the drive is really stunning. It is located on Utah 275. If you are coming from the north there is a stretch of about 40 miles (80 roundtrip) with no services. There is an entry fee at the Monument. Twenty dollars per vehicle and fifteen dollars per night to camp. The fees are collected at the visitor center and there are restrooms and several of the stops along the park loop.

Wrapping Up the Hike to Kachina Bridge at Natural Bridges National Monument

I think Kachina Bridge may have been my favorite of all of the bridges at Natural Bridges National Monument. The hike down is exciting but not overly difficult. The trail is more open and has amazing views for the majority of the hike which I really liked.

Kachina Bridge is just massive and stunning. One of the coolest rock formations I have seen and it is so cool to be able to hike underneath it and see it from every perspective. A really enjoyable hike and a great natural feature!

I have added this hike and all of my hikes to the interactive map page you can find here. If you have any suggestions for hikes or comments feel free to email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com or you can follow me on any of the below social media platforms. Happy Hiking!

Gallery of Kachina Bridge and Natural Bridges National Monument