Buckskin Gulch

I just finished an incredible experience. Buckskin Gulch, a tributary of the Paria River is about 40 miles east of Kanab and is considered to be the longest slot canyon in the world. It is 12 miles of twisting, turning canyon between high rock walls carved by eons of water wearing away softer rock and leaving a display of nature unequaled anywhere. The only place I have been that even comes close is the Narrows in Zion National Park, and that is like comparing a hamburger to a fillet Mignon.


I hiked Buckskin Gulch this week with some friends from up north. The idea originated with Kevin. He was feeling bad about missing the Grand Canyon hike in May because of a family trip, and suggested we do Buckskin Gulch. I must admit I knew very little about it, but with the help of Google was soon excited to go. Soon Jeff had joined our group and then his wife, Marta. Kevin's wife Cindy had previously expressed interest and now that another woman was going joined in. Jeff convinced his friend Gary to go, and that completed our group.

We planned our trip in late September, hoping the flash-flood season would be over. You really don't want to be caught in a slot canyon during a flood. Especially a 12 mile slot canyon. We met at the Whitehouse Campground on the Paria Friday morning, left a vehicle there and shuttled the other to the Wirepass Trailhead about 15 miles to the southwest along the Houserock Valley road.

We started hiking around 9:00am down Wirepass Canyon to Buckskin Gulch and from there down to it's confluence with the Paria River, a total of 13 miles. We had full packs which increased the difficulty of the hike, but otherwise it was not difficult.

There was water in places, the deepest being about three feet, and places where the walls were so narrow you had to squeeze through.

There was also a spot or two where you had to get on hands and knees, and one spot where Kevin was watching the ground and bumped his head on a log jambed cross ways in the channel.


There is one spot where you have to go over a rock jamb that requires a rope, but it is only about 15 feet and not difficult. We only took a short break for lunch, and reached the confluence of the Paria and our camping spot around 6:00pm.

There are places along the hike where the canyon widens and there is vegetation growing along sandy shelves above water line, but few are suitable for camping. There is one such spot at the confluence large enough for several camps and that is where we stayed the night. After setting up and having supper it was getting dark. Fires are not permitted so there wasn't much to do but crawl into the sleeping bag. With the help of a Lunesta, I was out like a light. I heard some snoring and tossed and turned on my skinny sleeping pad but otherwise slept quite well for a good eight hours and then only partially for the next two.



Up around seven we had breakfast and packed up and were on the trail by around 8:30 am. We hiked the seven miles up the Paria to the Whitehouse campground, arriving before 1:00pm. This section of the Paria is also quite spectacular. At Whitehouse it is fairly ordinary, but just a mile or so down it deepens and narrows into a spectacular show of nature surpassed only by the Buckskin.


After shuttling vehicles we ate lunch in Kanab and parted ways, I returned to New Harmony through Zion, the rest of the group headed back north. All in all, it was an incredible experience. Friendships deepened, nature treasured and God glorified for his marvelous creations. If you do much outdoors, you probably notice that as you grow older the ground gets harder. I was beginning to think I was too old for such nonsense, but this experience has rekindled that old flame that must have been smoldering inside because now I can't wait for the next opportunity to load up that pack and hit the trail.

Hiking Mount Holly

On Saturday, September 6th, Jillyn, Kenny and I set out to conquer Delano Peak. Delano, at 12,173 feet in elevation, is the high point for both Beaver and Piute Counties. One more peak I need to complete my goal of hiking the highest in every county.

Things went well at first, it was a gorgeous day and after a little hunting found the trailhead. We chose to take the long route, approximately 10 miles round trip with about 2,200 feet of vertical gain. There is another route that is about three miles round trip with just over 1000 feet of vertical gain, but that seemed too easy so we opted for the longer route.



The trail started through a densely forested area just above the Mount Holly ski area. At least it used to be Mount Holly. I think it took the name of Elk Meadows for a while and now I think it has become a private resort or something, who knows what the name is now. The trail is quite moderate and the going easy for the first few miles. There is a lot of down timber but the trail has been maintained recently. All the reports I had read on this hike said that this trail was easy to follow until it starts the ascent of the peak, then it is just scrambling up the mountain. I had done my research and thought I was well prepared but I made a few mistakes. I traced the route on my mapping program but forgot to load it on my GPS. The second mistake was that I read the map wrong. We came to a creek in a grassy area beneath a huge mountain we thought was Delano so we started climbing. Kenny tried to tell me we were on the wrong mountain but I didn't listen and when we were about half way up Mount Holly I decided he was right. We knew we were less than half a mile from the top but the GPS said Delano was still almost two miles away.



We decided to continue to the summit, and then see if we could go on to Delano. It was too far to go back to the trail we had left and start over. I'm glad we continued as Mount Holly is an awesome mountain. I found an arrowhead along the slopes and we sighted mountain goats feeding near the top. We finally got close enough to one group of goats to get a photo, then they disappeared down the other side which is nearly sheer cliffs. There were two other groups over on Delano. One looked like around 30 or more, the other about half that. They are really easy to spot as their white coats really stand out against the darker colors of the mountain.



As usual on these high mountain peaks the wind was blowing and it was cold enough to put on a jacket. As we looked toward Delano Peak, it seemed a little daunting. If we took the high route by staying on the ridgeline, we would have to make a scramble up some fairly steep slopes. Not that it was impossible, but Jillyn's shoes didn't have the best tread and it would be slippery, and we all agreed it would be tough. We decided to descend the canyon between us and Delano and see if we wanted to hike it from the west side. Once we reached the bottom we decided it was too much for us to tackle that day and so we continued down to meet the trail we should have stayed on longer.



It's a good thing we didn't try Delano. When we got back to the vehicle we all agreed it would have done us in. Although we didn't summit Delano, we did summit Mount Holly and got a chance to experience the high country of the Tushar Range. I plan to go back in the near future and try Delano again. I think next time I will take the easy route.

Big Buck Blog

A few days ago Ellie and I made a road trip to hike some peaks in Wayne and Garfield County. We spent the night in Hanksville, and when we arrived there we went to the local BLM office for some information. A young man there, upon learning that we were going to Mount Ellen, advised us to go early. He said that we would see some fantastic bucks, and that the herd in the Henry Mountains, of which Mount Ellen is a part, is one of the best in the nation.


We arrived in the high country as the sun was coming up, and boy did we see a lot of nice bucks! What the photos lack in quality they make up for in content. You can enlarge by clicking on the photo.

This first group had six bucks and a few does and fawns.







Then there were a few singles here and there.



And some doubles



This bunch had 13



This bunch had 14 scattered around this side hill.



Below is a closer look at one of the bucks in the photo above. It isn't very clear but I wanted to show the massive horns.



Anyone want to go hunting with me?