Heather was craving some more desert before things got too much warmer so we opted for a loop hike through slot canyons in the less visited portion of the Mecca Hills east of Box Canyon Road. After parking in the roadside pullout we slogged through deep wash sand, past some neat outcrops of soft-sediment deformation, to finally reach the trail that would climb up to the saddle. Here a clear day gave us nice panoramic views of the barren badlands and the Salton Sea beyond. Down the other side we followed the ridgeline and then cut down to what is left of Sheep Hole Oasis, now four palm trees and no surface water.
In the main wash we past a group of backpacking boy scouts hiking out from an overnight, the only people we saw on our hike here. As the wash narrowed we enjoyed the great exposures of slickenlined fault planes and the tall cliff with its buttress unconformitied sediments resting against multi-colored basement metamorphics. Past some neat bedrock amphitheaters, we reached the subtle entrance to the slot canyon here. As previously it started with an option to either do an awkward boulder climb or a sneaky crawl to get into it. Once past this gateway obstacle the slot was every bit as good as I remembered it with sinuous curves, multiple shades of darkness, and a complex multi-storied maze of twisting rock above. Another awkward section got us into the deceptive slot branch. This was less dark than our previous trip here but we found a nice spot in the cool shadows for a snack and break before continuing on. Though this slot was easily the highlight, the darkness prohibited good photos.
We continued up until the slot relented, then took the northern branch of the walled wash. This easily led us up out to a saddle where we could cross two drainages to reach the top of the wash draining into The Grotto. The scattered ocotillos were looking desiccated and thirsty but I did find one with unusually low flowers providing a rare closeup view.
After the one mile jaunt over the sparse landscape we dropped into the top of Grotto Canyon. We were quite surprised at how different this canyon was, presumably change driven by Tropical Storm Hilary in 2023. It still had some great scenery but there were several new rockfalls providing new challenges to navigate and the lower grotto section was completely different. Instead of a neat chamber followed by a ladder exit, the area above was filled in with rockfall such that we did not notice we were out of the slot until we were.
We were doing pretty good on time so I was interested in going down the main wash and up a slot tributary to make a loop of the hike as we had done on our first trip out here. Keith had mentioned a tricky rockfall in the slot canyon, which I was expecting, but this proved to be a more formidable obstacle that I had planned with multiple levels through loose friable climbs, ball-bearing sand, and false floors. After leading Heather to the top of the rockfall pile I decided the descent was going to be even worse for her and so we retreated to go back past Sheep Hole Oasis and on to the car. We had just enough time remaining to grab a tasty meal in Palm Desert before driving on home.
It was great to get in a ten mile hike and see the changes that had occurred. Overall though it was a much less satisfying, lower quality hike than our previous visit out here thanks to the many new rockfalls. What I had considered to be one of the best day hikes in the state has now been downgraded in my mind, but it is still a special place and a great choice to get away from people.
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