Southwest Roadtrip: Escalante
Bryce, boulders, baths — Welcome to Escalante, Utah
This post is a continuation of my overview post on my recent Southwest trip. If you’ve just come to visit, start there before reading onward.
Here’s a reminder of my itinerary:
- Sedona, AZ
- Page, AZ
- Escalante, UT
- Moab, UT
This post will cover, in detail, all things done in Escalante.
Escalante
I kicked off this leg of the trip by driving directly to Bryce Canyon. Firstly, it’s on the way to Escalante and secondly, most importantly, it’s a great drive.
Actually most of my Utah driving ended up being a very pleasant driving experience. From dry desert to rolling green pastures, stark birch forests found on steep snow-peaked cliffs to oh-so-fun hairpin turns — I really, really enjoyed driving along Highway routes 89 and Utah 12. I’ve never been to Utah prior to this trip and I was surprised to find so much diverse environment in one state.
Hikes
Navajo Loop and Queen’s Garden Trail — Bryce Canyon National Park: A nice 2.9 mile loop descending into one of the more popular areas of Bryce Canyon before, inevitably, having to ascend back up and out. This was my only hike in Bryce Canyon but certainly one of the best. I was glad to finally see the famous hoodoos, switchbacks, and rock formations in this park. But in my honest opinion, while Bryce is nice, it is not the best park to visit in Utah.
Devil’s Garden — Grand Staircase — Escalante National Monument: A not-really 1.0 mile loop to see various rock formations and hoodoos. There’s facilities and picnic areas onsite. I drove the 30 miles on backroads to get there just in time to catch some free roaming cattle trot into the sunset.
100 Hands Pictographs: A 1.0 mile out and back that you can easily tack on additional mileage if hiking near the Escalante River. (I chose not to because I don’t like hiking in mosquitoes and sand.) This was one of my first outdoor bouldering experiences and some of the pictographs along this hike are pretty high up. (Kudos to early man with their expert climbing capabilities!) After 30 minutes of navigating a particularly steep ledge, I erred on caution, climbed down, and enjoyed the carvings from below.
Points of Interest
Mystic Hot Springs: A very hippie outdoor bathing experience tucked away at the base of the Glenwood Mountains. I wasn’t actually planning to go but a day of rainy weather cancelled my planned hike and compelled me to go here instead. Perhaps due to the rainy weather, not a lot of people were actually there which I enjoyed. One can literally sit back in a hot bath and take in the Utah mountain scenery.
Georgie’s Outdoor Mexican Cafe: Kicking myself for accidentally deleting the photo but go here for the best blue corn green enchiladas in Utah. :chefs_kiss:
Accommodations
I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at Yonder Escalante. Boutique cabins, outdoor showers, drive-in theater, fire pits, laundry on-site…the amenities just keep on keeping on. Is it basically a Millennial glamping experience? Sure. But I appreciate it when places like this really put a lot of care and attention in the details and Yonder does this very well. The friendly staff, great food, and proximity to Escalante cannot be beaten.
If I had more time…
- Hike Coyote Gulch: Seriously kicking myself for not renting the right vehicle for this trip but lessons learned! This 10.6 mile loop is full of deep sand walks, creek trails, technical climbs, and soaring arches. I had met a group of men that had hiked the gulch the day prior to me arriving in Escalante. After some deep discussions over bourbon that evening, I grew less confident in doing it alone and with my rented Toyota Corolla. Luckily I didn’t risk driving to the trailhead. It rained later that day and flash floods can be deadly.
- Hike the Cosmic Ashtray: A lesser known but difficult 8.3 mile out and back. Only the toughest hikers are aware and actually hike to see this odd rock formation in the middle of the Utah dessert.
- Hike Lower Calf Creek Falls: A 6.7 mile out and back which ends near a nice waterfall that you can swim in. I had mentioned mosquitoes and sand earlier in my post and I would hesitate to do this hike during the spring time which can yield a less than desirable hiking experience.
- Walk around the nature trail at the Escalante Petrified Forest Park: I think I honestly just ran out of time otherwise I would have gone to check out this site. It’s right next door to Yonder Escalante.
I had a great stay around Escalante and it’s a nice area to get to experience some of what Utah has to offer. Even with some plans that had to be changed last minute, I was able to find lots to see and do. I know I’ll be back to tackle Coyote Gulch and will hands down stay at Yonder once again!
