low_delta

I started off with a visit to the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument visitor's center that's in Escalante. I'm impressed with the centers. There are several around the monument - it's a huge place! This one dealt with the flora and fauna. Another, geology. The only other one I visited was about the human history. So I got road conditions and the weather report. Also a couple of brochure/trail maps.

My plan was to start at the Dry Forks slot canyons, then head back north and see what I could see. I drove a good 25 miles down Hole-in-the-Rock Road. HitRR is sand and gravel. usually wide, sometimes flat and straight, and usually washboarded. I discovered that anything under 40 mph made the vibration from the washboarding worse. I was frustrated for a while, stuck behind some people who either didn't have this problem, or hadn't discovered that high speed helped. I was eventually able to pass them. I occasionally hit fifty or sixty mph. After about 45 minutes, I made it to the turnoff to Dry Forks. Then it got interesting. First, this was cattle country. In Wisconsin, we're used to seeing cows. But they're always fenced off nicely in their pastures. In the west, they just roam. There are only fences to keep cattle from their neighbors' land. On the turnoff road, there was a small herd with calves lounging around right next to the dirt road. The road itself was very rutted. I was just thinking that I was glad to have the Jeep, since a normal car wouldn't have been able to make it, when I saw a little Honda come around the corner.

Dry Forks Canyon has four slot canyons. First, a hike across wide open slickrock (sunny, windy and hot) down into the canyon. I saw some people negotiating their way into Peek-a-boo Canyon, and other people just watching them. I decided to move on to the next slot. Dry Forks Canyon has a wide gravelly bottom with some sand "dunes", and low (compared to the other places I'd seen) rounded sandstone walls. As I walked down by myself, it felt like a western movie set. I expected to see some cowboys ride around the bend.

I got to the entrance to Spooky Gulch. It was very windy, especially overhead, and as I did some rearranging of my gear, and got some food, I was showered with sand. I had a peanut butter sandwich with real sand! A short way into the canyon, was a nice little section of alcoves back and forth. There were a few backpacks sitting there, and some people wandering around. With pack on back, and tripod in hand, I moved on. I only went a short way before the canyon turned left, and it was immediately clear why all the backpacks were sitting back there. I did the same, but took my tripod. There was a group ahead of me, but they turned back before too long. One of the guys who had gotten farther ahead said "it just tears your shirt up when you try to squeeze through." I found a wide spot where they could get by, and as a woman squeezed herself out of the crack, she said, "you can only get through if you're a certain size - or cup size."

It was red sandstone, which is normally very rough, but this canyon had little marble-sized protrusions sticking out of the walls all over it. It made it rather rough. Between this canyon and the next, my knees and elbows were skinned up. Spooky was relatively flat and narrow. It had a few areas that were wider but much of it was very narrow and deep. The upper areas got a little more convoluted and had some climbs. There was one spot that was difficult to get up. I had already left my tripod behind (I wasn't getting good shots with it anyway, since the light wasn't quite right), and for this one, I had to set my camera down to get up it. Once I figured it out, I went back down it and brought the camera up with me, after the practice run. Finally I reached my limit. There was a rockfall area, with only a narrow hole to climb through. I couldn't get through it with my camera - I was afraid of dropping it down between some rocks - so I turned back. There is a path to the top of the other slot, but my pack and tripod were back down this canyon, so I turned back.

I then went over to Peek-a-boo Canyon. This is a much more convoluted slot canyon, with more climbing involved. The entrance itself is a climb up a rock face, with some shallow toeholds. I got up that okay, but had trouble with the next part. There were four people ahead of me. Bob, and older gentleman, a woman, whose name I didn't get, and Pete and Lauren her college-age kids. Bob helped Lauren, Pete and the woman up, then Pete helped me and Bob up. I had to take my shoes off for this part, since Pete helped me up the rock out of a thigh-deep pool. There were four more pools. Some people were able to make it across them without getting wet, but I didn't try this. I just walked through with my shoes off. I didn't want to risk jumping, missing and getting my shoes wet, since I ended up ditching my hiking shoes. I also had my camera dangling around my neck (having left my pack outside the entrance). Not great for balance.

But I made it through. I hung out with the group for a bit until the woman's photo and video habits slowed them down even more than me. They also turned back pretty soon too. Peek-a-boo starts out somewhat deep, but then opens out into a shallow slickrock canyon. Then you climb over a pool on a narrow gap, and there's one more very narrow and convoluted section. It climbs and has some short twists and turns, and you're out again. There might be more above that, but I didn't continue.

Funny how in each canyon, there were a lot of people around for the early parts of my climbs, but after I got up higher, I never saw any people until I got all the way back to the entrance.

Since I was there, I decided to check out the third slot canyon. The main fork of Dry Forks is relatively wide, with a flat gravelly bottom. A pleasant, cool walk. A fourth slot canyon, Brimstone Gulch, is a long walk down the main canyon, and is very difficult, so I had no problem skipping it. Then it was back up the steep, slickrock "trail" to the parking lot.

I passed a road that I thought would take me to the top of the nearby mountains. It said it was 11 miles away, but I wasn't sure I had an hour for it. I wanted to see Zebra Slot Canyon. I found the trail-head. I wasn't sure how easy it would be to find my way down there, since it didn't seem marked. I had my compass, but no map. That's okay, it's hard to follow maps in the dark.

It turned out to be a well-traveled trail, and easy to follow. I estimated two hours to the safe side of sunset, so I gave myself until 7:00, then I'd turn around and come back up. After half an hour, I met a group of kids coming back up, who said the slot was about a mile and a half away. But I could make it. There was water at the entrance, but only for a hundred yards or so, and only waist deep. They gave me advice on how to find the entrance (which I would have needed), and I thanked them, and said I'd see how far I got.

I wasn't in as much of a hurry now, knowing I might not be able to get to the canyon, let alone into it. I heard some ravens crying and croaking, and found their nest. There were younguns in it, but I couldn't see them, since it was kinda in a cave. I found some interesting rock formations, and did a little climbing. If I had hurried, I might have gotten to the entrance of the slot, but the light would have been too far gone anyway. Around 7:00, I headed back up. I made good time, and got back sooner than I expected. This turned out to be fortunate.

I went back south to the Devil's Garden, and got there right at sunset. The sunset itself wasn't great (no clouds), but it cast a beautiful golden light on the rocks. I stayed there shooting well after the sun went down, then went back into town. This was the first night I skipped supper out, and just ate my bars and whatnot.

The previous evening, if you recall, included an aborted trip to see Zebra Slot Canyon in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Even if I'd had the time, I wouldn't have wanted to wade through the waist-deep water. In the morning, I decided I would do it. I knew it was a relatively easy hike down there, and I'd brought along gear for wet canyons. I wore my quick drying clothing, and made sure I had my sandals and the dry bag for my camera. Piece of cake.

For the first time, I skipped breakfast out, so I could head out of town at a reasonable time. The trailhead was only seven miles down Hole-in-the-Rock Road. An early(ish) start meant I'd be there before noon, and the light might be good. About four miles out, I heard a ding. Ding? What goes ding? My seat belt was fastened. I looked down at the dashboard. The low tire pressure light was on. I didn't feel anything. As soon as I got to a reasonable spot to stop, I got out and checked the tires. Rear passenger side was about half flat. I hoped it was a slow leak, and turned around and drove back up the road a bit. I stopped again and it was flat down to the rim. Shit.

I got out the jack and wrench. I got the wheel loosened up, but I couldn't figure out how to remove the spare from under the back of the Jeep. I read the manual, and it said there was a nut under the deck in the back. There was no nut. I assumed the rented Jeep was missing said nut. I waited for another Jeep to come by, and I would ask to borrow their nut. I waited about five minutes, and the first vehicle by was a Jeep. I waved them down. As I walked over, I noticed two things. First, that the back of their car was loaded with gear. They would not be happy opening up the floor of it. Second, that they were European. I hoped they spoke English well enough. I told them my problem, and they got out to take a look. One of them (the only one I heard speak English), showed me how to do it. There was a nut hidden under the floor, that you turned. I didn't read the manual carefully enough, and assumed you took it out and applied it to the tire underneath. But the tire hangs on a cable. You turn the nut and it lowers the cable. The guy said his Dutch van was like that. I owe him a beer - at least.

So I finished changing the tire and drove back to town. Asked at the ranger station where the nearest service station was - right in town. After more than an hour, the guy patched the tire. Unfortunately, it was more of a tear than a puncture, and the patch was sketchy at best. I couldn't really chance going off pavement with a questionable spare. In hindsight, I wish I had gone on to Zebra Canyon after changing the tire, but I really didn't know what it would take to get the tire fixed. Anyway, I could get the tire replaced the next day, on my way out of the area.

I decided to explore a bit on paved roads. I went east and north from Escalante on Highway 12. I saw more spectacular scenery. I drove up a winding, hilly road for a while, and it comes out looking over a wide valley of red and white slickrock. The road winds out beyond, with snow-capped mountains in the distance. The road went down a long way to the Escalante River, then back up to a high ridge.

I had wanted to stop at Lower Calf Creek Falls. I'd heard they had a nice (and tall) waterfall. I got a brochure from the ranger station. I could see it was in a lush, green valley. But the sign said it was a fee area, and after my flat tire, I was in no mood to be paying fees. A short way down the road was the Escalante River trailhead, so I went there instead.

Later in the day, I read the brochure, and found that they had Native American pictographs. Really great ones, too. So great, that they serve as a kind of GS-E logo. Damn, I almost asked the ranger where I'd be able to find those particular pictographs. I really wanted to see some pictographs or petroglyphs on this trip. I'd never seen any, as far as I can recall.

The trail from the parking lot went through the river. Again, I was in no mood to go wading, and I couldn't tell how deep it was anyway. I went back, crossed the bridge, and walked on the far shore until that path joined the main trail. It was a nice canyon, and it was kinda sunny. There were some interestingly eroded large rocks, and some high canyon walls. Not high like at Zion, but high enough. I ate some food on a rock by the river. Well, let's call it a creek. I wandered a bit. I went uphill toward the canyon wall, and shot some pictures that may turn out nicely. I also found some biological soil crust. I had learned about this at the visitor's center. This is where a highly specialized community of cyanobacteria, mosses, and lichens bind the top layer of soil together. This helps lessen erosion, and helps new plants gain a better foothold. Walking on it can destroy it. Of course I didn't realize I had found it until I was in the middle of it.

Looking at the map just now, I see I was halfway to a great arch in the canyon. I was just wandering with no place in particular to go, so I could easily have made the trek.

After that little walk, I drove back to town. I was tempted to stop at the Cowboy Cafe, or whatever it was called. They had a sign out advertising "the best margaritas in town." But they looked kinda crowded. I decided to try another place, that looked nice. It was really nice. Their specialty was smoked meats. I passed on the ribs in favor of the brisket. It was very good. The portions may have been a little small, but the price was excellent, so one really can't complain. It was a classy place.

As I was finishing, I really had a taste for a margarita, so down the road I went. It was a bar/restaurant. When I asked for a margarita, the bartender told me that Utah state law (I had been wondering) required that liquor be sold only with food. So I had to order some food. I got the $3 chips and salsa. Good chips, right out of the fryer, with some good salsa. Having just eaten, I didn't touch half of them. The drink was another story. They were out of Triple Sec, and she asked if she could substitute the blue liqueur. Sure. Not the sour flavor I was shooting for (I should have had her just leave it out). Let's just say they were the only margaritas in town. And one of the waitresses was having trouble that night. She had a few unhappy customers. Small-town entertainment, I guess.

I walked back to the motel, chatted with Cyn, uploaded my pics for the day, and went to bed.