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Avoiding Rain Around the Canyons of the EscalanteAvoiding Rain Around the Canyons of the Escalante

Avoiding Rain Around the Canyons of the Escalante

Canyons of the Escalante | Saturday – Monday, October 10-12, 2026

After spending most of the day exploring the interesting sandstone of Concretion Wash on Saturday, the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel finally arrived and the weather forecast was calling for quite a bit of rain to fall across the landscape over the next few days. We decided that it would probably not be a good idea to drive out to the end of the Hole-in-the-Rock Road until the storm passed, so now we would need to spend the next few days trying to avoid the rain by finding shorter hikes that are closer to good all-weather roads and not located in narrow canyons where flash-flooding is possible. Over the course of the next two days we would stay closer to town and hike a few new trails and routes while also revisiting some places that we hadn’t been back to in quite some time.

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Sandstone Sojourn: Concretion Wash to the Zebra SlotSandstone Sojourn: Concretion Wash to Zebra Slot

Sandstone Sojourn: Concretion Wash to the Zebra Slot

Canyons of the Escalante | Friday – Saturday, October 9-10, 2026

Aside from a brief visit in November of 2024 so I could drive The V Road before it was supposed to be closed by the BLM, I have been wanting to get back to the Canyons of the Escalante since 2022 when that year’s trip with Jared was cut short after I got sick and headed home early. I finally made plans to go back last October, but then Diane’s brain surgery prevented me from going on our annual Southern Utah Wanderings trip for the first time in 14 years, and even though we tried to squeeze in an abbreviated trip later in the year a few times, we were never able to pull it off. After all of these delays, I suppose you could say I was very anxious to get back this year and had been looking forward to this trip for quite some time. Unfortunately, our timing couldn’t have been worse since we would be arriving at about the same time that the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel would also be getting to the area which meant we would need to change our plans to work around the excessive rainfall and stay out of narrow canyons to avoid possible flash flooding.

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Phantom Ranch: The Bottom of the Grand CanyonPhantom Ranch: The Bottom of the Grand Canyon

Phantom Ranch: The Bottom of the Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon National Park | Saturday – Wednesday, January 31 – February 4, 2026

Just about a year ago I was able to secure reservations for a three night stay in a cabin at Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, which Diane and I were looking forward to. We had both thoroughly enjoyed our very first visit to Phantom Ranch just over two years ago, so when the opportunity came up to return- we jumped at it! After making the reservations our initial plans were to spend a few relaxing days at the bottom of the Grand Canyon together while also taking a day to hike up the North Kaibab Trail to Ribbon Falls while we were down there. Of course, little did we know at that time that the Dragon Bravo Fire would decimate the North Rim and close the North Kaibab Trail or that Diane would later find out that she had a meningioma that would require surgery in October. Even after surgery we still had hopes that Diane would be able to go on this trip, but after some setbacks that delayed her Radiation Therapy to mid-January, she would not be finishing up the therapy until later in February and unfortunately would not be able to join me on this trip.

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The Grand Canyon: Lees Ferry to the Bright Angel TrailThe Grand Canyon: Lees Ferry to the Bright Angel Trail

The Grand Canyon: Lees Ferry to the Bright Angel Trail

Saturday – Wednesday, April 5-9, 2025 | Low CFS: 9,500 – High CFS: 12,000

While rafting through the Grand Canyon has long been a dream of mine and an eventual necessity to complete my goal of floating all the sections of the Colorado River, Green River and their major tributaries across the Colorado Plateau, I figured that a private trip through the canyon is probably unlikely for me anytime soon and knew I would have to go on a commercial trip if I wanted to experience the canyon from the river. Last summer I went on my first commercial rafting trip through Cataract Canyon as a trial run to see how I would be able to handle a trip like this since it was shorter and closer to home. I ended up having a great time on that trip so I immediately booked a trip into the Grand Canyon for Diane and myself.

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Upper Calf Creek FallsUpper Calf Creek Falls

Upper Calf Creek Falls

Southern Utah Wanderings | Canyons of the Escalante
Friday, October 10, 2014

After visiting a few short slot canyons in the morning we still had plenty of time to find something else to do for the rest of the day. First we stopped in Escalante for a bite to eat and then found a campsite along the Old Sheffield Road so we could get camp setup early and not have to worry about it later. We decided to spend the late afternoon hiking to Upper Calf Creek Falls since we had visited the lower falls earlier in the week. The hike was a short but steep descent to the falls from the top of New Home Bench. After visiting the main waterfall, which wasn’t flowing very much this late in the season, we climbed above to visit a few small pools. This would make a great place to swim when the temperature is warmer.

CONTINUE READINGUpper Calf Creek Falls
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