Every so often, I find a new hidden nook around here which I haven’t yet explored.  Such a nook would make an excellent addition to my landscape photography portfolio.  Lately, I finally traveled to another such hidden nook and added it to my portfolio.  This place is called the Belly of the Dragon.  Perhaps, from looking at my photos of the place, you will understand why.

This very short and family-friendly hike is located near Kanab, Utah.  It began its life as a simple drainage tunnel for the bridge above.  Thanks to the soft nature of sandstone, it has eroded into this interesting shape.  Tourists, sadly, have covered the walls with graffiti.  The graffiti is just as bad as the Moqui Caves, also nearby.  It seems every possible reachable surface of both these sites is covered with the vandalism of people carving their names, initials, and other marks.

As advertised, this short cave or tunnel indeed resembles the insides of intestines.  Depending upon where you choose to stand, you may see only a dark hole or light which might resemble fire coming up the passage.  I assume that this last take is the reason for the name, in addition to the size of the tunnel.

Thanks to a cloudy day, I found I had better light than I expected for an afternoon.  However, there were several other people also present to see the hike and the tunnel.  Since I planned to set up and shoot inside, I needed to wait for them to pass out of view of my camera before clicking the shutter.  Thankfully, people didn’t seem to want to linger.  They moved through and by me with purpose.  My perch atop one of those rises kept me out of the way.  It was ideal.

Upon passing through to the other end of the tunnel, there was a short hike beneath my feet.  At the end was a dead-end thanks to a steep cliff-face.  Upon returning to the close entrance, I found it a much more photogenic scene than the entrance by the parking lot.  So, I snapped a photo or 2 of it.

When I showed these photos off to someone I know, his reply was as follows,”I know Dune is popular right now, but did you HAVE to crawl inside a sandworm?”  I laughed so hard and furnished him with the name of the cave/tunnel.  It was simply the cherry on top.

Now I turn things over to you, reader.  What do you think of the Belly of the Dragon hike and tunnel?  Is it interesting?  Will you stop by to see it for yourself if you’re in the area?  Have you been there before?  Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.