'The Wave' sandstone formation in Coyote Buttes North, Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona

© Dennis Frates/Alam

Ride the wave. The Wave at Coyote Buttes

By showing you this coveted sight, we're saving you a bit of an ordeal. For a close-up view like this of 'The Wave,' a whorled sandstone formation in the northern Arizona wilderness, you'd have to navigate a rugged and mostly trail-free hiking route in typically scorching temperatures. You’d also need to have a permit in your pocket. To protect the landscape, only a small number are available, offered through a daily lottery. But maybe for you the journey is at least as important as the destination? If so, this is just one hike of many in the expansive Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, which protects more than 40,000 hectares of Arizona and Utah canyonland.