When we were staying in Kanab, UT, we kept seeing travel flyers for a tunnel called Belly of the Dragon. The Belly of the Dragon is a short but interesting-looking drainage tunnel that goes under Highway 89 near Mount Carmel Junction in Utah. After a quick research, it looked interesting but not enough for us to change our already packed schedule around. On our last day, our adventure to the Moqui Caverns was much shorter than we anticipated. This gave us plenty of time for another adventure. Since the Belly of the Dragon is only about 11 miles from the caves, we decided to go check it out.
Note: Please make sure to respect this beautiful place and the surround areas. Always practice LEAVE NO TRACE. This means no loud music, no graffiti, no carving in sandstone walls and pack out what you pack in! Please help us protect this place for generations to come!
Stats
Where
Belly of the Dragon’s Entrance:
37°12’41.9″N 112°41’05.9″W
Parking
There is a small dirt parking in front of the entrance
Restroom
There is no restroom
Fee
Free
Weather
Distance
Probably less than 0.5 miles through the tunnel and back.
Elevation Gain
Nothing notable
Level
Easy, however, there is a 5ft – ish drop at the entrance to the tunnel. The floor of the tunnel is also rocky and uneven.
Time:
15 – 30 mins
Pet-friendly
You can bring your pets.
Ideal Weather
You can do this year-round. However, there might be snow and ice in the Winter.
Ideal Time
Time of the day doesn’t matter too much here, as long as you. have some sort of daylight outside.
Video
The Adventure
Getting There
The Belly of the Dragon is about 16 miles outside Kanab, going north toward Mount Carmel Junction on Highway 89. You can either search for the Belly of the Dragon on your GPS or use the coordinates above. It is pretty easy to find. Once you get onto the dirt road, drive for about 0.25 miles. At this point, you can see the tunnel’s entrance on the left-hand side (toward the highway). There is a small dirt lot that you can park right before it. Be careful of soft sand.
Belly of the Dragon
After we parked, I excitedly followed the well-worn path over to the tunnel’s entrance. We always love caves and tunnels. Once we get to the entrance, we realized there is a short drop, about 5ft or so to get into the tunnel. It is not difficult, however, it can be tricky. The soft sand also makes this drop slippery.
Once we get down to the tunnel, it looks pretty neat. The Belly of the Dragon is a man-made drainage tunnel. However, over time, the flow of water has carved the sandstone walls into a wrinkling tunnel that resembles the belly of a beast. Since it is a drainage tunnel, the chance of flash flooding is pretty high. It is a good idea to stay out of this tunnel in rainy, wet weather.
The entrance of the tunnel looks quite creepy. The floor is uneven and can be slippery in some spots. Unfortunately, all the carvings on the sandstone walls have ruined the effect of this cool place. If you go, please DO NOT carve on the walls!
It gets pretty dark in the middle. Therefore, we recommend bringing a flashlight with you. Since the tunnel is super short, you can use your phone’s light as well. If you’re up for it, you can actually continue along the wash after exit out of the tunnel. The trail ends at a small slot canyon after 4 miles. We were spent from our week of action-packed adventure so we didn’t go all the way.
Belly of the Dragon is a super short and neat stop if you’re visiting Kanab or just driving through highway 89. However, it was a bit underwhelming for us. So, we don’t recommend planning your trip around this stop. You can always combine Belly of the Dragon and Moqui Caverns together.
These are the gear that we personally use and find them helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
adventure gear
Good hiking shoes are recommended on these adventures. Vy uses the Merrell Women’s Moab 2 hiking boots
Dustin’s shoes are Targhee III Waterproof
Make sure to use lots of sunscreens! We use eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen, Stream2Sea SPF 30.
Face sunscreen is also important. We love these tinted, organic All Good Organic Sunscreen Butter.
You should always bring plenty of water. Vy loves the Camelback L.U.X.E.
For shorter hikes, the Patagonia Women’s Nine Trails Pack 18L is perfect to hold water and your essentials.
If you want something lighter, we love the packable Patagonia Women’s Houdini® Jacket and Patagonia Men’s Houdini® Jacket
other things to bring
- Some sort of light such as a flash light or head lamp.
- Always good to bring some snacks with you. For healthy and easy snacks, check out some of our recipes.
camera gear
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