Hiking South Fork of Mule Canyon
Cedar Mesa
Overview
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Sat 88 | 67 |
Sun 88 | 66 |
Mon 87 | 68 |
Tue 87 | 66 |
Wed 87 | 65 |
| View Full Weather Details | ||||
|
Sat 88 | 67 |
Sun 88 | 66 |
Mon 87 | 68 |
Tue 87 | 66 |
Wed 87 | 65 |
| View Full Weather Details | ||||
Ruins - South Fork of Mule Canyon
South Mule makes a great introduction to ruins on Cedar Mesa. The trailhead is close to the highway and can be walked to if needed, making this a good choice in the winter or anytime dirt roads might be difficult.
The hike is sublime, winding up South Mule passing many ruins of varying quality along the way. One of the first you will visit is the House of Fire Ruin, which is often photographed. The House of Fire Ruin is one of the more photogenic ruins in the area and stunning to visit, especially if the light is hitting is just right!
The ambitious can make a fairly long day (10 miles) out of it to see the full canyon. The less ambitious can turn around at any point, making this suitable for hikers of all ability. The first ruins are within 30 minutes of the trailhead, so you don't have to go far to see ruins.
Ruins from a distance
Getting There
Take highway 95 to milepost 101.8, which is 101.8 miles south-east from Hanksville, or about 23 miles west of Blanding.
- Reset your odometer as you leave the highway. ( 12S 611559E 4155183N / 37°32'13"N 109°44'14"W )
- Follow this road (County Road 263) 0.35 miles to where it crosses the South Fork of Mule Canyon. This is the trailhead, with several spots to park next to the road. ( 12S 612010E 4155242N / 37°32'15"N 109°43'56"W )
Ruins - SF Mule
Route
Rock art and historic sites are fragile, non-renewable cultural resources that, once damaged, can never be replaced. To ensure they are protected, please:
- Avoid Touching the Petroglyphs: Look and observe, BUT DO NOT TOUCH!
- Stay on the Trails: Stay on the most used trails when visiting sites, and don't create new trails or trample vegetation.
- Photography and Sketching is Allowed: Do not introduce any foreign substance to enhance the carved and pecked images for photographic or drawing purposes. Altering, defacing, or damaging the petroglyphs is against the law -- even if the damage is unintentional.
- Pets: Keep pets on a leash and clean up after them.
- Artifacts: If you happen to come across sherds (broken pottery) or lithics (flakes of stone tools), leave them where you see them. Once they are moved or removed, a piece of the past is forever lost.
From the trailhead, start up South Mule. About a mile (20-30 minutes) from the trailhead, the first ruin is on the right. This is House of Fire Ruin. All the ruins are on the right (south facing) side of the canyon. Keep a sharp eye out, there are many ruins on various levels of the canyon.
About 3 miles from the trailhead, a pool and small dryfall force the trail up and out of the canyon floor on the south side. Follow the trail around the dryfall, and look for a big ruin a few minutes up the canyon on the right. It is well hidden by large trees, but a good landmark and very good ruin.
Continue up from the big ruin to the next side canyon coming in on the right. This side canyon contains Wall Ruin, a fantastic ruin. Follow the side canyon up about 5 minutes to the obvious ruin on the right (east) wall.
Continuing up in the main canyon, there are several more ruins shortly above the Wall Ruin side canyon. The most spectacular of these, Doorway Ruin, is in the next side canyon up from the Wall Ruin side canyon. Access is by going up the side canyon and traversing back to the ruin. Be careful, it is easy, but very exposed.
There is not much above Doorway Ruin, return the way you came.
Photos
Maps
| Trailhead |
12S 612018E 4155245N 37°32'15"N 109°43'55"W |
| R1 |
12S 610916E 4155922N 37°32'37"N 109°44'40"W |
| R2 |
12S 609667E 4156788N 37°33'06"N 109°45'30"W |
| R3 |
12S 608874E 4157009N 37°33'13"N 109°46'03"W |
| R4 |
12S 608546E 4157295N 37°33'23"N 109°46'16"W |
| Big Ruin |
12S 607925E 4157668N 37°33'35"N 109°46'41"W |
| Wall Ruin |
12S 607850E 4158152N 37°33'51"N 109°46'44"W |
| R5 |
12S 607461E 4158125N 37°33'50"N 109°46'60"W |
| Doorway Ruin |
12S 607125E 4158254N 37°33'54"N 109°47'13"W |