DESTINATION Generic 41 Photosets
| |
| Hackberry Canyon- GSENM, UT | | -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
| |  |
|
1 |
-
-
| |  |
|
1 |
|
| | Hackberry Canyon- GSENM, UT | | | |
|
|
Hackberry Canyon- GSENM, UT
| | |
| |
| |
| Linked |
|
none
[ show ]
| no linked trail guides |
| Partners |
|
none
[ show ]
| no partners | | Back to the past-- I had a trip planned for southern Cali but the climbing temps instead sent me north to cooler places. Hackberry canyon now in the Grand Staircase Escalante National monument was my first backpack in southern utah maybe 18-19 years ago?? I love this area and have returned here often to various spots on the map. I decided to do an in and out and do some peripheral exploration, seeking things that I found, even before I knew I would see them.
Day one--- drive up, taking the new way to Page, then onto Cottonwood canyon road, not yet graded for the season but dry and passable. I went past the Hackberry lower TH a bit, seeking an old cowboy trail taking you on top of the "Cockscomb" formation to territory between the Castle and the canyon. It was overcast, unfortunate, as the photos don't show how spectacular this area is. Went up one way, got rid of the trail as soon as I saw awesome eroded formations in the sandstone, and then football field sized sandstone domes of colored slickrock. Then the canyon below with huge ponderosa pines growing out of sand next to buff colored domes. I scrambled all over the place, a few moments route finding on steep sandstone, just having a blast. I roamed around and went back a different way, cliffing out, then intersecting the old built trail for the final stroll to the car. My campsite was nice off the road and near the still bare cottonwood trees, spring just starting here.
Day two--- Backpack on and walking the spectacular Hackberry canyon narrows, walking in the super shallow stream and enjoying the multicolored walls and the water glow. Photographer paradise, be early or late. All too soon the narrows opened up, marked by the singular tall hoodoo, and the crawl over the fence to keep cattle out. The canyon opens up hugely, with magnificent blood red walls and large areas of white sand. Who needs a beach?? The spring fed stream continues up canyon quite a ways. I've thru hiked here twice, entering at Round Valley Draw ( fun with a backpack). The upper 8 miles is dry, but after that water all the way. Cattle do graze in here at times and the trails are easy to follow, sometimes nice break from any brush. I got out of the canyon a bit on the benches and saw some new things. Frank Watson cabin is apparently undergoing some restoration. It was first built around 1912? Mike Kelsey's guidebook series "Hiking and Exploring the Paria River" has a lot more info and some interesting pictures of this cabin when it was in better shape. A little more and the canyon closed up again, some tight turns with colorful tall walls then to the rockfall--- easy bypass now on the right going upcanyon. Soon after I found a ledge overhang campsite---if I am up here it is my preferred place to camp, up to see out more and to get more light in the cooler months rather than in the canyon depths.
I was cowboy camping so set up then took a day pack to do a little local exploration. Located a lower cattle access trail and went up that, just excellent views down into the canyon and the country above. Downcanyon the sandstone is red up here it is more buff to white colored. Back at camp the night was good; the wind came up however I had a pretty good shelter.
Day three---Left my base camp with my day pack. Located an old Indian/ cowboy trail out of the canyon on the other side. This isn't written about anywhere I know of. A sandstone face had petroglyphs, then cowboy writings below from the 20's and 30's from several generations of prominent ranching families still in the area. A wonderful slickrock chute with clear pools dropped down and I got up this, then a short ridgeline almost stairlike to the base of a hoodoo. Pottery shards and chippings in the area.
I love finding little things like this, the past revisited the common denominator the land we walk on and use.
Back into the canyon, walked up Stone Donkey canyon like forever, windy and with the blowing sand not a lot of pics here. It is a pretty canyon and terminates in a really skinny slot. Guidebook writers Mike Kelsey and Todd Martin have written this up as a technical slot but you can upclimb it to the big drop in. I had tried this before but it had a lot of cold pools so I didn't go far. This time I had a headlamp, left my pack and just the camera around my neck. Got dark quick with just licks of light here and there. Some small upclimbs. I have a fear of heights but narrow cracks like this I love as you can have four points of contact while chimmneying or stemming and it makes me feel very secure. I was making fair progress when my headlamp died, I had batteries back at base camp. So I turned around and at every dark small drop flashed the camera to see where to put my hands and feet, it worked but destroyed my night vision.
Back to camp, then packed up and moved it down the canyon to get closer to the narrows for more photography. The wind was very annoying so I tucked myself under a low tree and in brush, cleared out as a lay up for cows, kicked out the cow pies and set up. The wind was bending the vegetation down and I was heating up water on the stove and had nary a gust.
Day four-- Leisurely morning hiking out, taking a different track, more pics of course, and listening to the birds and enjoying the quiet. The Toyota was waiting patiently, and as I got ready for the drive home, wished for an early retirement so I can do more of these things and not be hampered by time and responsibility. I can see myself loading up the car and staying out in places like these for a month or more. The hermit lady. That would be fine by me. |
| _____________________
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Route Editor
Route Scout
