Monday, October 31, 2011
Green River - Gates of Lodore to Split Mountain
Shortly there will be a trip report of a 4 day kayaking/rafting trip from the Gates of Lodore to Split Mountain. It was a fantastic trip. More to come shortly
4th Annual Columbus Day Hike - Zion National Park
Better late than never. I'm finally my trip journal posted.
9/10/2011, Sunday, Getting There
Our plan was to leave Farr West at 3:00 p.m., which meant that I had to be ready to go before church, which runs from 11:00 to 2:00. When church was over, I hustled home, put the last touches on my stuff and was ready to roll by 3.
My ride arrived just after three and we loaded up my stuff and we were off. Our departure time was 3:15. We drove to Salt Lake and picked up Kris's sister Natalie at the Home Depot parking lot. We left there at 4:10 and made two pit stops for fuel and restrooms. We arrived at our camp site just outside of Zions at 8 pm.
Jason H. drove up from Las Vegas and had secured a campsite for us just up the hill from where I camped out in September with the Virgin River group. Jason had his tent set up and as usual, we planned on sharing.
10/102011, Monday - LaVerkin Creek
We got up at 8:00, had breakfast, packed up, and left the campsite at 9:30. We stopped at one of the stores along the way because Natalie had gotten cold and wanted to pick up something a little warmer. We got to the trailhead at 11:00 a.m. and were on the trail at 11:30. We made two 15 minute stops. I was the first to arrive at our campsite at 2:30 and the others arrived about 15 minutes later. Our campsite is #12 which is straight across LaVerkin Creek from where we camped at last summer. It's a pretty good location and there is a stream flowing into the creek just West of our campsite. It got dark about 7:30 and the temperature started to fall as it got dark. While hiking, the temperature was pretty comfortable, a little warm during the afternoon, but not bad.
After setting up camp we pumped several gallons of water from the side stream and then I went for a short walk and jumped onto a sandbar and 1 leg sunk well past my knee. The sand was supersatured with water and though it looked solid, but damp, it was far from solid. After pulling my self out, I walked back to camp
and everyone was a bit surprised to see my leg all covered with sand. I took them back to where I jumped and did it again. This time though, it was much firmer and as I looked around for the reason, I discovered the each time someone walked on the sand, it pushed out water which made it even more firm.
We sat around camp until 9 p.m. or so. They moon came up, temps dropped and people started going to bed. I let Natalie have my bivy sack to use inside of her tent so hopefully she'll stay a little warmer.
My eats today consisted of dried Mango, beef jerky, roast beef sandwiches, a banana, apple cider, steaks, and mashed potatos.
6 Miles, 2.5 hours, ~1510 calories burned
11/10/2011, Tuesday - BearTrap and Kolob Arch
I got up at 7:30 and everyone else was up shortly thereafter. My breakfast consisted of pancakes and syrup along with a 3 inch roast beef sandwich. We are staying here again tonight, so no need to rush around putting our stuff away. Our plans call for a day hike up to Bear Trap canyon this morning and then up to the Kolob Arch area this afternoon.
We hit the trail at 9:50 and arrived at Beartrap waterfall at 11:50. Two hours for a 2.5 mile hike. We took several breaks along the way and had to cross the creek a number of times. Beartrap waterfall is at the end of a short narrows canyon. It's technically to wide to be called a slot canyon and it has a shallow stream flowing through the bottom.
It was a refreshing hike and the scenery made it worth while. We left the falls at 12 and arrived back at the confluence of LaVerkin Creek at 12:10 where we stopped for more photos and lunch. We arrived back at the camp at 1:30 and ate a more hearty lunch, relaxed, and then prepared to hike up the Kolob Arch canyon.
We left for Kolob at 2:34 and after getting to the viewpoint, we headed to the left and found a better place to view the arch. Our better angle gave us a better view of the arch and allowed us to see blue sky thru it.
We then went back to the trail and headed further upstream (North). This was the right fork of this little stream. There is supposed to be a triple waterfalls up there somewhere. We didn't find it last summer when we were up here, this time we have more time and hopefully we'll be more successful. When we arrived at the place where we turned around last summer, we stayed on the West side of the creek instead of the east. We found a way past the barrier that hindered us last time and within 10 minutes we were at the first waterfall. It was a nice scenic area and we spent a few minutes there before again heading upstream to see the other two falls.
The hike to the waterfalls was quite enjoyable. It is pretty much an obstacle course with lots of fun little challenges to overcome. Of course, anything thing that we climbed up, has to done in the reverse direction and a little teamwork went was beneficial.
The upper part of the trail was a much more difficult and Kris, Darrin and I had to do a lot of scrambling. I did find the upper falls and we sat at the base of it which was at the top of the middle falls. The lower and middle falls had similar shapes and looked like big slides. After a few minutes, we headed back down the slope and met up with Jason H and Natalie and then headed back down to camp. This canyon is a beautiful canyon and what makes it unique is the obstacles that you have to negiotiate due to numerous flash floods. I'm sure it changes just about every year.
We arrived back at camp at 6:00 p.m., had dinner and most were in bed by 9:45.
7 Miles, 5.5 hours, ~ 2849 Calories burned
12/10/2011, Wednesday - Hop Valley & Northgate
Today the real hiking begins. We hike from here to the Northgate Trail 12.8 miles away where we'll spend the night.
I got up this morning at 6:30 and had a breakfast of hot chocolate and poptarts followed by a bottle of instant breakfast made with morning moo. We left the camp at 8:30 and hit the junction at 8:45. From the junction, our trail turned South and up a significant hill. The Hob Valley is a nice peaceful valley with a stream meandering thru the middle of it. We crossed the stream several times as we worked our way south. Finally the stream petered out and we started climbing out of the valley. At the top of the ridge, we stopped for lunch in some shade and were passed by several other hikers headed toward LaVerkin Creek. Our lunch site was about 1 mile from the Kolob Reservoir road. We crossed the road and started the Connector trail which will take us to Wildcat Canyon and our campsite on the Northgate trail.
About 1 mile passed the road, the Fowers and I stopped and pumped some water out of a very small stream. We then started climbing the last big hill on the Connector trail. I was leading as we were going up this hill and had my head down just concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other. I was a bit startled when I saw a pair of boots off the side of thre trail. A older guy was standing there waiting for me to come up. I stopped and talked with him for a few minutes and found out that he didn't know exactly where he was. His GPS wasn't working and he had no food or water. The rest of my group caught up and we told him where he was and figured out where he needed to go. He had missed his trail junction and had to choices. Continue the direction he was going and then hike back up the road or go back to the junction, the same direction we were headed, and then get back on the right trail. This second route was shorter and so he hiked with us to the junction and then he took the fork that would lead him back to his vehicle. It was the shorter route and where he didn't have any food or water with him, it was a decision I felt more comfortable with.
We continued on the Wildcat trail for just a short distance and then took the Northgate trail to the south. There isn't a defined camping spot and so we didn't know exactly what to look for. We ended up hiking to the very end of the trail (about 1 mile) and then turning around and hiking almost all the way back to the junction.
At 5:00 p.m. we found a site overlooking a valley and pitched our tents. There isn't any water at this location, but according to my notes, there is water in the area. So Darrin, Jason and I gathered up water bottles and started looking around. I went back to the junction and headed East. AFter about 35 minutes, I found a
stream and filled up all the jugs I had. Darrin and Jason also fund water, but there's came out of a mudhole, so I think mine was the better choice, but either way, at least we had water to drink and cook with.
I got back t camp about 6:45 just a few minutes before dark and started unpacking and getting dinner. The lasagne was good and I was pretty hungry. It was a long day and though the point to point distance was 12.8 miles, I figure that I put on at least 17 miles with the extra hour of hiking to get water that I made and the extra
2.2 miles to the end of Northgate trail.
17 miles, 9.0 hours, 4530 calories burned
13/10/2011, Thursday - Northgate to Potato Hollow
I was up again at 6:30. For some reason, that is all the sleep that Ambien will allow. We left this morning at 8:20 and hiked for 40 minutes and then stopped for 40 minutes to pump water at the same place that I pumped last night. We then went for another hour and stopped for 15 minutes and then stopped again for 40 minutes while I fixed my feet. I think my socks are trapping to much moisture and my skin is getting soft from being damp. After fixing my feet, we continued on and arrived at Lava Point at 12:10 and stopped for lunch at 1300. Jason was a long ways ahead of us and so he wasn't with us for lunch. We found out that he stopped at 13:10 for his lunch. We met up again at 13:47 and hiked as a group for the next few miles until we reached our campsite at Potato Hollow. We made a few stops for pictures as there was some unique scenery including a burned over area that left a bunch of burned our trees standing. It was a great hike and lots of solitude.
Once we got to Potato Hollow we set up camp and Jason and Celsius (our new name for Natalie because she was always wearing hot pink, hot purple outfits) went exploring. They found this neat little grotto area with waterfalls and ferns. It made the whole days hike worthwhile. They came back and told the rest of us about their discovery and we all went to take a look. There was a lot of water in the area and so we made use of the facilities and cleaned up a bit. It was nice to wash some of the dirt and sweat off. My meals today included hot chocolate, pop tarts, morning moo and instant breakfast, Jerky, trail mix, lots of gaterade, tuna and crackers, chips, mango, top ramen soup. I also finished of my first red bottle of fuel. For Dinner I had 2 servings of dehydrated terriyaki chicken and rice and 2 cups of hot apple cider.
Once it got dark, we had four deer come visit us in our campsite.
10.2 Miles, 4.5 hours, 2718 Calories burned
14/10/2011, Friday - Potato Hollow, Angels Landing & Grotto
This is our last day of hiking. Our path will take us to Angels Landing and then down to the Virgin River at the Grotto.
We got up at 6:30 again and got rolling. I had my breafast of hot chocolate and morning moo with instant breakfast and poptarts. I need to figure out something other than poptarts, but oatmeal is definitely not a good alternative. My heels look pretty bad this morning. I decided to keep them bandaged, but only wear 1 light weight liner socks. I left the camp at 8:12 and stopped when I got back to the main trail because my heels hurt so bad. The other caught up to me at the main trail and behind the bunch of us, we figured out a way to doctor my feet. I ended up putting feminine pads around my heels which helped keep the pressure off and then I put on the liners and the heavy socks. It helped to a degree, but they are still pretty sore. We then proceeded up the hill and made our first real stop at 9:40 and started up again at 10 and went for another hour. We stopped at 11 and then again at the 2nd telephone junction trailhead. We then pressed on 2 Angels Landing. I was definitely the slow guy today because every step was painful. I arrived at Scouts Lookout @ 12:50 a took a 10 minute break. The others had beat me down my a considerable about of time. Jason was there before 12:30. I changed out of my boots and put my Keens on and the group of us climbed Angels Landing.
The climb up to the landing was pretty fast. There were not nearly as many people as there were in August. We stayed on top for only about 10 minutes and then headed back down. Once at the Landing, I changed back into my boots and headed back down at 2:15. I arrived at the bottom at 3 p.m. Jason was already there and the others showed up a few minutes after me. After getting some water, we boarded the shuttle and headed back down to park central. We arrived at the visitors center just before 5 and Jason and Darrin took off immediately to complete the shuttle. Darrin's truck was still at Lee's Pass and so I said goodbye to Jason and they were gone.
The girls and I went to the Visitors Center and looked around and then caught the town bus and rode over to the Quality Inn Campground to take showers. While Changing, I discovered that I had lost my Kodak Camera. I new I had it at the bottom before I got on the bus, so after showering, I told Kris that I had lost my camera and was going back to the visitor's center to see if it had been turned in. I walked all the way back and made it just before they closed. Fortunately the bus driver had found it and turned it in. AFter signing for it, I made the walk back to the Quality Inn and arrived at 6:10. Darin had just arrived and was showering. As soon as he was done, we loaded up and departed for dinner and gas in Cedar City. We had a nice dinner at Chili's and left Cedar at 9 p.m. and arrived home at 1 p.m.
10.3 Miles, 4.0 hours, 2257 Calories burned
Trip Totals: Miles = 50.5; Hiking Time = 25.5; Calories burned = 13864
9/10/2011, Sunday, Getting There
Our plan was to leave Farr West at 3:00 p.m., which meant that I had to be ready to go before church, which runs from 11:00 to 2:00. When church was over, I hustled home, put the last touches on my stuff and was ready to roll by 3.
My ride arrived just after three and we loaded up my stuff and we were off. Our departure time was 3:15. We drove to Salt Lake and picked up Kris's sister Natalie at the Home Depot parking lot. We left there at 4:10 and made two pit stops for fuel and restrooms. We arrived at our camp site just outside of Zions at 8 pm.
Jason H. drove up from Las Vegas and had secured a campsite for us just up the hill from where I camped out in September with the Virgin River group. Jason had his tent set up and as usual, we planned on sharing.
10/102011, Monday - LaVerkin Creek
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| The Motley Crew: Natalie, Darin, Kris, Jason, Dale |
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| LaVerkin Creek Trail |
and everyone was a bit surprised to see my leg all covered with sand. I took them back to where I jumped and did it again. This time though, it was much firmer and as I looked around for the reason, I discovered the each time someone walked on the sand, it pushed out water which made it even more firm.
 |
| The mud pit |
We sat around camp until 9 p.m. or so. They moon came up, temps dropped and people started going to bed. I let Natalie have my bivy sack to use inside of her tent so hopefully she'll stay a little warmer.
 |
| LaVerkin Creek near our campsite |
6 Miles, 2.5 hours, ~1510 calories burned
11/10/2011, Tuesday - BearTrap and Kolob Arch
I got up at 7:30 and everyone else was up shortly thereafter. My breakfast consisted of pancakes and syrup along with a 3 inch roast beef sandwich. We are staying here again tonight, so no need to rush around putting our stuff away. Our plans call for a day hike up to Bear Trap canyon this morning and then up to the Kolob Arch area this afternoon.
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| Homemade? Pancakes and syrup |
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| Mouth of Bear Trap Narrows |
Bear Trap Waterfall
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| Kolob Arch |
The hike to the waterfalls was quite enjoyable. It is pretty much an obstacle course with lots of fun little challenges to overcome. Of course, anything thing that we climbed up, has to done in the reverse direction and a little teamwork went was beneficial.
The upper part of the trail was a much more difficult and Kris, Darrin and I had to do a lot of scrambling. I did find the upper falls and we sat at the base of it which was at the top of the middle falls. The lower and middle falls had similar shapes and looked like big slides. After a few minutes, we headed back down the slope and met up with Jason H and Natalie and then headed back down to camp. This canyon is a beautiful canyon and what makes it unique is the obstacles that you have to negiotiate due to numerous flash floods. I'm sure it changes just about every year.
We arrived back at camp at 6:00 p.m., had dinner and most were in bed by 9:45.
7 Miles, 5.5 hours, ~ 2849 Calories burned
12/10/2011, Wednesday - Hop Valley & Northgate
Today the real hiking begins. We hike from here to the Northgate Trail 12.8 miles away where we'll spend the night.
I got up this morning at 6:30 and had a breakfast of hot chocolate and poptarts followed by a bottle of instant breakfast made with morning moo. We left the camp at 8:30 and hit the junction at 8:45. From the junction, our trail turned South and up a significant hill. The Hob Valley is a nice peaceful valley with a stream meandering thru the middle of it. We crossed the stream several times as we worked our way south. Finally the stream petered out and we started climbing out of the valley. At the top of the ridge, we stopped for lunch in some shade and were passed by several other hikers headed toward LaVerkin Creek. Our lunch site was about 1 mile from the Kolob Reservoir road. We crossed the road and started the Connector trail which will take us to Wildcat Canyon and our campsite on the Northgate trail.
About 1 mile passed the road, the Fowers and I stopped and pumped some water out of a very small stream. We then started climbing the last big hill on the Connector trail. I was leading as we were going up this hill and had my head down just concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other. I was a bit startled when I saw a pair of boots off the side of thre trail. A older guy was standing there waiting for me to come up. I stopped and talked with him for a few minutes and found out that he didn't know exactly where he was. His GPS wasn't working and he had no food or water. The rest of my group caught up and we told him where he was and figured out where he needed to go. He had missed his trail junction and had to choices. Continue the direction he was going and then hike back up the road or go back to the junction, the same direction we were headed, and then get back on the right trail. This second route was shorter and so he hiked with us to the junction and then he took the fork that would lead him back to his vehicle. It was the shorter route and where he didn't have any food or water with him, it was a decision I felt more comfortable with.
We continued on the Wildcat trail for just a short distance and then took the Northgate trail to the south. There isn't a defined camping spot and so we didn't know exactly what to look for. We ended up hiking to the very end of the trail (about 1 mile) and then turning around and hiking almost all the way back to the junction.
At 5:00 p.m. we found a site overlooking a valley and pitched our tents. There isn't any water at this location, but according to my notes, there is water in the area. So Darrin, Jason and I gathered up water bottles and started looking around. I went back to the junction and headed East. AFter about 35 minutes, I found a
stream and filled up all the jugs I had. Darrin and Jason also fund water, but there's came out of a mudhole, so I think mine was the better choice, but either way, at least we had water to drink and cook with.
I got back t camp about 6:45 just a few minutes before dark and started unpacking and getting dinner. The lasagne was good and I was pretty hungry. It was a long day and though the point to point distance was 12.8 miles, I figure that I put on at least 17 miles with the extra hour of hiking to get water that I made and the extra
2.2 miles to the end of Northgate trail.
17 miles, 9.0 hours, 4530 calories burned
13/10/2011, Thursday - Northgate to Potato Hollow
I was up again at 6:30. For some reason, that is all the sleep that Ambien will allow. We left this morning at 8:20 and hiked for 40 minutes and then stopped for 40 minutes to pump water at the same place that I pumped last night. We then went for another hour and stopped for 15 minutes and then stopped again for 40 minutes while I fixed my feet. I think my socks are trapping to much moisture and my skin is getting soft from being damp. After fixing my feet, we continued on and arrived at Lava Point at 12:10 and stopped for lunch at 1300. Jason was a long ways ahead of us and so he wasn't with us for lunch. We found out that he stopped at 13:10 for his lunch. We met up again at 13:47 and hiked as a group for the next few miles until we reached our campsite at Potato Hollow. We made a few stops for pictures as there was some unique scenery including a burned over area that left a bunch of burned our trees standing. It was a great hike and lots of solitude.
Once we got to Potato Hollow we set up camp and Jason and Celsius (our new name for Natalie because she was always wearing hot pink, hot purple outfits) went exploring. They found this neat little grotto area with waterfalls and ferns. It made the whole days hike worthwhile. They came back and told the rest of us about their discovery and we all went to take a look. There was a lot of water in the area and so we made use of the facilities and cleaned up a bit. It was nice to wash some of the dirt and sweat off. My meals today included hot chocolate, pop tarts, morning moo and instant breakfast, Jerky, trail mix, lots of gaterade, tuna and crackers, chips, mango, top ramen soup. I also finished of my first red bottle of fuel. For Dinner I had 2 servings of dehydrated terriyaki chicken and rice and 2 cups of hot apple cider.
Once it got dark, we had four deer come visit us in our campsite.
10.2 Miles, 4.5 hours, 2718 Calories burned
14/10/2011, Friday - Potato Hollow, Angels Landing & Grotto
This is our last day of hiking. Our path will take us to Angels Landing and then down to the Virgin River at the Grotto.
We got up at 6:30 again and got rolling. I had my breafast of hot chocolate and morning moo with instant breakfast and poptarts. I need to figure out something other than poptarts, but oatmeal is definitely not a good alternative. My heels look pretty bad this morning. I decided to keep them bandaged, but only wear 1 light weight liner socks. I left the camp at 8:12 and stopped when I got back to the main trail because my heels hurt so bad. The other caught up to me at the main trail and behind the bunch of us, we figured out a way to doctor my feet. I ended up putting feminine pads around my heels which helped keep the pressure off and then I put on the liners and the heavy socks. It helped to a degree, but they are still pretty sore. We then proceeded up the hill and made our first real stop at 9:40 and started up again at 10 and went for another hour. We stopped at 11 and then again at the 2nd telephone junction trailhead. We then pressed on 2 Angels Landing. I was definitely the slow guy today because every step was painful. I arrived at Scouts Lookout @ 12:50 a took a 10 minute break. The others had beat me down my a considerable about of time. Jason was there before 12:30. I changed out of my boots and put my Keens on and the group of us climbed Angels Landing.
The climb up to the landing was pretty fast. There were not nearly as many people as there were in August. We stayed on top for only about 10 minutes and then headed back down. Once at the Landing, I changed back into my boots and headed back down at 2:15. I arrived at the bottom at 3 p.m. Jason was already there and the others showed up a few minutes after me. After getting some water, we boarded the shuttle and headed back down to park central. We arrived at the visitors center just before 5 and Jason and Darrin took off immediately to complete the shuttle. Darrin's truck was still at Lee's Pass and so I said goodbye to Jason and they were gone.
The girls and I went to the Visitors Center and looked around and then caught the town bus and rode over to the Quality Inn Campground to take showers. While Changing, I discovered that I had lost my Kodak Camera. I new I had it at the bottom before I got on the bus, so after showering, I told Kris that I had lost my camera and was going back to the visitor's center to see if it had been turned in. I walked all the way back and made it just before they closed. Fortunately the bus driver had found it and turned it in. AFter signing for it, I made the walk back to the Quality Inn and arrived at 6:10. Darin had just arrived and was showering. As soon as he was done, we loaded up and departed for dinner and gas in Cedar City. We had a nice dinner at Chili's and left Cedar at 9 p.m. and arrived home at 1 p.m.
10.3 Miles, 4.0 hours, 2257 Calories burned
Trip Totals: Miles = 50.5; Hiking Time = 25.5; Calories burned = 13864
Sunday, August 28, 2011
2011.08 Zion Narrow's Trip
8/25/2011 Thursday: Getting there
It's finally here, the day I've been anticipating and dreading for the past two months. I'm not talking about the Zion Narrows hike, I'm talking about my colonoscopy. Yep, the dreaded day is now here. However, 10 days ago I was given the opportunity to go on a hike down the Virgin River Narrows in Zion National Park. Do I cancel the colonoscopy again? Nope, I can do both.
The morning was preceeded by 1 day of soft foods followed by a day of pure liquid diet. That evening included a liquid prescription with the sole purpose of cleansing the entire intestinal track. So I stayed closed to the white porecelin throne all evening and into the night. Finally getting to sleep sometime after 2:30. At 5:50 a.m. the alarm went off and it was time to roll. Susie and I went to the Davis hospital for my 7:30 appointment. The procedure itself was uneventful. I changed clothes, talked with the doc and staff, fell asleep and woke up 30 minutes later and the dirty dead was complete.
I even got to see some pictures, no problems were identified and I don't need to do it again for 10 years. I woke up in pretty good shape and after the docs post op visit, I got dressed and Susie took me home. I layed around for a few hours, then finished packing and about 2 p.m I said goodbye to Susie and took off.
Curt, Mark and Paul left early and the fifth guy in our little group cancelled out at the last moment so I drove down to Zion solo. I stopped at REI to get a new water filter, Mapleton to buy some food, drink and gas and then in Cedar City to eat and get more gas. I arrived at Springdale at 10:00 p.m. and Curt met me at the check-in. I finally got to bed about 11:00 p.m.
8/26/2011 Friday: Virgin River Narrows
We got up just after 3:00 a.m. and were on the road just after 4. I drove my truck to the Zion Visitor Center and parked it and then climbed in Curt's truck with the others. Curt then drove the hour and half trip to Chamberlain Ranch and the Virgin River Narrows trailhead. After making final preparations, we started on the trail at 6:30. Our first stop was at 7:15 when we arrived at Bullock's cabin. It's an old abandoned cabin that has definitely moved beyond it's prime. Behind the cabin was the remains of an old engine. It looked like it might have powered a generator, but it has also passed it's prime.
The first few miles were on a dirt road and then on a trail. By 8:30 we were in the gorge area and started doing some serious wading in the river. Fortunately the water temperature wasn't too bad nor was the flow very high. There were a lot of crossings as the trail crisscrossed the river as trails were terminated by cliffs that went right into the river.
The book states that it takes 3:30 hours to get to the beginning of the narrows. We weren't sure where the beginning was, but we thought that we were still a bit ahead to the 12.5 hour schedule.
The first real obstacle is the waterfall. It is 6.9 miles from the trailhead. The book describes it as a 12 foot waterfall and instructs you to take it on river left. We looked over the edge at river left and 'you've got to be kidding.' However, further to the left, on the other side of a rock wall, was a chute that took us up and over and then back down on the other side. We ended up just downstream from the falls.
We arrived at Deep Creek confluence at 11:25. The Deep Creek doubled the water volume. It made wading the river a bit more dicey. The book suggest 5 hours to get to Deep Creek and we were right on schedule. We ended up swimming in one area and I opted to swim a couple more times just because it was refreshing. Being in the canyon kept the temperature down, but it did get toasty as we were passing by some of the campsites.
The following video is somewhere in the heart of the Virgin River Narrows.
We passed by Orderville canyon at 3:15 which was 8:45 minutes into the hike. The book time was 10 hours so we've gained some time. Orderville canyon is a narrows canyon coming in on river left. It's about 15 feet wide at the entrance and had a small stream coming down. We passed the trailhead of Orderville Canyon as we drove to Chamberlain Ranch this morning. It appears to be a hike that could be fun at some point in the future. It does require a 50 foot rapel at the very beginning of the hike.
Yesterday, there was a cloudburst about 5 p.m. and so we were a bit anxious to be out of the canyon by 5 or so. The literature states that the time to hike the narrows varies between 8 and 14 hours. So we hoped to be out 5 which would make a 10.5 hour hike. we were about about an hour up the river when we heard the first sounds of thunder. We still had clear skies overhead and people were still heading up the river, but we were anxious to get out of the canyon.
We arrived at the paved trail at 4:30 which was 10 hours after we started. We arrived at the bus stop 20 minutes later. So it took us 10:20 to make the 15.7 mile trip. We made a number of short stops for pictures and two longer stops for lunch and to pump some water. All in all, it was a good trip. However, for Curt and I it wasn't over. We still had to drive back to the trailhead and pick up Curt's vehicle. The trip will take at least an additional 3 hours.
I shuttled everyone back over to our camp and Zion's Campground and Curt and I changed clothes and then took off. We stoppped at a restaurant and bought some hamburger's to go and then started off. We got stopped at the long tunnel and started eating our dinner. It was a short wait, so I put my sandwich away and drove through the tunnel. We stopped at Pine Creek and finished eating and then drove to the trailhead. In some places the dirt road was muddy and slick. It had already rained and it must have rained hard for a little while, but we didn't have any problems getting through.
At the trailhead, we met up with another group that was getting ready to go through the narrows. They were planning on camping at the trailhead and getting an early start tomorrow. We gave them an overview based on our experience. Hopefully it won't rain a lot more tonight.
We made it back to camp about 10:30 and after showering and cleaning up, I was able to get into bed. It was just after 11:00 when I turned off my flashlight. All in all, it was a very enjoyable day. A long day, but very enjoyable.
8/27/2011 Friday: Angels Landing Hike
Curt and I slept in a little this morning and by the time we got up, Mark and Paul were dressed and ready to go. The plan was to hike Angels Landing because they got rained out when they made the attempt on Thursday. So we drove back to the park and took the shuttle to the grotto area which is the Angels Landing trailhead. We started the hike at 8:55 and I made it to the top at 9:10. It took an hour and 15 minutes to hike 2.5 miles with a 1500 foot vertical. Not to bad. Mark was the only one of group that didn't make it to the top.
The exposure is very significant as you make your way from Scout Point to the top. They have placed chains in some areas, but the exposure to the vertical dropoffs can be quite unnerving. It seems that they've put up more chains than what they had when I first climbed Angels Landing in the mid 90s. On my first trip, there was one area that I got on the hands and knees and crawled across. No problems this year and I think it was because they had more chains.
As we made our way from the Scout Point to Angels, we spotted a bird perched at the top of the tree. I couldn't get a good picture, but could this be a condor?
It's finally here, the day I've been anticipating and dreading for the past two months. I'm not talking about the Zion Narrows hike, I'm talking about my colonoscopy. Yep, the dreaded day is now here. However, 10 days ago I was given the opportunity to go on a hike down the Virgin River Narrows in Zion National Park. Do I cancel the colonoscopy again? Nope, I can do both.
The morning was preceeded by 1 day of soft foods followed by a day of pure liquid diet. That evening included a liquid prescription with the sole purpose of cleansing the entire intestinal track. So I stayed closed to the white porecelin throne all evening and into the night. Finally getting to sleep sometime after 2:30. At 5:50 a.m. the alarm went off and it was time to roll. Susie and I went to the Davis hospital for my 7:30 appointment. The procedure itself was uneventful. I changed clothes, talked with the doc and staff, fell asleep and woke up 30 minutes later and the dirty dead was complete.
I even got to see some pictures, no problems were identified and I don't need to do it again for 10 years. I woke up in pretty good shape and after the docs post op visit, I got dressed and Susie took me home. I layed around for a few hours, then finished packing and about 2 p.m I said goodbye to Susie and took off.
Curt, Mark and Paul left early and the fifth guy in our little group cancelled out at the last moment so I drove down to Zion solo. I stopped at REI to get a new water filter, Mapleton to buy some food, drink and gas and then in Cedar City to eat and get more gas. I arrived at Springdale at 10:00 p.m. and Curt met me at the check-in. I finally got to bed about 11:00 p.m.
8/26/2011 Friday: Virgin River Narrows
We got up just after 3:00 a.m. and were on the road just after 4. I drove my truck to the Zion Visitor Center and parked it and then climbed in Curt's truck with the others. Curt then drove the hour and half trip to Chamberlain Ranch and the Virgin River Narrows trailhead. After making final preparations, we started on the trail at 6:30. Our first stop was at 7:15 when we arrived at Bullock's cabin. It's an old abandoned cabin that has definitely moved beyond it's prime. Behind the cabin was the remains of an old engine. It looked like it might have powered a generator, but it has also passed it's prime.
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| Old Motor with Bullock's Cabin in background |
The book states that it takes 3:30 hours to get to the beginning of the narrows. We weren't sure where the beginning was, but we thought that we were still a bit ahead to the 12.5 hour schedule.
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| Upper End of Zion Narrows |
The first real obstacle is the waterfall. It is 6.9 miles from the trailhead. The book describes it as a 12 foot waterfall and instructs you to take it on river left. We looked over the edge at river left and 'you've got to be kidding.' However, further to the left, on the other side of a rock wall, was a chute that took us up and over and then back down on the other side. We ended up just downstream from the falls.
We arrived at Deep Creek confluence at 11:25. The Deep Creek doubled the water volume. It made wading the river a bit more dicey. The book suggest 5 hours to get to Deep Creek and we were right on schedule. We ended up swimming in one area and I opted to swim a couple more times just because it was refreshing. Being in the canyon kept the temperature down, but it did get toasty as we were passing by some of the campsites.
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| Confluence of Virgin River and Deep Creek |
The following video is somewhere in the heart of the Virgin River Narrows.
We passed by Orderville canyon at 3:15 which was 8:45 minutes into the hike. The book time was 10 hours so we've gained some time. Orderville canyon is a narrows canyon coming in on river left. It's about 15 feet wide at the entrance and had a small stream coming down. We passed the trailhead of Orderville Canyon as we drove to Chamberlain Ranch this morning. It appears to be a hike that could be fun at some point in the future. It does require a 50 foot rapel at the very beginning of the hike.
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| Mouth of Orderville Canyon |
Yesterday, there was a cloudburst about 5 p.m. and so we were a bit anxious to be out of the canyon by 5 or so. The literature states that the time to hike the narrows varies between 8 and 14 hours. So we hoped to be out 5 which would make a 10.5 hour hike. we were about about an hour up the river when we heard the first sounds of thunder. We still had clear skies overhead and people were still heading up the river, but we were anxious to get out of the canyon.
We arrived at the paved trail at 4:30 which was 10 hours after we started. We arrived at the bus stop 20 minutes later. So it took us 10:20 to make the 15.7 mile trip. We made a number of short stops for pictures and two longer stops for lunch and to pump some water. All in all, it was a good trip. However, for Curt and I it wasn't over. We still had to drive back to the trailhead and pick up Curt's vehicle. The trip will take at least an additional 3 hours.
I shuttled everyone back over to our camp and Zion's Campground and Curt and I changed clothes and then took off. We stoppped at a restaurant and bought some hamburger's to go and then started off. We got stopped at the long tunnel and started eating our dinner. It was a short wait, so I put my sandwich away and drove through the tunnel. We stopped at Pine Creek and finished eating and then drove to the trailhead. In some places the dirt road was muddy and slick. It had already rained and it must have rained hard for a little while, but we didn't have any problems getting through.
At the trailhead, we met up with another group that was getting ready to go through the narrows. They were planning on camping at the trailhead and getting an early start tomorrow. We gave them an overview based on our experience. Hopefully it won't rain a lot more tonight.
We made it back to camp about 10:30 and after showering and cleaning up, I was able to get into bed. It was just after 11:00 when I turned off my flashlight. All in all, it was a very enjoyable day. A long day, but very enjoyable.
8/27/2011 Friday: Angels Landing Hike
Curt and I slept in a little this morning and by the time we got up, Mark and Paul were dressed and ready to go. The plan was to hike Angels Landing because they got rained out when they made the attempt on Thursday. So we drove back to the park and took the shuttle to the grotto area which is the Angels Landing trailhead. We started the hike at 8:55 and I made it to the top at 9:10. It took an hour and 15 minutes to hike 2.5 miles with a 1500 foot vertical. Not to bad. Mark was the only one of group that didn't make it to the top.
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| Chains on the Ridgeline to Angels Landing |
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| On top of Angels Landing |
As we made our way from the Scout Point to Angels, we spotted a bird perched at the top of the tree. I couldn't get a good picture, but could this be a condor?
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| Is this a Condor? |
Sunday, August 7, 2011
4th Annual Columbus Day Hike
As noted in an earlier post, the Grand Canyon hike for Columbus Day week is off, but the world's a big place and I've only seen a small part of it. Therefore:
The 4th Annual Columbus Day hike is being planned for Zion National Park. The objective is the West Rim trail starting at Lee's Pass and ending at the Grotto in the main part of the park. It is about a 37 mile trek. My plan is to pick up the permits on Monday morning and start the hike as quickly as possible, but we have to drive back up to the Kolob area to start. On Monday, day 1, we'll hike in to the Kolob Arch, Hop Valley trail junction area and campout at one of the campsites in the area. Sites 11, 12 & 13 are just before the Kolob Arch junction. If we get there early enough even the afternoon, we could hike up to Kolob Arch viewpoint.
On Day 2, I'd like to hike over to Beartrap canyon and waterfalls. This would be a day hike and we would return to the same area. We could spend a second night in the same location or move on down the Hop Trail. I still need to do research on actual campsites.
Day 3, Wednesday. Continue the hike down the Hop and perhaps get to the connector trail and over to Wildcat.
Day 4. Thursday. See some more of the sites and continue the hike.
Day 5. Friday. Hike Angel's Landing and then exit at the Grotto.
As you can see, the details still need to be worked out and permits secured.
The 4th Annual Columbus Day hike is being planned for Zion National Park. The objective is the West Rim trail starting at Lee's Pass and ending at the Grotto in the main part of the park. It is about a 37 mile trek. My plan is to pick up the permits on Monday morning and start the hike as quickly as possible, but we have to drive back up to the Kolob area to start. On Monday, day 1, we'll hike in to the Kolob Arch, Hop Valley trail junction area and campout at one of the campsites in the area. Sites 11, 12 & 13 are just before the Kolob Arch junction. If we get there early enough even the afternoon, we could hike up to Kolob Arch viewpoint.
On Day 2, I'd like to hike over to Beartrap canyon and waterfalls. This would be a day hike and we would return to the same area. We could spend a second night in the same location or move on down the Hop Trail. I still need to do research on actual campsites.
Day 3, Wednesday. Continue the hike down the Hop and perhaps get to the connector trail and over to Wildcat.
Day 4. Thursday. See some more of the sites and continue the hike.
Day 5. Friday. Hike Angel's Landing and then exit at the Grotto.
As you can see, the details still need to be worked out and permits secured.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
4th Annual Columbus Day - Grand Canyon
Now what am I going to do. Perhaps I'll delete the Grand Canyon part of the title and just announce a 4th Annual Columbus Day hike. I just finished a hike in Zion's with some young ladies from our ward, perhaps I'll plan on doing a Columbus Day hike in Zion's. There's a 37 mile trail that would be fun to do. It starts at Lee's Pass and Ends at the Grotto area of Zion near the Angels Landing Trailhead.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
The Missing Links - Finishing the Tonto Trail
I finished the bulk of the Tonto trail in Oct 2010. I've hiked from the eastern start of the Tonto at Hance Rapids to the Western end at Copper Canyon. However I missed the two little segments: the section between the tipoff on the Kiabab trail to Indian Gardens and the section between the Hermits trail/Tonto junction and the Boucher trail at Boucher Creek. Earlier I rationalized that I had hiked the equivalent of the Tonto trail because, as portions of other hikes, I have:
- hiked from the tipoff to Phantom Ranch and then back up to Indian Gardens
- hiked from Boucher Creek up the Boucher Trail to Hermits Rest and I've hiked from Monument to Hermit's Rest on the Hermit Trail.
However, after sitting in a cubicle for 9 hours a day, the appeal of the Grand Canyon got to me again. My newest son-in-law (Jake) and I were given the opportunity to hike in late February and so I applied for permits and got them 10 days before our planned hike.
My hiking companion for this hike has been in the family for 3 months. He married my daughter in December and now gets to spend 6 days in near solitary confinement with the 'dad'. Will he survive? Will I survive? About 18 months ago, a friend loaned me his copy of "Death in the Canyon." It was an excellent and book and documented a number of the accidents that have happened in the canyon. Would my new son-in-law and I hit it off, or ...
Getting there:
Our trip started off at the usual spot. My house. We loaded our stuff, and then added my wife's suitcase and my daughter's suitcase in the back of my extended cab S-10 pickup. We then put the youngster's in the jumpseats while Susie and I took the front seats. It was close quarter's to the SLC airport where we dropped them off. The girls are flying to Arkansas to visit my oldest daughter which is why I have the opportunity to spend time with Jake.
Our drive down was pretty uneventful except for snowstorms in southern Utah and again once we got inside the Park. We arrived about midnight and rather than set up camp in the middle of a storm, we opted to do the hotel thing. Warm beds, hot showers, out of the snow. Works for me.
Day 1: Hermit's Rest Trailhead to Hermit Creek Campground
We got up this morning and it was still snowing like crazy. We had our packs in the room so we went through everything one more time and then repacked. I brought two packs, my external "Trip 3" pack that I took on my very first trip down the Grand Canyon and I also had my internal frame. The internal frame pack weighs about 8 pounds while the trusty old trip 3 only weighed 2 pounds. However, as I was repacking the trip 3, I broke two of the lash points, so I went back to the trusty old internal frame. I was hoping to give up over 5 pounds of tare weight. Not on this trip!
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| Jake at Santa Maria Spring |
We went to my favorite rim restaurant and had breakfast and did some shopping. By the time we were done, the snow and let up and so we headed out to Hermit's Rest. The road hadn't been plowed yet and the snow was so deep in some places that we had to use the four wheel drive. We made it the the trailhead and there was only two cars there. Both were covered in snow. After changing boots and getting our snow gear on, we headed out. It was 12 noon.
The snow had stopped by the time we got on the trail, but the wind was still blowing. As we pulled into the trailhead, one car pulled out. We saw his tracks on the trail when we started out, but they were quickly completely gone except for an occasional solitary footprint. Once we dropped a few hundred feet, we were out of the wind and were starting to heat up. I unzipped the outer layer and took of an inner layer to cool off. I took off more at Santa Maria Springs. The trail was nearly snow free starting just below the springs and we started making pretty good time. We took periodic breaks and made it to Hermit's Creek about 6:00 p.m. We saw 4 other hikers at the Hermit/Tonto junction, but they were not at the campground when we got there. I figured that they went down to Hermit Rapids.
Day 2: Hermit's Creek to Boucher and Return
My objective for the day was to day hike from Hermit's to Boucher Creek to finish the first of my two missing 5 mile segments of the Tonto. We got a pretty early start and made it to Boucher well before noon. We relaxed for awhile, took some pictures, and then headed back. It was an easy 10 miles because we had day packs with some emergency gear, my water filter, and lunch.
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| Boucher Trail Marker |
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| Jake at Boucher Creek |
Day 3: Hermit's Creek to Monument
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| Our campsite at Monument Creek |
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| The Monument |
Today we hiked from Monument to Indian Garden (IG). It's the longest hike of the trip, but it is mostly flat with just the normal ups and downs of the Tonto Trail.
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| Break time at XXX Creek |
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| Marker at Plateau Point Trail Junction |
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| At Plateau Point |
Day 5: Day Hike from Indian Gardens to the Tipoff and Phantom Ranch
I started my hike at about 9:00 a.m. and took a picture at the Tonto trail - Bright Angel trail junction. I then started East and made several stops along the way including a stop at Pipe Creek. Pipe Creek is a nice little Oasis in an otherwise barren area. There is a nice camp site and the Creek appears to start near the trail crossing. Unfortunately my battery died while at Pipe Creek. Fortunately I had a spare, but when I pulled it out to swap, I found out that I had grabbed my cell phone battery, not my camera battery. That means I carried an extra .5 ounces for miles. And I was trying to reduce my pack weight on this trip.
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| The Oasis at Pipe Creek |
Once I got to the tipoff, I waited for a hiker to come by and asked it he would mind putting my chip in his camera and then taking a picture of me by the Tonto West sign. He agreed and so I at least have a picture of me at the conclusion of my epic journey on the Tonto Trail. Ok, I'm being a bit melodramatic, but I was happy to get the picture.
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| At the Tipoff. I've now finished the Tonto Trail |
The last time I had been from on the Bright Angel trail from Phantom Ranch to IG was in December, 1990 as part of my Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim trip with my boys and Mr. Dave. I had forgotten what a gorgeous hike it was. I don't remember a nice restroom facility at the place where the trail turns south to head up towards IG, nor do I remember crossing the creek several times. Perhaps I had been to focused on just getting out of the canyon on those earlier trips.
I had a enjoyable, quiet hike back to IG and arrived there at 3 p.m. It was nice to get my boots off and put my down slippers back on. I bought them many years ago, but decided to take them on this hike just so I could have some warm, lightweight, comfortable things on my feet as I'm putzing around the camp.
Day 6: Indian Garden to Bright Angel Lodge Trailhead
Jake and I were on the trail out of the canyon at precisely 8:00 a.m. We made a couple of brief stops along the way, and a few additional stops just to catch our breath. I picked out the location where we had the mule incident back in 1991. I thought it was closer to the 1.5 mile rest house, but it was actually much further up the trail. I arrived at the trailhead at 11:00, 3 hours to get from IG to the top. The distance was 4.5 miles and 3080 feet vertical. I felt that I made pretty good time. Jake was just a couple of minutes behind me.
After he got to the top, we walked down to the transfer point, got on the next bus and made the 30 minute trip back to Hermit's Rest. All of the snow on the road and in the parking lot was gone and the temps were very comfortable. What a difference a few days make.
After getting to the truck, we weighed our packs. Mine weighed 52 pounds. What? I went down with the same weight as I came up with. Not a chance! Then I started thinking about it. When I weighed my back on day 1, I was wearing all of my winter gear. Today, it was all in my pack. And, though I ate nearly all of my food, I went down with just a quart of water because I knew there was water a Santa Maria springs if I needed it. However, in preparation for the climb out, I topped off my 3 liter camelback because in the past I have really sucked down the water. However, due to the cool temps and the short distance, I didn't drink nearly as much of my water. So I ended up carrying out a lot more water than I should have.
Going Home:
We stopped at the Bright Angel restaurant again for breakfast, stopped at the gift shop for some gifts and souvenirs and then headed home. We were on the road by noon and arrived home before midnight. It was an excellent trip and the weather home cooperated quite nicely and we were able to make much better time.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
It's Done or Is It? A Plan to make it Official
Last October when I completed the Royal Arch - Elves Chasm Loop I also finished the Western end of the Tonto trail. In my post of last October's trip, I wrote that I had hiked the entire distance of the Tonto Trail from the far Eastern beginning to the Western end. I also noted that I had not hiked the Tonto segment between Hermits Creek and Boucher nor had I hiked the segment between the S. Kaibab tipoff to Indian Garden. However I had hiked from Boucher Creek to Hermits Rest in Oct of 2009 and I had hiked from Monument Creek to Hermits Rest in March of 2010. So although I hadn't hiked the Tonto between Boucher Creek and Hermits, I have hiked from Boucher to Monument.
Likewise I have never hiked the Tonto between the Tipoff and Indian Gardens, but I have hiked from the tipoff to Phantom Ranch and from Phantom Ranch to Indian Gardens. It wasn't on the Tonto, but I have done the distance.
When I completed the October 2010 hike, I thought that I might be finished with the South Rim trails. However, five months of cubical life can change one's perspective. In addition to being stuck in a cubicle, my 3rd daughter got married in December and so now I have a new son-in-law to break in. Hence another trip to the Grand Canyon is in the works.
Last year (Feb 2010), my son Justin, Jason H, and I put together a last minute trip down the Grand Canyon. Our plan was to hike from the tipoff to Boucher, but we were late requesting permits and ended up with permits for two nights at Monument Creek. We took them because two nights in the GC is much better than 3 days in the cubicle. This year I was also late putting this trip together, but was able to get permits for 5 nights in the GC.
The Permit: Five nights below the rim. The first and second nights are at Hermits Creek. The third night is at Monument then on to a night at Indian Gardens. The last night will be at Bright Angel Campground. It is the same trip that I had hoped to do last year.
The Hike (aka 'The Plan'):
Likewise I have never hiked the Tonto between the Tipoff and Indian Gardens, but I have hiked from the tipoff to Phantom Ranch and from Phantom Ranch to Indian Gardens. It wasn't on the Tonto, but I have done the distance.
When I completed the October 2010 hike, I thought that I might be finished with the South Rim trails. However, five months of cubical life can change one's perspective. In addition to being stuck in a cubicle, my 3rd daughter got married in December and so now I have a new son-in-law to break in. Hence another trip to the Grand Canyon is in the works.
Last year (Feb 2010), my son Justin, Jason H, and I put together a last minute trip down the Grand Canyon. Our plan was to hike from the tipoff to Boucher, but we were late requesting permits and ended up with permits for two nights at Monument Creek. We took them because two nights in the GC is much better than 3 days in the cubicle. This year I was also late putting this trip together, but was able to get permits for 5 nights in the GC.
The Permit: Five nights below the rim. The first and second nights are at Hermits Creek. The third night is at Monument then on to a night at Indian Gardens. The last night will be at Bright Angel Campground. It is the same trip that I had hoped to do last year.
The Hike (aka 'The Plan'):
- Day 1: Hike from Hermits Rest to Hermit Creek.
- Day 2: Daypack west on the Tonto Trail from Hermit Creek to Boucher and return.
- Day 3: Hike to Monument, this is a short hike and so we'll also hit the rapids below Monument.
- Day 4: Monument to Indian Gardens.
- Day 5: Tonto trail from Indian Gardens to the tipoff at the intersection of the South Kiabab and the Tonto Trail the down the Kiabab and across the river to Bright Angel Campground.
- Day 6: Hike out from Bright Angel to the Rim. We'll probably hike out the Bright Angel trail. I've done both the Kiabab and Bright Angel several times, but my new son-in-law has done neither.
If the weather cooperates and we both do well with the physical needs to the trip (we successfully execute the plan), this trip will allow me to finish both segments of the Tonto and then I can say, The Tonto is Finished. But as noted from earlier posts, sometimes our plans don't go off as expected. Stay tuned for a trip report.
The total distance for this hike is about 47 miles. The average is just under 8 miles per day with the shorted just under 4 and the longest about 11.
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