The morning after: Sleepy Hollow

The morning after: Sleepy Hollow On January 1st, we awoke (late) to the sound of a mixture of sleet, rain and snow falling on our tents. The nearby bluff offered just enough overhang so that we could stay pretty dry while making breakfast (an omelette), and by the time we were ready to hike, it had pretty much stopped. But the brush was still kind of wet, and it was cloudy enough to be cool all morning. Later, the sun broke through and it felt warmer.

We hiked up Coyote Gulch to a tributary known as Sleepy Hollow. It is really a beautiful slickrock canyon, although kind of brushy near the mouth.

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(149K) 800 x 703 Roger and Susie pause while walking up Sleepy Hollow.

Desert varnish stains on the slickrock in Sleepy Hollow. This tributary of Coyote Gulch has some giant overhangs and alcoves that make great echoes.
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(127K) 800 x 640 This is the "crux" of a route out of Sleepy Hollow to the mesa top. A couple of rocks and a dead tree leaned against the slickrock helped Sue up this first big step.

Once above the crux, it was easy walking on the slickrock, which is always delightful. It's like walking on solid sand dunes, which is more or less what this sandstone is. It was getting too late to go far, but one can apparently go up and across King Mesa to Fools Canyon (but one might have to swim to get down Fools, according to Steve Allen's Canyoneering 3). This is what Canyon Country is all about!
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(81K) 800 x 640 Once back to camp, an emergency fire was required to dry wet boots. Meanwhile, we scuffled around camp in our toasty polarguard booties. New Year's dinner for both couples included black-eyed peas, for good luck in the coming year.

On the 2nd, we hiked back out Hurricane Gulch to the trailhead. We set a brisk pace. It was pretty windy, and there were occasional snow flurries. Hiking out, we met a nice guy from Logan (and his dog), who came to the canyon for New Year's, since snow in northern Utah was still too thin for good skiing. Here, Susie and Roger arrive at the trailhead.
(73K) 800 x 644

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Back to the index	Next page (Bryce Canyon)
(149K) 800 x 703	Roger and Susie pause while walking up Sleepy Hollow.
Desert varnish stains on the slickrock in Sleepy Hollow. This tributary of Coyote Gulch has some giant overhangs and alcoves that make great echoes.	(87K) 800 x 640
(127K) 800 x 640	This is the "crux" of a route out of Sleepy Hollow to the mesa top. A couple of rocks and a dead tree leaned against the slickrock helped Sue up this first big step.
Once above the crux, it was easy walking on the slickrock, which is always delightful. It's like walking on solid sand dunes, which is more or less what this sandstone is. It was getting too late to go far, but one can apparently go up and across King Mesa to Fools Canyon (but one might have to swim to get down Fools, according to Steve Allen's Canyoneering 3). This is what Canyon Country is all about!	(88K) 800 x 640
(81K) 800 x 640	Once back to camp, an emergency fire was required to dry wet boots. Meanwhile, we scuffled around camp in our toasty polarguard booties. New Year's dinner for both couples included black-eyed peas, for good luck in the coming year.
On the 2nd, we hiked back out Hurricane Gulch to the trailhead. We set a brisk pace. It was pretty windy, and there were occasional snow flurries. Hiking out, we met a nice guy from Logan (and his dog), who came to the canyon for New Year's, since snow in northern Utah was still too thin for good skiing. Here, Susie and Roger arrive at the trailhead.	(73K) 800 x 644
Back to the index	Next page (Bryce Canyon)