Cedar Mesa Nov 26

We awoke to a frosty morning at 6000ft elevation and once organized, set off for a short hike down the rim trail towards a neat isthmus and island of rock called the The Citadel. I carried ropes and harnesses to give us the possibility of rappelling off of the Citadel and hiking back up the canyon to make a more interesting loop hike and to take in some more ruins. However our first opportunity to peer down to the canyon bottom revealed a near-continuous chain of pools from the recent rains- at best it would be slow going, at worst it would be wet and cold. We quickly decided against the adventure option for a comparatively mellow 4 mile out-and-back trail hike. Along the rim we got excellent panoramic views over the juniper forest of Cedar Mesa to distant snowy features like the Abajo Mountains 36 miles to the north, Carrizo Mountains 55 miles to the southeast, Comb Ridge 10 miles to the east, and the San Juan Mountains over 120 miles to the east. The level trail made for excellent walking through fields of textured cryptobiotic soil and patches of slickrock with pockmarks filled with water. 

When we finally reached the end of the rim and could see the narrow band of rocks stretching out to The Citadel, I got a nice view that confirmed my lidar scouting of a rappel and downclimb route would have worked had we chosen to try it. We followed cairns down through cliff bands and zigzagged down moderate angled slickrock to the flat isthmus connector down to 30ft in width with drops of hundreds of feet on either side. We worked our way across to the resistant sandstone capstone island, and climbed up to its base where the south facing side held the very tidy six-room cliff dwelling of Citadel Ruin. It was every bit as impressive as I remembered and still highlighted the mystery of this minimally accessible, highly defensible, fortress-like ruin. What interesting lives the people that lived here must have led.

Though this area feels thoroughly remote and flying a drone probably should not be allowed, I took advantage of the legality (a wilderness study area in the BLM administered Bears Ears NM) to capture a few interesting airborne shots of the ruins, Citadel, and Road Canyon in the immediate vicinity. 

After enjoying the flight and a snack next to the ruins we walked back to the car and journeyed back out to the highway. 

We took a brief detour with Heather dropping me off at the Natural Bridges NM boundary to walk a half a mile and carry out a drone scouting flight over the White Canyon headwaters for a hopefully future hike while she discarded our wagbags. It turned out this was the first time Heather had driven the stretch of road between Natural Bridges and Hanksville so it was fun to see her reactions crossings the great terrain around the Colorado River, Dirty Devil, and dramatic views of the Henry Mountains. The rest of the day is continued in the following post for the Hanksville area where we spent the next two days.

San Juan River Nov 23-25

 

A rare week to do something together and Heather and I somehow managed to drift back to the call of the Colorado Plateau for Thanksgiving break. Early discussions involved warm and tropical suggestions but somehow we settled into the familiar frigid cold of off-season canyon country like several Thanksgivings before, the lack of people partially offsetting the short days and low temperatures. To help ease the sting we were getting used to getting cozy in the rooftop tent and I invested further this trip in a battery bank and electric blanket. We both were eager to get in some river miles this year and considered the San Juan River to be one of the few reliable options for the time of year. Two years previous we did a slushy pre-New Year's overnight on the Sand Island to Mexican Hat section of the river so we thought we could survive a longer 57 mile two-night trip on the lower San Juan from Mexican Hat to Clay Hills in slightly warmer temperatures. I had seen the middle 26 miles of this stretch of river previously on a Honaker to Grand Gulch packraft trip but the rest would be new to me. To this San Juan River trip I added a few other possible days of excursions including Cedar Mesa, Capitol Reef, Hanksville, and San Rafael Swell areas. We ended up having 900 cfs when we started on the river and peak flows of 1400 cfs, which was great overall.

I convinced Heather to rally for a 5am departure with the hope that there would be just enough daylight left on the end of the day to fly a drone over the San Juan Goosenecks and find a suitable campspot. The drive was long but otherwise without incident. Recent storm puddles in the Mojave, snow in the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff, and some sticky muddy mud as we crossed the Navajo Nation. The forecast was calling for rain overnight and in the morning, which was going to be an additional plot complication for us to contend with. I had nice calm conditions at the canyon rim above the Goosenecks and enjoyed flying my drone over this ridiculous stretch of river. We had the whole place to ourselves other than a couple campers. Due to the highly sinuous nature of the river canyon here the river takes about 6.5 miles to end up about 1.5 miles away from where it started. It was even sillier to float through. With concerns over muddy conditions overnight and having a covered shelter to get organized under in the morning rain, we decided to check out the Mexican Hat boat launch, and finding it completely empty, decided it would be the best option for us as we could literally park feet away from the shelter there without having any impact on anyone (key advantage of being off-season). We gassed up, detoured behind the Inn to look at Gypsum Creek Rapid (straightforward, no worries), then drove to the San Juan Cafe with dashed hopes of Navajo tacos (they were closed so it was dehydrated meals on the boat ramp for us). We settled in for the night, cozy, but several times waking to the patter of rain in the morning.

We got up around 7:30am with plans to be ready by 9am when the shuttle driver should have arrived. The rain was more persistent than forecast so the shelters were a godsend for us to hide under and get organized. We were ready at 9am but the shuttle driver did not appear until 9:30am...when the rain was worse. The shuttle driver took the car and we were left trying to decide if we could wait out the river or should jump on the river. We waited fully until 11:15am to push off (shivering with all my warm layers packed away); in hindsight we would have been better off just starting right away as I was warmer paddling on the water despite the rain. Gypsum Rapid was a breeze and we quickly passed the last signs of town into the canyon. We had lots of miles to try to make up for our later start and the weather was not really conducive to side hikes so we largely just carried on other than me needing to stop every 20 minutes to reinflate my seat. With moderate paddling we averaged about 4 miles per hour the first two days. Through several twisty bends we paddled until an overhang provided a nice spot for a quick snack. From here we got our first of many views of the Gooseneck State Park lookout on the canyon's rim as we paddled towards it, then away, then towards, then away, a thoroughly silly way to spend an hour. Along the way we enjoyed ephemeral waterfalls and saw four beavers and a raccoon. 

At Mile 18 I pointed out the Honaker Trail on river right, at first and second glances an impossible set of cliffs but after we could pick out the series of ledges and stacked rocks connecting them that switchbacked from the rim to the river. We never did see the sun but the rain did stop at least. The day was getting on and it was getting clear it would be a hard and unpleasant push to try to make it to Ross Rapids Camp at Mile 26 so Heather managed to convince me to stop at Twin Canyon Camp at Mile 22 at 4pm. Just before was the first little rapid with a dramatic horizonline that made for a engaging read-and-run. This camp had an awkward climb out of the banks at this water level, but after that we had a nice spot to leave our boats and a short distance upward to a nice sandy tent spot. Although this was only about 25 feet vertical above the river, it was many degrees warmer. We got changed into warm dry clothes, pitched the tent, and settled into dinner and canned margaritas. I brought us each a pair of down booties, Heather with plastic overshoes and me with gallon plastic bags and hairties, certainly luxury over fashion. Even before dark the dew was horrendous and moisture began to material on every exposed object. We settled in to watch a show on a phone in the tent and slept warm if not completely comfortable due to a slow leaking air mattress. We paddled 21.7 miles over 4.8 hours, averaging about 4.5 mph.

Day 2 we awoke with every wet that was left out, which slowed us down a bit. The river was up quite noticeably at the banks, now swelling to about 1400 cfs as the result of the passed storm. We hoped for a sunny start but the sun did not appear until 11am. At the first reliable sun I stopped to repair my seat with UV curing AquaSeal, truly a marvel considering the short time it took and that it held for the remainder of the trip. Overall this was the most interesting day of the trip with a couple named rapids and many other riffles. The canyon had more variety and we both enjoyed the riffles that cut tight against a cliff. Ross Rapid was straightforward and overall probably less spicy than some of the unnamed riffles. We both enjoyed the corridors of sun. When we hit the shade again our paddling pace would inevitably increase in search of the next sun patch.

The mouth of Johns Canyon (Mile 32) was a great surprise with a very picturesque freefalling waterfall plunging directly into a grotto on the river. It was too much to pass up so we stopped to walk a loop behind the falls before continuing on. From here on down virtually all the side canyons had flowing water, which was a rare treat. We continued to pass on through patches of sun and shade with turns of the canyon.

Government Rapid at Mile 37 had a quite obvious horizonline that was worth pulling over and scouting. Though there was a clean near-splashless line through it, this was arguably the only notable rapid on the run with some holes to avoid. Heather wasn't feeling it so I got to run it twice. About 2:30pm we reached Slickhorn Canyon, having left the last of the sunlight behind us. The last 4 miles to Grand Gulch the river was particularly slow without riffles, a style and pace that unfortunately persisted for the rest of the trip. 

As we approached the mouth of Grand Gulch at about 3:30pm we could see we weren't alone, a group of three in inflatable kayaks that were the only other people we would see in the three days on the river. We were cold and ready to be done despite having more daylight. Fortunately they were quite friendly and willing to give us a portion of the camp (furthest from the cool air at the mouth of Grand Gulch so no complaints from me). Before setting up camp we walked into the mouth of Grand Gulch which had a series of very nice muddy ledge waterfalls cascading down the canyon right into the river. This was quite different than I had seen Grand Gulch on my last trip and I was particularly glad that we packed sufficient water that we did not need to attempt filtering. Again we got situated and set into our camp routine. Once again the dew was aggressive. Day 2 we paddled 22 miles in 5 active hours for a 4.4 mph average.

Day 3 we awoke to clear skies but sun that would arrive too late to our camp to benefit us. We were both impressed that despite lots of gear the IKs got packed up about 40 minutes earlier than us, sufficient that we would not see them again. Almost immediately downstream of Grand Gulch was the first of many sandbars we would encounter. With the opaque waters we had to take care to not beach ourselves in the shallow waters, looking closely at the ripple patterns on the water to try to identify the deepwater channel. A few times we guessed wrong but generally we were able to feel our way down without having to get out of our boats. We stopped briefly at the mouth of Olijeto Wash for a brief hike. We crossed some deep sticky mud and turned the first corner to enjoy a nice sunny patio as a rumbling falls tumbled. On the way back down my eyes were attracted to some of the cobbles and pebbles at the stream's edge, several of which were identifiable pieces of petrified wood.

From Olijeto the canyon walls began to shrink as the bedrock layers sunk below the river. This section had some nice overhanging sandstone cliffs but avoiding the sandbars remained our key concern. After hours of steady paddling we finally rounded the last turn in the canyon and could see the dramatically different geology of the Clay Hills towering in front of us. The last 3 miles were the longest and straightest stretch of the river. Finally at 1:30pm we reached the takeout, a muddy bank with some gravel more than a boat ramp. The last day our pace definitely slowed as a result of the lower gradient sandbar-ridden river, covering the last 13.5 miles in 3.7 hours for a 3.6 mph.

The sun was feeling mighty so we took the opportunity to go full garage sale in drying gear on the lonely boat ramp. Retrieving the car a few hundred feet up, Heather and I were both impressed to see the extensive mud splatters up to the roof of the car and thick cakes on the wheel wells. We spent close to 1.5 hours cleaning and organizing before starting the drive. The 11 mile long Clay Hills Road had clearly seen a lot of rain recently, leaving us an exciting 45 minutes of wet wash crossings and one deep mud pit I half slid through, spraying mud to the top of the windshield.

When we finally reached the pavement we were short on daylight but decided to detour west a few miles over Clay Hill Pass to check out Castle Ruin, a multi-room cliff dwelling in a near-roadside alcove. It was certainly worth a quick stop. 

We then circumnavigated nearly the entirety of Grand Gulch's canyon network to drive down the spine of Cedar Mesa, then turn off onto Cigarette Springs Road for 7 miles to a Road Canyon trailhead. The road had a few wet spots, ruts, and slickrock crawl sections, but thankfully less intimidating than the Clay Hills Road and easy enough to tackle by headlights. We selected a nice level spot to park and set up our rooftop tent. When it was time we cranked the heated blanket to the max and enjoyed the coziness.

Pueblo Cyn & Devils Chasm May 25

While I had been in this area before on canyoning focused trips towards the start and middle of my canyon career, it was comparably recently that I realized there were some unique ruins a little deeper into the backside of the Sierra Ancha Wilderness. By some accounts these were among some peoples favorite adventure hikes in Arizona. I thought these ruin hikes would be an excellent way to round out our spring break after the Salt River but this was not to be. For a combination of reasons we ended up bailing on our Salt River trip after 8 river miles. We then drove into Cherry Valley beyond the second creek crossing, but then gathering storm clouds and a rainy forecast had us worried about being on the wrong side of a flooded river and 20 miles down a road that would turn to deep mud and so we bailed on this plan as well. So March was disappointment stacked on disappointment. We saw Memorial Day as a chance at partial redemption, this time four strong with Keith and Kari joining. 

It was past dark by the time we crossed the Salt River takeout and had to make a decision on camping. I knew options were more grim (especially in the dark) along Cherry Valley Road and so suggested we try one of the cliff edge camps along the escarpment near Parker Canyon, somewhere I had fond memories of but haven't been in a decade. I was a little nervous with it being a holiday weekend but after we drove past two groups, we easily found an area we could have all to ourselves right at the prow adjacent to Parker Canyon. Heather and I set up the tent to combat the wind. It was complete darkness when we all went to bed and I was excited for the others to see the view when we awoke. 

The views were every bit as good as I remember and I can think of very few campsites that match this spot. The quartzite cliffs and turrets of Parker Canyon were like a mini-Grand Canyon and off to the west we could see the sun rising over the broad valley that Roosevelt Reservoir sits in and at the far distance make out the architectural bridge spanning the reservoir's outlet. Things warmed up quick once the sunlight crested Asbestos Point and we packed up and hit the road soon after. Along the drive we were blown away by the saguaro forest, the entirety of which seemed to be in peak bloom with bees busily buzzing around each crown of flowers. It was quite the spectacle and a nice surprise.

Cherry Valley Road was thankfully in very good shape and the second creek crossing that was such a mental ordeal for us at high water surrounded by thunderstorms in March, was laughably trivial this time around. We drove Keith's Outback almost exactly to where Heather and I turned around in March (this rough boulder strewn part of the road appeared nearly identical to our memory), and once again decided to turn around. We parked at a pullout along the road to the unofficial Cherry Valley Campground less than a quarter-mile back, and then geared up for an unfortunate bonus hike of 5.7 miles round trip along the road to access the hiking trails. With this extra effort demanded, we abandoned the idea of bringing canyoning gear for a Pueblo Canyon descent and instead tried to go fast and light to instead focus on the hiking.

Already by the time we started hiking it was getting quite warm and I broke from my traditional style to start hiking in shorts and using trekking poles, both good choices. As the road veered into the crease of Devils Chasm we caught some great views of the quartzite cliffs of the Sierra Ancha Wilderness above. After about 1.5 hours along the road we came to the trailhead for Pueblo Canyon and began climbing the old Jeep trail there as it worked its way steeply up to the base of the cliffs. 

Partway up the ridge we ran into a few backpacking kids, then later their dads. They did not have too much to say other than the trail being very overgrown and rough but the ruins at the end being worth it. We made good progress until we reach the first cliff band where the trail did become a loose chute to gain the top. On top it was overgrown but otherwise a decent trail we could push through without too much effort; I was feeling optimistic. Then we turned into the north facing base of the main cliff and our progress slowed considerably. At this point I could see ruins at the base of the same cliff band on the opposite side of the canyon, 0.5 miles away as the crow flies. Unfortunately we were not crows and so instead followed this rough and overgrown sidle trail as it went up and down in about 50 ft increments, mentally taxing our progress. We stopped a few times to catch our breaths and cool down. The further we turned into the corner the more steady the shade from the cliffs and there were some pleasant springs, fern gardens, and wildflowers along the way. As we made it about halfway along the base of the cliff we got to a longer overhanging alcove with some neat things to see. We checked out an old Uranium mine adit right next to some crumbling ancient ruins and then a little further got to a multi-room complex under the same alcove. Interestingly we could see where an entire slab of a wall collapsed on its side with the wall's blocks sticking upright. This little taste of ruins helped break up the grind of the hike and we gained a little more energy as the cliffs now contoured into the canyon where there would be a 100 ft waterfall waiting for us. The trail went right between the cliff and the waterfall about a third of the way up, forming an irresistible spot for lunch before we continued on the last quarter-mile past the ruins.

We continued following the foot trail and soon came to the first of four groupings of ruins. Overall these were surprisingly well preserved and extensive with many multi-room and multi-story structures. Most Colorado Plateau ruins are made of uniform colored sandstone blocks and related adobe; these ones were unique to most of the ones I have seen in that they used highly colorful tabular "bricks" of the local quartzite. Many of the doorways were in pristine condition and interestingly we could se a few examples of renovations where an existing doorway was later patched into a wall. Many of the sizable support logs forming floors of second stories were still embedded in place. Also of interest were some storerooms and shelf surfaces built into the back of a couple of the rooms. We only saw the very occasional small piece of pottery or ear of corn but the ruins were spectacular with a commanding view over forest and pinnacles opposite the valley and expansive views down the valley. Despite being south facing in midday, the alcoves these ruins were built within were deep enough that we explored the ruins in pleasant shade. Heather and Kari were tired from the hike and content to chill and snack in the shade at these first ruins but Keith and I continued on along the base of the cliff to see more. While we were gone they both saw a black bear traversing the ledge just below them!

Past a few springs and clambering behind a large boulder we continued along soon arriving at the second complex of ruins. These were also nicely designed multi-story multi-room buildings with nice masonry and huge logs. The front face of one of the ruins had a very nicely designed wall with two rocks protruding out of the top face as if horns; I cannot imagine any purpose to these other than a novel architectural flourish. On the back wall of one room we spotted some pictographs painted in a couple colors. At this point Keith had seen his fill and hiked back to Kari and Heather but I continued onward a bit further.

This third area was not quite as extensive but did have some more neat things to see including a moderately well preserved second story floor that I could see the different construction layers within. I walked past this to where the cliff edge turned into the sun spotting one further small ruin and then returned to join the others.

We walked back to the waterfall and filtered our water here before retracing our steps back. Thankfully now in known territory, we made a little better progress back along the overgrown sidle trail. When we finally regained the ridge on the homestretch back down to the road Heather and Kari offered to let Keith and I charged forward to try to fit in a second hike up Devils Chasm while they ambled back to the car and camp at their own pace. We happily agreed despite the fairly late hour and set off at an aggressive pace. A mile and a half back down the road we turned off to head up Devils Chasm. Almost immediately we came across a comparably excellent trail in a remarkably lush canyon alongside a babbling stream; it was such a contrast from most of the rest of our hike and I would not have guessed I was in Arizona based on the context. Near the bottom we ran into a group of three young people hiking that fairly casually told us there was a "jaguar" in the cave near the chockstone climbing obstacle further up and they turned around there. I gave them the benefit of the doubt thinking they maybe saw a mountain lion best case but more likely a bobcat; it turned out I gave them too much credit. I was hiking in just my boxers for speed and cooling; I was probably a bit too lose with this approach and my guess is that some of these riparian sections are where I acquired some poison ivy rashes. The trail got much rougher and harder to follow but did break out into some spectacular bedrock patio sections.  When we reached the handline chockstone obstacle we did hear a strange noise. It took us both a minute or so to process but after that it was conclusive: the "jaguar" was just a frog croaking in a cave underneath the boulder...

Some more nice bedrock patio sections led into the hard hitting final 0.2 miles with a 700ft climb up chutes of loose rocks and dirt. I was sweating profusely but doing my best to power through. The day was nearly over and we made it this close but this final climb just did not seem to end. This part of the trail was much worse than anything else we had seen and we were glad Kari and Heather skipped this part. Finally we broke through some of the low trees and I got a view of our destination right above us. Wow it was impressive! We scrambled the last bit to gain the mid-cliff ledge hosting the ruins. The Devils Chasm ruins are a remarkable and imposing fortress, one of the most unique ruins I have ever seen. The ancient peoples had taken up every square inch of a mid-cliff ledge such that the wall of the ruin rose directly out of the top of a 30ft cliff. When these people slept in the cliff home their heads were literally feet away from this cliff edge, yet inside you would never guess. The construction here consisted of a single access doorway which led through to four distinct rooms separated by additional doorways and a final doorway that led out onto the deadend ledge beyond. Once again the views were spectacular and wild from this vantage. All in all this was the best constructed of the ruins we had seen with the main outer wall cleanly designed and completely intact. The whole structure had at least two stories with a third story for part of it. I would have loved to linger longer at this amazing spot but had to be satisfied with walking through, snapping a few photos, and then powering back down along the trail before darkness overtook us.

We continued down the canyon without incident, arriving to the road just before dusk and walking the last 1.5 miles of the bumpy road in near darkness. The Devils Chasm detour only added 3 miles but also about 3 hours to complete. Kari and Heather were waiting patiently at camp. Having done 14 fairly rough miles over an 11 hour span, I was suitably tired and lethargic as I slowly ate dinner and settled in for the night.

I was particularly glad to get both of these hikes in, especially considering how remote and out of the way this place is, and because we had to bail on a previous attempt months before. A dose of redemption is always appreciated. Overall it was a great day with stunning scenery and some of the most unique and remote ruins I have seen. I remain in awe thinking about the rough terrain and out of the way nooks that these ancient peoples lived and apparently thrived.