Monday & Tuesday, June 17th & 18th
Days Off #1 & #2
Four days off!! What a perfect opportunity to hike out of Escalante--slot canyons on Tuesday and Phipps Arch on Wednesday.
When Fred is charged up to go hiking, we mean that literally.
En route, we drove around Tropic and reminisced about our summer there two years ago. We stopped at the visitor center in Escalante to ask about the condition of Hole-in-the-Rock Road (good) and the slots (dry) then checked into the motel, bought Fred a sun hat and had dinner.
A good night's sleep and an early start saw us bouncing down Hole-in-the-Rock at 6:45. By the time we began the descent into Dry Fork, the sun had already heated up its rock walls and sandy bottom. The entrance to Peek-a-Boo looked dark, cool and inviting. We scrambled up the 16-foot wall and into the bowels of the canyon. Working our way along the narrow space required sliding, slithering and scooting as well as climbing and crawling but seeing the incredible forms and colors inside was well worth the scrapes and scratches. When we were ready to leave, a family group appeared below. We waited while they entered, with the assistance of an inadequate-looking rope for the older folks, then they waited to make sure we descended without incident.
Fred ascending entry to Peek-a-Boo
Jan's turn
Ta...
Dah!!
Inside Peek-a-Boo
Spooky, shorter, narrower and cooler than Peek-a-Boo, is about half a mile further down the wash. On our previous attempt, I did about half its length when claustrophobia struck; this time, I was able to make it to where the 'slot' became a 'slit.'
Both of us had to remove our packs and Fred crawled through some of the tightest places.
Inside Spooky
Squeezing through Spooky
From Spooky to Brimstone is a two-mile slog through deep sand alleviated by short stretch where the walls of Dry Fork are only about eight feet apart, providing a brief respite from the sun. When we spotted a thin shadow at the base of a cliff, we realized we needed shade, rest and food. After "a private moment with Mother Nature, " I sat down next to Fred then quickly sprang to my feet in pain. Lots of shorts have a fly in the front; mine had a fly--the biting kind--in the seat! Some rapid disrobing released it and saved me.
Huge chockstones in narrow section of Dry Fork
The description of Brimstone as 'spookier than Spooky' is spot-on. The rock walls are much darker, more convoluted and closer to each other so less light enters from above.
Again we had to take off our packs and slide sideways through some sections. The deeper into the canyon we went, the more the temperature dropped until we eventually felt chilly. In a wide space about halfway down, we met a group of teen-aged boys (scouts?) and their chaperones on their way out. One of the leaders warned us that the way becomes 'pinchy' and reaching the end requires stemming. We had no intention or desire to travel that far and turned around about half a mile from the entrance.
Interior of Brimstone
Inhale!
The BLM guide mentioned, but did not detail, a cross-country route back to the parking lot. We found the trail and followed it, growing increasingly apprehensive about where it might take us. We were relieved when it led us back into Dry Fork at the place where one turns toward Spooky. Whew! we knew where we were and how to reach the Jeep. But we also knew we faced a long, difficult walk through deep, powdery sand with full sun and a headwind. Occasionally we encountered a bit of shade, some solid ground or a decrease in the wind; then the hike seemed momentarily more pleasant.
We reached the parking lot about 2:00 and skittered back Hole-in-the-Rock to Escalante, the in-bound trip being much rougher than the out-bound. Dinner the previous night had been too much and too heavy so we nuked frozen entrees from the grocery store in the motel room microwave. During the evening, we assessed the toll the hike had taken--hours in the sun had worn us out and the sand in our shoes had abraded our feet--and decided to reschedule Phipps Arch for later in the season.
