The Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
We spent five days camped out along the Burr Trail, a scenic drive that connects Route 12 at Boulder with the back way into Capitol Reef National Park. Though we intended to explore whatever came up, we had a few places in mind we wanted to hike along the way. Unfortunately, some persnickety behavior on the part of the vehicle deterred us from a few spots, mainly the supposedly-amazing section of road that drops off the plateau down to Capitol Reef. This section of the road accesses a few canyons and the Waterpocket Fold to which we’ve already agreed to return.
Close to Boulder the defining feature of the Burr Trail is the 7 mile canyon, aptly named Long Canyon. Almost entirely formed of red sandstone, the canyon features sheer walls, fantastic streaks of desert varnish, interesting erosion patterns, and a section of multi-colored hoodoos. There’s also a picturesque little slot canyon that’s easily accessible from the road. Also, right at the point where the canyon opens up and the road begins another steep descent, is an incredible overlook of the mineral-stained rainbow hills and valley below. Following the road to the border of the national park (and the end of the pavement) allows you to wind through plains of the pinyon and juniper, but turning off and running perpendicular to Long Canyon below the rim of the plateau provides opportunities to explore additional side canyons and inspect the outwash of colorful rock and petrified wood.
Overlooking Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Looking up the walls in Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Converging walls on Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Entrance to short slot canyon off Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Short slot canyon on Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Me walking in the short canyon off the Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Overlook, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Overlook on the Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Morning sun over the canyon walls, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Morning light eradicating the shadows in Long Canyon, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Mineral-colored rocks, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Neat patterns on the rock, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
We had read in a couple places about hiking The Gulch and so we tackled that one first. Or rather, we hiked in the wrong direction into the Lower Gulch, then into a different wash for a few miles before the lack of trail markers or footprints convinced us this wasn’t it. Two days later when the sun reappeared we tried again from a different access point and hiked about 4 miles into the Upper Gulch. Similar to the lower section, the Upper Gulch was a wide canyon and very brushy, but once the walls narrowed the scenic quotient increased. Just before our turn-around point we came upon a very pretty waterfall etched into the colorful sandstone; this was undoubtedly the highlight of our hike.
Walking along the canyon in the Lower Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Hiking down Lower Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Lower Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Erosion patterns on the canyon wall in The Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Walking in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Hiking in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Unique conglomerate in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Hiking in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
The Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
The Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
The Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Tree trunk fragment that’s eerily reminiscent of a mermaid figurehead, The Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
The Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Small waterfall in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Small waterfall in the Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Closeup of waterfall, Upper Gulch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah
Beautiful pictures, and that tree trunk is seriously creepy! I recently found your blog and always enjoy reading your posts 🙂
Thank you, Diana! Yeah, that tree trunk made me do a double take. 🙂
Utah offers one stunning location after another… yet another fantastic hike that I’ll need to note. Those mineral colored rocks are interesting. You see a mermaid, I see a character from ‘Planet of the Apes’ 🙂
I can’t wait to see the rest of it, Ingrid – it’s supposed to be even more amazing!
Looks warm and toasty. WIsh I was there right now. 8 degrees of cold.
8 degree, eh? Tell Hansome not to run away in that weather. Hope you’re staying toasty inside!