San Rafael Reef

I forced myself to go hiking this past weekend. I woke up on Saturday feeling lethargic, with the threat of bad weather looming. However, I had stayed home the previous weekend and I knew I’d regret doing so two weekends in a row. I got myself and the dogs ready and started out late for a day hike in the San Rafael Reef. During the drive south I saw a familiar vehicle parked at Woodside and hit the brakes. I knew Listorama was in Utah but didn’t expect to see him so soon. We chatted for a while and talked about getting together in the next week or two for a hike in the Moab area. I got back underway and made good time to the Goblin Valley area, stopping for a few photos of the large fields of primrose blooming in the San Rafael Desert along the Temple Mountain road. I also stopped at the new kiosk that Wade had spearheaded, detailing John C. Fremont’s fifth expedition and Solomon Carvalho’s daguerreotype photography. While stopped at the kiosk another couple had pulled in, and I heard one of them ask, “Are you Udink?” It turned out to be a couple from the Denver area who reads my blog and recognized the Jeep. We talked for a bit about what they’d been doing–exploring a bit of the northern Swell for the weekend–before they started off for home. I continued on to my parking spot on the Little Wild Horse road and started hiking right at noon.

Primrose blooms across the San Rafael Desert, with the Henry Mountains and Gilson Buttes on the horizon
Primrose blooms across the San Rafael Desert, with the Henry Mountains and Gilson Buttes on the horizon


Gilson Buttes over a field of primrose
Gilson Buttes over a field of primrose


Kiosk at Wild Horse Butte
Kiosk at Wild Horse Butte


Parked at my starting point at noon
Parked at my starting point at noon


I was really hoping to duplicate the success I had on a previous hike in the same area a year ago. I’ll spare you the suspense: I didn’t find any rock art on this trip, but everything else was ridiculously similar to the previous trip. There were many wildflowers blooming in the desert. Pinks, reds, oranges, purples, and yellows were abundant everywhere. I hiked through some ugly Carmel Formation terrain before reaching the Navajo Sandstone that I love. I had to dip into the four liters of water that I always carry so the dogs could get a drink, just before reaching a large pothole where they could get their fill.

Colorful Carmel Formation foothills at the base of the Reef
Colorful Carmel Formation foothills at the base of the Reef


Buckwheat
Buckwheat


Hiking in a wash of Carmel Formation layers
Hiking in a wash of Carmel Formation layers


Indian Paintbrush
Indian Paintbrush


Entering a canyon of Navajo Sandstone
Entering a canyon of Navajo Sandstone


Carmel rubble on top of Navajo Sandstone
Carmel rubble on top of Navajo Sandstone


Giving the doggies a drink
Giving the doggies a drink


Pothole
Pothole


Torrey and Boulder drinking from a pothole
Torrey and Boulder drinking from a pothole


With this being a relatively small drainage there were a lot of small obstacles to be overcome. I scrambled up dryfalls and around potholes before reaching the head of the drainage I was ascending. At one dryfall I had to literally throw Boulder over my head to get her up it. Torrey clawed her way up on her own, but Boulder doesn’t yet know her own strength. Once at the head of the drainage it was a short walk to a spot overlooking Little Wild Horse Canyon. I had reached a similar overlook last fall above the main narrows of Little Wild Horse, but this time I was above the upper end of the narrows. I stopped there for a snack, and fed and watered the pups.

10′ dryfall that was moderately difficult to climb
10' dryfall that was moderately difficult to climb


Torrey in a pothole
Torrey in a pothole


Head of the drainage
Head of the drainage


Final climb to my highest point of the hike
Final climb to my highest point of the hike


View down the Reef into the flat desert
View down the Reef into the flat desert


Molly’s Castle and Wild Horse Butte
Molly's Castle and Wild Horse Butte


Little Wild Horse Canyon
Little Wild Horse Canyon


Upper end of Little Wild Horse Canyon slot
Upper end of Little Wild Horse Canyon slot


High point of the San Rafael Reef between Bell and Little Wild Horse canyons
High point of the San Rafael Reef between Bell and Little Wild Horse canyons


Globemallow
Globemallow


Dark clouds were moving in as I began descending the Reef. I hurried, hoping to not get soaked, but the weather man was wrong in his forecast. I never got more than a heavy sprinkling of rain for a brief moment, but most of the time conditions were dry with dark, dramatic skies. There were more potholes and dryfalls to avoid during the descent. I wasn’t looking as closely as I normally would for rock art in the lower Reef, though I saw a couple of spots I wouldn’t mind checking out more closely under better conditions. I found a broken arrowhead that almost made my day, but nothing was better than seeing the Jeep as I crested the final hill before completing the hike.

Darker clouds moving in from the south
Darker clouds moving in from the south


Henry Mountains
Henry Mountains


Factory Butte
Factory Butte


Hump Arch
Hump Arch


Patches of blue sky showing to the east
Patches of blue sky showing to the east


Torrey above a big dryfall
Torrey above a big dryfall


Peeking down at my parking spot
Peeking down at my parking spot


Ooh, a pretty rock!
Ooh, a pretty rock!


The dogs and a pothole
The dogs and a pothole


Shrub growing in a small pocket of sand
Shrub growing in a small pocket of sand


A series of impassible potholes
A series of impassible potholes


Leaving the Navajo Sandstone behind
Leaving the Navajo Sandstone behind


Carmel Formation sidewalk
Carmel Formation sidewalk


Lupinus pusillus (Lupine)
Lupinus pusillus (Lupine)


Amost done!
Amost done!


GPS stats for the hike (obviously the altimeter needed to be calibrated). It was a very rugged 6.72 miles.
GPS stats for the hike (obviously the altimeter needed to be calibrated). It was a very rugged 6.72 miles.


Photo Gallery
GPS Tracklog and Photo Waypoints (Google Earth .KMZ Format)
GPS Tracklog and Photo Waypoints (Google Maps)

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