Colorado City, Arizona
Arizona's northernmost community, set beneath the red walls of Canaan Mountain on the AZ-389 corridor.
Under the Red Cliffs
Colorado City occupies one of the most dramatic townsites in Arizona — pressed against the Utah line at the foot of Canaan Mountain, whose sandstone walls glow red and white above the rooftops. Together with its twin community of Hildale, Utah, it forms the only sizable settlement on the long stretch of AZ-389 between Fredonia and the Hurricane, Utah area.
For Strip travelers the town is first and foremost a waypoint: the reliable fuel and supply stop on the highway that ties the eastern and western halves of the Arizona Strip together.
The Country Around It
The scenery here is the draw. Water Canyon, reached through Hildale, climbs into the slickrock of the Canaan Mountain wilderness country with a creek, waterfalls, and canyon narrows — one of the region's most underrated hikes. South of the highway, county roads strike off across the open Strip toward Grand Canyon-Parashant and the Toroweap country.
Zion National Park's east side, Coral Pink Sand Dunes, and the Kanab area are all within day-trip range, which makes the AZ-389 corridor a quieter base than the crowded parks towns.
The Backcountry Starts Here
From the AZ-389 corridor, dirt roads run all the way to the Grand Canyon's rim.