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Picture a high, Rocky Mountain plateau with
lovely Quaking Aspen, evergreens, babbling brooks, and rugged sub-alpine
environment. The Aquarius Plateau, standing at higher than 10,000 feet above
sea level, roughly defines the southern end of the Wasatch Mountains in
Utah. This high mass of volcanic land is the major source of water for
what would otherwise be a desiccated slickrock desert, the cliffs and
canyons of the Escalante Grand Staircase National Monument. |
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The watershed flowing from the Aquarius
Plateau cuts innumerable gashes in the multi-layered slickrock. The
result is a myriad of canyons of all shapes and colors. It is a
place of serene beauty and frightful challenge. Its natural flora and
fauna endure a hard, austere environment and make good in the midst of
extremes. Though striking to the adventurous trekker, when it comes to
survival, this is a tough place. To look down on this vast, and
seemingly desolate, panorama from high on the plateau, one can only imagine
the thoughts of early European pioneers who, at first encounter, saw this land as a bleak, impassible
nightmare. |
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"The view to the south and southeast is dismal
and suggestive of the terrible. It is almost unique even in the
category of plateau scenery. The streams which head at the foot of
the lava-cap on the southern wall of the Aquarius flow southward down its
long slopes. The amphitheaters soon grow into canyons of profound
depth and inaccessible walls. These passages open into a single
trunk canyon, and their united waters form the Escalante River... At no
point can its walls be scaled."
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- Clarence Dutton, 1880 |
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American geologist,
1841–1912 |
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Unlike the Grand Canyon, that massive cleft in the Earth
formed by the Colorado River and eons of erosion, the canyons of the
Escalante River region are smaller and more numerous. It seems as
though the explorer can get closer, almost intimate, with each
draw, defile, gorge, and
slot. There's an "up close and personal" quality one can only get in
such a tight maze of canyons where the high cliff walls often narrow to the
point of being impassible.
It is beautiful beyond compare. For in every
pocket of this vast desert the explorer will find limitless delights
and surprises.
And this area is remote. Very few people inhabit
the surrounding countryside.
This is the land of the Escalate Grand
Staircase National Monument. Tread lightly, and discover a hidden
universe! |
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Our 2003 Adventure begins on September 17th. Some
of the courses we'll explore are marked on the maps below. Red dotted
lines indicate proposed trails. |
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Overview of the upper Escalante area, including the
headwaters of the Escalante River, Death Hollow, Sand Creek, and the Boulder
Mail Trail. The town of Boulder in the Northeast and Escalante in the
Southwest. |
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Upper Calf Creek Falls, Lower Calf Creek
Falls, and the Upper Boulder Creek Loop. |
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Lower Boulder Creek Loop, Escalante River in
the area of its Highway 12 crossing, Phipps Wash, and Bowington Arch. |
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Northeast end of the Boulder Mail Trail.
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Middle southwest section of the Boulder Mail
Trail. |
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Southwest terminus of the Boulder Mail Trail
and the Upper Escalante River to Death Hollow. |
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Upper Escalante River to Death Hollow. |
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The Dry Fork Coyote Creek slots!
Peek-A-Boo, Spooky, and Brimstone. Classics of the area. |
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Egypt and "The Slot." This one's a doozy!
Not for the squeamish, or overly round individual. |
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Western segment of the Hurricane Wash-Coyote
Canyon loop. |
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"Crack In The Wall": Eastern segment of the
Hurricane Wash-Coyote Canyon Loop. |
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Fence Canyon, Escalante River, Neon Canyon,
and Ringtail Canyon. Northern segment of the Fence, Escalate,
Twenty-five Mile Loop. |
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Escalante River, Twenty-five Mile Wash, and
overland return to Egypt. Southern segment of the Fence, Escalate,
Twenty-five Mile Loop. |
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