Red Pine Lake, situated just below tree line, is a very popular hike in Little Cottonwood Canyon On a summer weekend, the trailhead parking lot can fill up well before 9AM! The hike is popular for good reason It makes a good 1/2 day affair to very stunning scenery Though a bit steep in spots and about 7 miles, the hike is family friendly On our last visit, we saw everyone from toddler being carried to well I wouldn't want to guess at their age, but certainly "of advanced age" Though many groups stop at the end...

Like most of the other peaks in the Silver Island mountains, Campbell Peak is a steep hike to a very seldom visited summit The peak has many routes to the summit The east side is much more rugged and requires more route finding The west side, and the approach described here, is less rugged but still has some steep and loose sections and requires a bit of route finding Though this description is just for Campbell, once on the ridgeline, also visiting Jenkins is a good option to extend the day Because of the loosenes...

Devils Canyon Nature Trail is a short interpretive trail at the Devils Canyon Campground between Monticello and Blanding This short trail makes a great "leg-stretcher" if passing through the area The campground is also quite nice, if needing a place to camp for the night This short 04-mile hike has 15 markers with information about the area On our visit, there was one very tattered brochure to use and return to the trailhead register when done with the hike The points of interest are reproduced below in case the br...

2023-10-13 — Four of us completed the route in about 25 hours Appropriately named, we ended up bypassing R2 by using the LDC downclimb to avoid pools of unknown depth as the ambient temperature was 64 degrees Fahrenheit All anchors were in decent shape

Bingo is one of the mini slots Dave found and documented in 2009 I had done Sawtooth which starts at the same trailhead, but had never gotten back to check out the others in the area Bingo turned out to be a pleasant surprise The goods are very short, but also very good A relatively short approach leads to a deeply cut and narrow slot that is long enough and provides enough difficulty to be fun, but not overwhelming The skilled can downclimb many of the drops, while the timid and less experienced may do a handful o...

How many Cottonwood Washes are there in Utah I can think of many, and at least two in the San Rafael area This one is just east of UT-24 on the way to Hanksville From the highway, the area appears to be rolling sage brush plain and not particularly interesting Up close, however, the area contains several canyons, slickrock cliffs, and relics of when the ancient people passed through and lived in the area This hike meanders down Cottonwood Wash, visiting a ruin and panel en route before circling back to the car Thou...

Note: Flash floods in 2019 have changed the canyon a bit Expect two swims, one below the second waterfall, and one below the third! Not a problem on hot days, but could be unwelcome on cool days Sulphur Creek is not an "official" Captiol Reef trail, but is an official route It is one of the more stunning hikes in the park for those interested in geology This hike has the distinction of hiking through the oldest rock in the park This hike involves qiute a bit of wading If doing it in early spring or late fall, wear ...

The Great Gallery is often referred to as the pictograph panel that all others are compared to, and the best preserved Barrier Canyon Style panel in existence today If you are interested in Native American art, this is an absolute must see The Great Gallery is a single panel about 200 feet long with about 20 images, but the hike itself visits several other panels along the way as well, making for a full day with lots to see The panels are believed to be between 1500 to 4000 years old, and were created during the la...

Ah, Sandthrax! What do you write as an introduction to a canyon that needs no introduction Well, first off, a little about the history of the canyon Steve Allen descended it back in the day, calling it Dog Gone Then, in 2001, an ill-fated group Shane Burrows, Hank Moon, and Chris Raver tried to descend the canyon They were stopped by the climbing crux, spent the night engineering a route out the side using bolts and free climbing, and reached the rim just about the time Search and Rescue were going to reach them Th...

Just south of Kanab, The Bunting Trail, part of the Kanab tail system, is a hidden gem A lovely hike with a lot to see; a dinosaur track, rock art, and expansive views The hike has a few options for distance, with the dinosaur track being the shortest I would rate the dinosaur track and a good outing for most Continuing up to the rock art and summits is a bit more strenuous, but still very approachable by most if motivated It is a popular trail, and I saw quite a few groups on my early morning visit Some seemingly ...