In The Shadow of Longs Peak
Tuesday 23 September 2025
Day 2
I am up just after 7. “Nature Calls” is a good alarm clock.
We are camped below a ridge, so there’s no morning sun, but even without the sun, it’s warm. I am glad we camped here. As it turns out, there is not another campsite for miles and we are not far from Annie’s Canyon.
We are packed and underway at 10 AM. Past Annie’s Canyon. Past Slick Rock Canyon. In the area of opposite Slickrock, there was a peninsula where we took a quick break that seemed like it had camping possibilities though I don’t it would have offered much protection from the wind.
It seems like it takes forever to get to Iceberg. Somewhere, most likely before Iceberg but perhaps after, there was a site on the north side (right side, looking down lake) though Kit thought it too would not offer much protection from the wind.
Speaking of wind, it’s been a bit windy from the start today. Gusts now and then but no white caps (whoo-hoo!)
We approach Iceberg Canyon, continue, then take a break in a cove past Iceberg on the opposite side of the lake. I look at my GPS, which says .9 miles to Rincon. My brain says “But we’re nowhere near Rincon, must be line of sight. Gary had stopped in a different cove and he was about to paddle away. We paddle down lake.
I look back and do not see Gary. Wait a few minutes and turn around to look again but still no Gary and call to the others to pull over. I wonder if he went on a exploratory. We wait and wait. I am about to consider paddling back but just about then I see him paddling toward us but on the far side. It takes some time, but he catches up. Turned out, his rudder was stuck and he could not get back into the cove to correct it so ended up paddling across the lake into another cove and managed to get it working. A good reason to wait till everyone is ready!
Back to paddling. The next reading for Rincon is 1.5 miles and the next is nearly 3. I keep thinking we’ll see it once we get around the next bend. Then Kathryn points out that we are passing Longs and Bowman Canyon’s. So, we are well past Rincon.
What to do? Forward or back?
My research and maps showed camping possibilities on the downside of the oxbow we are currently in, so we continue. I am not sure that everyone is happy. Kelsey says there is Camping in Longs/Bowman but when we were here in 2020, those canyons did not seem to offer much for tent camping.
We pass another point and another buoy and another point, and finally, we are past the nose of the oxbow.
We pass a cove and then I see a long, seemingly flat spot up to the left.
Brookie is behind us and points out another site. I turn around, see where she is looking, and it does look good. Brookie, Karla, and Kathryn get out to investigate.
Gary continues down and is investigating the next cove.
I decide to paddle along this ledge till 4 PM. There is another marginal spot past where Gary has stopped and 2 more beyond that but both feature ‘pour-overs’ and do not have much in the way of flat spots.
I turn back and pull into Gary's cove. He is happy with this site, which makes it good enough for me. We work at unloading, setting up camp though no tent tonight.
Kathryn walks over, and later Brookie comes.
We decided to aim for a 10 AM start and I decide that sleeping till 7:30 AM would give me ample time to be ready at 10.
It’s a bit windy and just a bit chilly after the sun goes down.
Another good day!
Saturday 27 September 2025
Day 6
We make breakfast, pack up and paddle away.
Our goal is to camp at the Rincon, about 10 miles from where we are, just inside the mouth of the Escalante.
As we approach our campsite of Wednesday, the wind seems to be increasing. Brookie suggests pulling over, taking a break, and access whether we should continue.
In addition, Kit's stern is very low in the water and she wants to investigate. Once she pops the cover, we see her rear hatch is full of water. She unloads, pumps, and investigates to see if she can determine root cause. Her conclusion is that the hatch cover was not tightly seated.
We are back on the water, but the wind continues to pick up. We round the next corner, where I was hoping we'd be somewhat protected but the intensity of the wind increases.
Karla suggests we return to our previous night’s camp and we do. Once there, it starts to rain. Gary puts on his heavier neoprene; I am warm enough with a rain jacket. We all find overhangs to take cover, the best spot being by Kit’s tent. The rain does pass.
Brookie and Karla setup in the same spot as they did on Wednesday. We setup in the same cove but Gary finds a spot on a higher tier between the two coves which we try to level but turns out it did not help much as we spent a fitful night trying to not roll into each other; Kit and Kathryn found spots in the cove where our boats are. It does rain overnight but it did not seem to be windy.
Sunday 28 September 2025
Day 7
Gary and I had a no-cook breakfast – A bar and gu for him, a cold brew and walking tamale for me.
Our plan was to be ready to paddle at 9 AM but I think we were on the water even earlier. Gary, Kit, Kathryn and I paddle up and pick up Brookie and Karla at their cove and we were on our way.
Today, we want to pass closer to the Rincon to check it out for the future trips. From what we can see, it’s not really appealing as a camping site as its pretty wide and open, though it does have lots of hiking possibilities.
We take a short break just short of the Rincon, then continue. As we pass by, I again wonder where the pumphouse is located and soon pass it on our right. There seems to be two distinct coves and the pumphouse is in the one further east. There is another big bay beyond that, that I had assumed was Iceberg Canyon but it was not. I retrospect, I wish we had explored that additional bay as I see the Rincon as a future destination that could include a down-day or two for hiking.
We continue up lake, moving to the left side of the lake. There is a canyon on the right which I assume is Slickrock Canyon, and I am surprised to be there already! But, it turns out to be Iceberg Canyon. We are on the side opposite Iceberg and Brookie boats into a small cove and deems it to have camping potential. I wonder if we should press on but the sky is looking threatening and there were two InReach warnings received for bad weather. Brookie gets out and checks further. There is plenty of room for everyone and there is one tent spot dug out and very flat. Brookie had claimed it but turned it over to Gary and me.
We start to unload, get the tent setup, throw gear in and work to unload the rest when it starts to rain. The tent fly is wide open so the bags and pads inside get wet. Even so, we climb in and hunker down to ride out the storm. There is some thunder, no visible lightening, and lots of rain. Another advantage to this spot is that it is tucked into a cove so it does offer protection from the wind.
The rain tapers off after a bit and the sun comes out. We climb out and begin the process of getting the gear dry. In the meantime, folks get ready for а cruise up Iceberg Canyon. Brookie and I stay behind.
While they are gone, we are treated with a lake otter swimming on the other side of the cove. He reaches shore and climbs out, then walks along while scrunching up his back. He spend a few minutes on shore, rolling and scratching then makes his way back to the water, swimming near us, ducks down into the water and then is gone!
The others return about 5:30, after about two hours. When they first headed up the canyon, they were treated with a waterfall which had dried up by the time they returned.
All the gear has dried. We make supper and I crawl into the tent.
Another good day!
Thursday 25 September 2025
Day 4
The weather has been good so far though the forecast has been threatening.
Our plan today is to paddle as far up the Escalante River Arm as we can. So off we go; past Davis Canyon and around more S-curves.
It seems like in no time we are at the mouth or 50 Mile Canyon which is not much more than a mile away from our camp. We bypass it and continue on.
Somewhere along the way, we pass a rock outcropping with what looked to be Moki steps. Also, on the right is a small grotto that Gary and the others go over to explore.
We pass more benches and more houseboats. Next is Willow Canyon. Here we see a couple of folks in kayaks. One has been heading up river, but now we see him already returning. Hmmm, not a good sign.
The water is getting muddier. We make our way around a bend, avoiding a shallow area and continue up but before long we are stopped by a mudflat, and the water is flowing down!
So, we are already at the end and have not yet even reached the ruin or grotto with moki steps.
We turn back and head into Willow Canyon. Bishop Canyon is a leg of Willow Canyon and in 2020, we parked the houseboat in Bishop Canyon and just beyond the houseboat was a spot where the water was perfectly still with incredible reflections that I named ‘room of gloom’
But today, Willow does not go far as Bishop. And there is no place for a nice lunch so we turn back. We did see two turkey vultures and paddled by a grove of ghost trees.
We head back out to the main Escalante Arm, looking for a lunch spot. There looks to be a beach, up ahead on the right. A houseboat must have parked here previously, as there are a number of “steps” carved out, perfect for sitting.
Our next stop is 50 Mile Canyon. Gary headed is headed over to a small cleft and I wonder why but then I see it is the entrance to 50 Mile Canyon.
Brooke decides to sit this one out and paddles over to the side. The rest of us continue. We paddle around a bend or two, which is as I remember doing in 2020,
Across the channel is a high wall of sand…I wonder if that's where the canyon-wide sandbar was in 2020 though I do not remember it being as high as this wall of sand…though at that time, the water would have been 50 feet higher. There are a couple chairs set out, though no people, so I expect this is someone’s boat-in camp.
We go around another corner and there’s an arch spanning the water, the Gregory Natural Bridge, according to the map.
I wonder if we can paddle under it and right about then I see Gary on the other side. So we can paddle under it!
Kathryn and Kit continue to paddle up canyon and we follow.
A couple more turns and then the way is blocked by layer of mud and grass. Kathryn wants to hike. Not a bad idea but it seems too late in the day to begin a hike. Plus this is the canyon that in 2020 sucked my boots off.
We head back, pick up, pick up Brookie and head back to camp, which is not more than a mile away, around another bend and we are there!
Another good day out.
I did want to mention that looking across from our camp, and up river, and the end of the far wall of Davis Canyon, there is a low wall of rocks sticking out of the water, that form the bend between our camp and Fifty-Mile Canyon. Those lower rocks are enticing and both Gary and I wondered if there was a passage amongst the rocks. Gary did check that out on the way back but could not find a way thru.
Monday 29 September 2025
Day 8
We are up by 7:15, boil water for breakfast and hot coffee, then work to break camp and get ready for the day.
We are packed up and ready by 8:30 AM to paddle away, so earlier than the other days.
We want to paddle into Annie's Canyon today, time and conditions permitting.
We head up lake, around one bend then another.
We are approaching the peninsula that I had picked out as having camping possibilities. It does look good for camping, but it does not seem to have protection from the wind.
Slickrock Canyon is across the lake. It does not look too deep though we bypass it favor of continuing to Annie’s Canyon.
We paddle around the peninsula then up-lake. Annies Canyon is not too much further. It seems that it is taking forever, but soon we are at the mouth and head in.
We take a quick break. This canyon has two arms. We paddle left, into the first arm. There are a number of bends and fingers and we poke into each before coming to the end. Gary manages to make his way just a bit further. I take a couple photos and turn around.
We are back at the original entrance cove. Our exploration took about 90 minutes. Now we head up the other arm which I estimate to be as long as the first but it turns out to be much shorter and ends in a pool beneath a high alcove. A delightful place.
We return and are back with the others in no time, head out of the canyon and uplake. There were no good lunch spots in the canyon so we decide to head back to our first night’s camp and stop there.
The group bypasses our camp but we turn back and take a break. Our goal camp is another 3 or 4 miles but the consensus is that we should stay here.
We unload, setup, and have supper.
One thing of note: this camp has a huge cairn on one of the higher ledges.
Lake Powell
22 Sept 2025 - 30 September 2025
Another self-supported trip to Lake Powell. This time we will paddle from the Bullfrog Access to the end of Escalante Canyon, camping along the way. Mileage estimate is 100 miles and we have planned for 10 days. Our participants (besides Gary and myself) are people we know from the Rocky Mountain Canoe Club: Kit H, Brookie G, Kathryn M, and Karla T
Sunday 21 September 2025
Day 0.
We left my place at 9:04AM
Lots of aspen were turning as we traveled thru the mountains, west on I-70 from Golden, encountering a rain storm at Bakerville, thru the Eisenhower Tunnel, down into Frisco, past Copper Mountain, up over Vail Pass and down to Glenwood Springs. The sun came out west of Vail and we passed South Canyon (west of Glenwood Springs) at 12:40 PM.
We stopped in Grand Junction at 2 PM. It’s 39 miles from the intersection of Utah 95 and Utah 276 (which is east of Hanksville, Utah) to Bullfrog. We pass Bull Creek Pass Road somewhere past Hanksville and before Bullfrog and need to lookup and see where it goes.
Once at Bullfrog, we snagged site A-8 in the tent campground. The others are already there. We did not have reservations but there were plenty of open sites.
After supper, we walked down to the launch site, the spur from the main boat ramp into the water. Water level per the website is around 3550, so 150 ft below full pool.
Monday 22 September 2025
Day 1
We were up around 7. It’s cloudy overhead but there is no wind.
It was close to 8 AM when we headed to the main boat ramp and on the water and paddling away at 10:45, heading toward Halls Crossing then turning south down lake.
We stopped for lunch at 1 PM, in a cove south of Halls Crossing Bay but before our camp of 2018 and about 2 miles above Lake Canyon.
We were back on the water and paddling again at 1:30, passed the camp of 2018, which did look accessible, and past Lake Canyon. My notes from 2020 said there were possible camps just past the mouth of Lake Canyon, but today those camps were high above the water, too high to reach.
We pass the “87” mile buoy and go around a bend and are in an oxbow.
Up ahead, Gary is out of his boat and beckons the rest of us over. There are a couple of small coves that we can pull into. This is a great campsite with lots of room.
It’s 3:30, time to start looking for a camp and here we are!
We get out, unload and set up camp.
A nice first day out!
Tuesday 30 September 2025
Day 9
Our last day!
Again, we are up, packed, and ready to paddle at 8:30 AM.
The wind seems to be up already, and get stronger as we paddle uplake.
We make a quick stop at the place with the ceiling arch. The wind seems to stabilize some, so we continue. With the water rougher due to the wind, it seems like the wakes created by the passing boats are smaller or perhaps today there are less boats and perhaps the boats themselves are smaller.
We continue. The wind is becoming calmer though the water is still rough. We take another break near our first day’s lunch spot. We can see the water towers for Hall Crossing.
We paddle, eventually passing to the left side and stay there. We round a corner then another and another.
We can see the Campground at Bullfrog. We cross over. Now we see the vehicles at the put-in but they seem so far away.
Finally, we arrive!
And now I see an island near the put-in – that would have been a good place to cross.
Everyone pulls out and drivers go for the cars.
I unpack and haul gear up while Gary parks the truck. We pack my stuff last, since it will come out first. Finally, everything is loaded including the boats.
Brookie & Karla have already left; Kit and Kathryn are ready to head out.
Our first stop is the bathroom where I change. Then we head to the lodge. Sad to say, there is no room at the Inn due to a bass fishing contest about to start.
We decide to head home; It's about 3:30.
We arrive at my place around 12:30 AM, unload my gear, relax a bit. Gary heads home and I head to bed. It's close to 3 AM
All-in-all, a good trip; very challenging but worth the effort!!
Wildlife
Seems like there was not as much wildlife as we encountered on other Powell outings but there were mergansers in the Escalante Arm, the two turkey vulture at the end of Willow Canyon, rock wrens at the camp at the mouth of the Escalante. And a white water bird at the camp above Annies Canyon. I head grebes at Bullfrog but did any. And the otter in the cover across from Iceberg Canyon.
Food
No caffeine enhanced food after lunch!
Energy food:
Skip the Kind Bars, not effective plus the chocolate in them adds caffeine
Breakfast:
Walking tamales and orange was good but need something different for variety
Try: (1) akmak crackers plus peanut butter in packets plus jam in small screw top container & an orange; (2) salami & cheese in those sealed packets from Safeway
Lunch
tuna bowls- good !.
Orange - goods!
Need a sweet snack
Chicken salad + chicken in a packet – good!
Walking tamale as an extra ever other day
Supper
Backpack food with extra meat: good!
Mashed potatoes & bouillon: good!-
Need a sweet snack
Sweet snack ideas
sour gummys
hard carmels
m & m’s
Planters peanut bars
Energy food
Noka packets are good!
Waffles – good! (with and without caffeine)
Gu's: with and without caffeine
Wednesday 24 September 2025
Day 3
We slept without a tent; it was wonderful seeing the stars!
Though I don't think I slept that well, I think due to having a “GU” and a waffle later in the day, both with caffeine.
Get up time was about 7:45 nd we were paddling away just after 10.
As determined yesterday, there were no better campsites further down, though there was a houseboat park, maybe ½ mile beyond us, though there was still a pour-over in what would have been the best spot to camp. There were no other camping spots beyond that.
Our campsite was just below an oxbox marked with a series of 3 red buoys. The next curve is marked with three green buoys.
Then ahead I see a floating pump house! We are at the Escalate.
Gary, Kathryn, Kit & Karla paddle over there. Brookie & I find a cove to wait. Climbing in and out of the boat unto the floating toilet is not one of my favorite activities.
From where we are, the entrance to Escalante looks to be about 6 inches wide. But then a jet ski comes by and heads in!
We paddle closer to the passage and it gets wider and wider. There is a big white buoy that I paddle over to that marks the Escalante River.
I head in to scout and see a nice landing spot for lunch just beyond then return to where Brookie is waiting.
The rest of the group paddles over. We group up, head in, and land at the lunch spot, which is about a 5 minute paddle upriver. And I note that this would be a nice camping spot and we might want to use it on our return.
After lunch, our plan is to paddle for an hour and then start looking for a camping spot. So up we go!
We paddle past Indian Creek Arm and continue. There is some confusion as to which way, right or left. Right is correct.
The Escalante is series of S-curves, so around-and-around we go.
Off to the left are 2 or 3 houseboats parked and they appear to be at the mouth of another canyon, most likely Clear Creek. Cathedral in the Desert is at the end of that canyon. We round another corner, and there are 2 more houseboats!
We continue up. At this point, we have been paddling about 45 minutes.
Around another curve is a cove, bordered with rocks, while looks promising. I paddle in. Bookie and Karla join me. Brookie’s assessment is that it's sub-good. Gary joins us. He agrees that it is sub-good. We decide we won’t begin to feel desperate for a camping spot until another 30 minutes has passed, so we paddle on.
Up ahead, there is another bench descending into the water. We look at the south side, where there is a rocky approach but we can see vegetation on top, a good sign. We continue around and on the north side is a perfect sand beach, narrow at the water but with a wide flat area above.
Hooray, home for the night!
We park our boats, get out, look around. Gary picks out a tent site and we start hauling our gear.
We decide that the kitchen will be close to the boats.
Another good day! We are just short of Davis Canyon, so we’re nearly 5 miles up river.
Thursday 14 October 2021
Friday 26 September 2025
Day 5
After paddling yesterday, we decided that we would start heading back to Bullfrog today, which will take us at least 3 days, if not more.
But we wanted a late start since our plan is to camp near the mouth of Escalante, about 5 miles away. So, this also serves as a partial rest day. One canyon we have not explored on this trip is Davis Canyon. Kit and Kathryn have their hearts set on paddling Davis and seeing La Gorce Arch with is a short stroll from the water’s end.
We all pack up. Kit and Kathryn head up Davis. Gary paddles up and is back before long. Kit and Kathryn return by 11:40. And they did get to the end and walked up to La Gorce.
An interlude: The daytime temps have been almost hot, though not bad when paddling. The evenings have been pleasantly warm. We leave the fly open overnight to keep things cool.
Today is the first day that I have taken a break from paddling; It is warm, but keep cool by putting my feet in the water while pumping water.
Once everyone is here, we head back toward the mouth of the Escalante. At Clear Creek Canyon, there are houseboats on the north side of the sandbar while on the other side is a colony of tents and awnings. I name it “Sun City” and try to photo but I am too far away.
We continue.
Indian Creek Canyon entices Gary and Kit to explore though the remaining four of us continue to paddle, intent on finding tonight’s camp. It seems further and longer to the mouth, but soon we can see and hear boats in the main lake.
We cross the left side (looking down lake) and finally are close to Wednesday’s lunch spot. we pull into a likely looking cove, Brookie gets out and deems it satisfactory. Unloading and putting up tents start. I need to wait for Gary, since he has the camping grow, so work on pumping more water. I have just about finished that task when I look up and see Gary and Kit headed over.
They land. Gary and I park our boats close together and start carrying the camping year up to a flat spot I had picked out but then Gary found one even better. From this tent site, we cam look over and see the buoy marking the mouth of the Escalante River.
I should mention that shortly after Gary & Kit arrived from their Indian Creek Excursion, the wind began to pick up. And, as we start to put up the tent, the wind begins to howl and the lake is covered in white caps. We try and try to erect the tent but finally decide we need to move to a spot protected from the wind. To our left is a drop into a wide gully. We do not want to be in the gully proper, but find a spot just beyond its outlet. We carry everything down there, tent first then gear. It still windy but erect the tent then hammer in pins to keep it in place.
Whew!
Next is supper, then we climb into the tent.
Another good day!