Utah

 

Maps:

  • Software - Topo! Utah or Topo! Backroads Explorer.

  • Canyons of Escalante, Grand Staircase NM, Trails Illustrated Map # 710, by National Geographic - a must have.

  • Grand Staircase Escalante NM, Visitor Information - free map - a must have, as it provides trail #s.  A lot of trailhead posts don't have trail names, but only #s.  Order it form the Escalante NM visitor's center in Escalante, UT.  Also order free maps and descriptions of hikes in that area.

  • Escalante State Park - free map - it's actually petrified forest.

  • Codachrome Basin State Park - free map - order free hike descriptions for the Cottonwood Road as well.

  • Guide Map to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks,  North Star Mapping, $3.95 - very good map.

  • Free State Highway Map of Utah.

Books:

  • Hiking the Escalante, Rudi Lambrechtse, 1985.

  • Hiking Grand Staircase - Escalante & the Glen Canyon Region, A Falcon Guide, Ron Adkison, 1998.

  • Canyoneering 3, Steve Allen, 1997.

  • Trail Guide to Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, David Urmann, 1999 (pocket book).

  • Wildflowers of the Southwestern Utah, Dr. Hayle Buchenan, 1992.

Notes:

  • First, on the positive side: Utah is the most beautiful place in the world.  Pure and simple.  Its mountains are eye-pleasing.  The desert in bloom looks delicate and tender.   I enjoyed seeing different lizards.  In the Petrified Forest State Park, wood that became stone was very impressive; the lake in the valley had a lot of song and waterfowl birds.  Grosvenor arch was a marvel of nature design.  Most of all I was impressed by the Bryce Canyon National Park.  Last, but not least, people that I met were very friendly and helpful (as they should be in this rugged environment).

  • Escalante Visitors Center is a very good place to stop by before the trip.  They have the latest weather and trail conditions, plus books and maps.

  • I have only been to the south-western Utah on a week-long trip.   I did several relatively short hikes there.  As a general rule, there are no blazes, very rarely and sometimes deceivingly cairns and few trailhead signs.  Navigating skills are a necessity.

  • When the map shows water there may or may not be water.  All the desert rules apply.

  • There is very little air.  At night the temperature is freezing and at day time it's 100 deg. F.

  • Most parking are right off the road and unobvious.  Make sure the car doesn't sink in the sand.

 

Hike 1.  Escalante River.  Day1

 

Club: my scouting

Date: 05/15/2005

Parking: good.  Can be crowded.

Topo! Utah Trace: 1EscalanteRiverDay1_GPS20050515.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 1EscalanteRiverDay1_GPS20050515_tpo.gpx

Description File: 1EscalanteRiverDay1_GPS20050515.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 1EscalanteRiverDay1_GPS20050515.gtm

Photo Album: DrivingToEscalante_20050514;  EscalanteRiverDay1_GPS20050515

 

Hike 2.  Phipps And Bowington Arches

 

Club: Guided tour with Sean Miller (Scapegoats of Escalante).

Date: 05/16/2005

Parking: The parking is between 1 mi and 1 1/4 mi from the bridge over the Escalante River on Rt. 12 towards the town of Escalante.  It's several miles north-east of the town of Escalante.

Topo! Utah Trace: 2PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 2PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516_tpo.gpx

Printable map: 2PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516Map.GIF

Description File: 2PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 2PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516.gtm

Photo Album: PhippsAndBowingtonArches_GPS050516

Warnings: no blazes or cairns.  Quick sand in the Escalante River.  Some rock climbing involved.

 

 

Hike 3.  Escalante Petrified Forest State Park

 

Club: my scouting

Date: 05/16/2005

Parking: From the town of Escalante, go w. for 1mi. to 1.5 mi. and there will be a sign on the r. saying smth. like "Escalante State Park".  Turn and follow this road all the way to the end.

Topo! Utah Trace: 3EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 3EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516_tpo.gpx

Printable map: 3EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516Map.GIF

Description File: 3EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 3EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516.gtm

Photo Album: EscalantePetrifiedForest_GPS050516

Notes: very worth seeing.  Very worth canoeing there as well.

 

 

Hike 4-5.  Upper And Lower Calf Creek Falls

 

Club: me scouting

Date: 05/17/2005

Parking: good on upper falls, but not trivial to find; very good on lower.

Topo! Utah Trace: 4UpperAndLowerCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 4UpperAndLowerCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517_tpo.gpx;

Description File: 4UpperAndLowerCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 4UpperAndLowerCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517.gtm

Photo Album: UpperCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517; LowerCalfCreekFalls_GPS20050517

Notes: both hikes are out-and-back.  Top trace shows the back part, but the bottom only shows one way.  Thus the total distance should be doubled for it.

Warnings: saw different snakes half the way up on upper falls and half way to the falls on lower falls.  Both were huge.  Seemed to be 6-7ft long and not skinny.  Don't know if they were poisonous, but they didn't look like that - at least the heads were not large, which is typical of Rattle Snakes.  Neither one was aggressive.

 

 

Hike 6.  Hole-in-the-Rock Road and Trail

 

Club: my scouting

Date: 05/18/2005

Parking: good

Topo! Utah Trace: 5HoleInTheRockRd_GPS20050518.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 5HoleInTheRockRd_GPS20050518_tpo.gpx

Description File: 5HoleInTheRockRd_GPS20050518.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 5HoleInTheRockRd_GPS20050518.gtm

Photo Album: HoleInTheRockRd_GPS20050518

Notes: the hike is out-and-back.  Only one way is shown.  Thus, the distance should be doubled.  Notice waypoints which primarily mark the road intersections.  There are several great slot canyons that I didn't go to and the Devil's Garden, which I saw but didn't explore.

Warnings: a real off road SUV is required to drive all the way to the end plus good off-road skills.  Don't go there if rain is in the forecast.  Notice a 600 ft. drop in 0.3 mi.

 

 

Hike 7.  Kodachrome Basin State Park.  Cottonwood Road.  Grosvenor Arch

 

Club: my scouting with a couple from California

Date: 05/20/2005

Parking: good, but unobvious.

Topo! Utah Trace: 6KodachromeBasinStPk_CottonwoodRd_GrosvenorArch_GPS20050520.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 6KodachromeBasinStPk_CottonwoodRd_GrosvenorArch_GPS20050520_tpo.gpx

Description File: 6KodachromeBasinStPk_CottonwoodRd_GrosvenorArch_GPS20050520.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 6KodachromeBasinStPk_CottonwoodRd_GrosvenorArch_GPS20050520.gtm

Photo Album: KodachromeBasinStPk_CottonwoodRd_GrosvenorArch_GPS20050520

Notes: I didn't hike in the Kodachrome Basin St. Park, only camped, even forgot to put a waypoint for it.  Grosvenor Arch is not a hike, but rather a drive-to.  Cottonwood Road has gulches, in one of which we hiked.  As in the previous hikes, both hikes are out-and-back.  The first trace shows the whole hike, the second, only half of it.

Warnings: slot canyons, which is where we hiked, can have a flush during or after the rain.  During this process, water rushes through the narrow path and destroys everything on its way.  Never hike there if there is a remote chance of rain!

 

 

 

Hike 8.  Bryce Canyon National Park

 

Club: my scouting

Date: 05/21/2009

Parking: great.

Topo! Utah Trace: 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521.tpo; 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521_1.tpo

Universal GPX format from Topo!: 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521_tpo.gpx; 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521_1_tpo.gpx

Description File: 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521.doc

GPS TrackMaker Trace: 7BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521.gtm

Photo Album: BryceCanyonNP_GPS20050521

Notes: This place is the most beautiful in the world!  GPS reception that day was very poor.  The trace was very fragmented.  I kept and posted this as the first trace, but added another one where I connected the missing sections.  Even though there are 2 elevation profiles, this was one hike.  First I did an out-and-back on the ridge - the out part is on the first profile and then the loop in the Amphitheater.  Those can be done as 2 separate short hikes or one 13.75 mi. hike.

 


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Page Created: 08/11/2009
Last Update: 03/17/2011
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