Calf Creek, Phipps Arch, plus Zebra & Tunnel Slots

Zebra Slot, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

October may be one of the best times to camp on the Colorado Plateau. Temperatures are mild, it rarely rains, and the tourist season is over, making the more popular hikes less crowded. Yes, the days are short, but if camping with kids, this allows plenty of time for roasting hot dogs/marshmallows and telling stories around the fire.

Despite the decrease in visitation at Utah parks and monuments this time of year, it still can be difficult to find a camping spot in some of the smaller, popular campgrounds. We found this to be true recently as we tried to nab a coveted site in the scenic and pleasant (but tiny) Calf Creek Campground in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

I thought we would have a decent  chance at success being a Thursday, but we got packed and out of the house too late. By the time we arrived at the campground at 3:30 pm, all of the sites were gone.

Plan 'B' was to backtrack 5-6 miles south on Highway 12 to the Old Sheffield Road and look for a primitive site there. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the BLM had designated several nice sites that have great views and plenty of soft sandy soil to set your tent on. There are no improvements whatsoever (no toilets, tables, water, fire pits, etc.), but camping is free. With plenty of available sites to choose from, we ended up at a secluded site perched on a high ledge overlooking Spencer Flat. I would have been happy to spend the next 2 nights there, but we were not prepared equipment-wise, or mentally for an extended backcountry campout.

We packed up early the next morning and headed back over to Calf Creek. A couple were leaving just as we pulled in, and we were finally able to score a large site adjacent to the day-use area.

Sunrise at our campsite on Old Sheffield Road.

Ren fuels up for a fun day outdoors.

View of Escalante canyon country from our camp on Old Sheffield Road.

With the shorter days we planned to complete just a single hike each day, with plenty of playtime around camp.  Since we had already hiked up to the lower Calf Creek Falls a number of times, we decided to hike up the trail a ways and search for a somewhat hard-to-find pictograph panel. Although faded and partially vandalized, it is still a nice little diversion off the main trail.

Faint human figures painted in red and yellow overlook a minor tributary of Calf Creek.

Bighorn sheep migrate across sandstone near Calf Creek.

Zoe investigates a beaver dam built across Calf Creek.

Our big hike for the next day was to Phipps Arch. This is a six-mile (round trip) hike down the Escalante River and up Phipps Canyon. We had a kaleidoscope of colors and pleasant temperatures (although the river crossing were a bit chilly), making this a memorable hike.

Susie gives Zoe a lift over the cold waters of the Escalante.

Ava and Zoe hike beneath a golden canopy of cottonwoods in Phipps Canyon.

The aperture of Phipps Arch doesn't hold any size records, but the thickness of the arch itself is impressive.

Susie takes a break in the shadow of Phipps Arch.

Phipps Canyon.

By carefully scanning the cliffs above the Escalante River near the Highway 12 bridge, you can spot a couple of  these Anasazi granaries.

Cottonwoods of the Escalante.

While everyone rested at camp after the hike, I slipped out just before sunset for a quick bird's-eye view of the lower falls.

Lower Calf Creek Falls as seen from the east rim of the canyon.

Looking south down Calf Creek Canyon from the rim near the lower falls.

On our way home on the final day, we veered south down the Hole in the Rock Rock to check out the Zebra and Tunnel slots. After a few miles down the trail, it became clear that the kids weren't going to complete the entire 7-mile hike. They and Susie were content to play around in the sand in Halfway Hollow, while I ran the rest of the route.

The trail into Halfway Hollow.

It's a good thing I didn't drag the kids all the way because it turned out that both slots were flooded with cold, chest-deep water. Although these slots are only about 100 yards long, plan on taking plenty of time for pictures. I snapped away with my point and shoot as I ran through, but a serious photographer could spend hours here. Zebra is an especially fascinating place that should be on everyone's must-do list.

The flooded entrance to Zebra Slot.

flood-sculpted walls of the Zebra slot.

Zebra gets its name from the unique alternating light and dark layered cross-beds of the Navajo Sandstone that the slot is carved into.

A unique combination of color and texture make Zebra slot a photographer's dream.

Entering the flooded Tunnel slot. Tunnel lacks the colorful stripes, but it is still an exciting walk.

Tunnel slot.

Calf Creek Campground makes a convenient base camp for a number of excellent hikes and adventures in this area. There's much more to see and do, and I suspect we will spend many more nights at Calf Creek -- as long as we can get a spot.

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Red Slot, the Paria River, and Asay and Deer Creek Canyons

Flood debris 20 feet above the floor of Red Slot.

Some of the best hikes in guidebook author Michael Kelsey's books are long, meandering routes that string together many interesting gems that otherwise may not be worth a long hike. One of these routes that I recently completed is titled Johnson Hole Canyon & Trail, Asay Bench Trail & Canyon, the Red Slot, and Middle Deer Creek Canyon, in Kelsey's book covering the Paria River region. That's a mouthful of places most Colorado Plateau enthusiasts have never heard of (Deer Creek Canyon is the only place officially named on topographic maps--the others are either local or Kesley names), and the title doesn't even include all of the attractions along this approximately 20-mile jaunt into the heart of the Paria River canyon country.

Knowing this would take nearly every bit of daylight a mid-October day has, I decided to drive to and camp at the trailhead so I could get a crack-of-dawn start. Although Kelsey describes the maze of dirt roads leading from near Kodachrome Basin to the Johnson Hole trailhead as passable by a 2WD car in good conditions, with all of the big thunderstorms southern Utah had seen in previous weeks, I threw a shovel in the back of my Montero just in case.

Good choice. I ended up filling in three deep gashes cut across the road by heavy rains several days earlier.

A new moon and clear skies ensured I'd see every possible star on a clear and calm night.

As soon as it was light enough to see the berries on a nearby juniper, I started down the old Johnson Hole Canyon stock trail--a steep, sandy, and at times, ill-defined trail leading from Rock Springs Bench on top of the White Cliffs, 1000-vertical feet and about 4 miles down to the Paria River. Fresh scuffs from clambering hooves searching for traction on the steeply-tilted slabs of slickrock on the upper part of the trail made it obvious that this old trail is still used by brave stockmen today.

This hike explores the Paria River and tributaries just downstream from where the Paria cuts through the White Cliffs.

The trail drops into the dry wash flooring Johnson Hole Canyon (again, a local name), skirts around a couple of dryfalls, leaves the drainage, and descends an elevated sandy ridge that provides good views of the surrounding White Cliffs and, to the south, across the Deer Trails bench, and onto the distant but still dominant Mollies Nipple.

Just before reaching the Paria, a couple of short diversions off the trail were well worth the effort. First there is Balanced Rock just a few 100 yards off the trail to the south on a bench overlooking the river. There is no shortage of hoodoos and balanced boulders in this country, but this one really stands out. From some angles, the physics here really do seem impossible.

The amazing Balanced Rock on a bench east of the Paria River.

Another somewhat longer diversion off the trail to the north leads to what Kelsey calls the Red Slot, where the Johnson Hole Canyon wash cuts through red Navajo Sandstone. Although it only takes about 5 minutes to walk through the slot, its tall, sculpted crimson walls and snow-white sandy floor demand extra time for photography. The slot ends in a large, interesting grotto where you have a nice cross-section view of faults that have shattered and offset the sandstone.

A shot of the Red Slot (dark crack in photo center) from Asay Bench. The lower red part of the Navajo Sandstone likely represents the original color of the formation caused by the oxidation or "rust"of iron minerals (hematite) coating sand grains. The upper part of the Navajo here has been "bleached", meaning reducing fluids (probably hydrocarbons that are now long gone) moving through this portion of the rock column removed most of the oxidized iron "pigment", leaving the stone white.

Red Slot portal.

This signature of old-time cowboy Wallace Ott of Tropic can't be missed just inside the Red Slot entrance.  Born in 1911, he had run cattle in the Paria country for more than 85 years making him as knowledgeable of this area as anyone. Ott is among a number of folks in Garfield County that claimed to have met Butch Cassidy in the mid 1930s well after the reported 1908 death of the outlaw in Bolivia. 

Wallace Ott stands in front of the childhood home of Butch Cassidy in Circleville, Utah.  Wallace was said to be the last living person to know Cassidy. Ott passed away February 11, 2010 at the age of 99. Photo credit: John Telford and the US Route 89 Appreciation Society.

White sand, washed down from the white Navajo higher upstream, adds stark contrast in the Red Slot.

Ducking under driftwood wedged tight in the Red Slot.

Dry fall and grotto impede progress up the Red Slot.

Lone Rock is one of the more prominent landmarks along the Paria River. The base of this rock is covered with old cowboy inscriptions.

The trail intersects the Paria River near a distinct stone monolith known simply as Lone Rock. From there, I made my way upstream, crossing the clear waters of the Paria several times toward Asay Canyon. Not shown in Kelsey's Book, I was lucky to spot a nice petroglyph panel partially obscured by tall willows on the east side of the river near its confluence with Johnson Hole Canyon.

Desert varnish-streaked walls along the Paria River gorge.

Unusual petroglyphs near the Paria River.

The Great Blue Heron of the Paria.

Following Kelsey's recommended route, I turned left (west) up Asay Creek which immediately started to slot up. The lower Asay Creek slot is not very tall, but its walls are beautifully sculpted, and if you're there at the right time (about 11 AM on this particular day) you get reflected sunlight that imparts an unearthly glow to the red sandstone. Just before the canyon gets super skinny, I stepped in a patch of quicksand that took me a bit by surprise. I've found the dangers of quicksand on the Colorado Plateau to be somewhat overblown, but this was the real deal. Mid-thigh in mud, it took a good 10 minutes to dig myself out. I then carefully crawled on all fours until I could see further passage through a very tight section ahead was questionable.  Chimneying through the slot looked doable (at the cost of some skin no doubt), but being alone, I didn't want to risk getting stuck, so I carefully backed out of the canyon and climbed the sloped slickrock to the north to bypass the lower slot.

The lower slot in Asay Canyon. Beware of hidden patches of quicksand.

A watery passage in the lower slot of Asay Canyon.

Just above the lower slot in Asay Canyon.

The middle part of Asay Canyon is wide open with the White Cliffs looming to the north. Shortly after taking the right fork, I made my way through the upper Asay narrows which are carved into the upper white Navajo Sandstone. As Kelsey puts it: another short and sweet slot.

Bits of iron concretion and white sand in Asay Canyon.

Upper Asay narrows.

Weaving through the upper narrows of Asay Canyon.

Near the head of Asay Canyon, Kelsey's route heads south up a minor tributary, passes through a small grove of low-altitude aspen, and climbs up to a narrow bench (locally known as Asay Bench) separating the Asay and Deer Creek drainages. The traverse between the two drainages passes another petroglyph panel and a number hoodoos.

A unique petroglyph panel  near the upper reaches of Asay Canyon.

Hoodoo near the rim of Deer Creek Canyon.

With a little route finding and trial-and-error, I climbed down off Asay Bench and into the deep middle part of Deer Creek Canyon. About 1 mile upstream from this entry-point the canyon splits into the Northwest and Main Forks of Deer Creek. A short distance up each of these forks are photogenic slots that can only be fully explored by descending them with ropes and technical gear.

Typical scene in the middle part of Deer Creek Canyon.

A modern dune encroaches on Jurassic dunes in Deer Creek Canyon.

Making my way up the extremely narrow slot in the Northwest Fork of Deer Creek Canyon.

From the bottom, you can't get very far into the narrows of the Main Fork of Deer Creek, but what little can be seen makes an impression.

Main Fork of Deer Creek Canyon.

After checking out the slots in upper Deer Creek, I regressed to the entry/exit leading back to the top of Asay Bench and headed east across the pinion/juniper-studded bench toward the Paria. At the rim of the Paria, yet another constructed stock trail leads down near-vertical cliffs to the river. Just downstream was Lone Rock and the long, sandy slog up the Johnson Hole Canyon trail to my car.

The White Cliffs rise above Asay Bench.

Sandstone glowing in afternoon sun is reflected off the rippled waters of the Paria.

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