Susie starting the descent from the Big Notch Trailhead.
A sunny afternoon and the fall colors are delightful.
Susie, ahead, pointing something our to Andy.
The canyon bottom is resplendant in greens and golds.
However, a 50 deep arroyo has to be negotiated.
It can look flat, but it ain't.
Looking back up canyon.
The arroyo walls can be pretty steep to climb out of.
A nice fall sceen. Note the hoodoos in the distance.
OK, so sometimes, thrashing thru the bottom of Upper Dark Canyon can be not as much fun as it looks.
Blue sky, white canyon walls, just delightful.
The number of good camping sites in the upper reaches of the canyon are limited, so we kept on hiking.
But we did strike paydirt. Just above and across from the mouth of Horse Pasture Canyon, we found a great site among the Pondersa pines.
A bit of early morning light under the clouds the next morning.
A nice photo of Andy and Sue at breakfast. Maybe hash browns this morning?
Nice morning lighting streaming in.
Talk about a perfect water source: nice clean water flowing over shelves of rock. Super convenient. And close to camp, like, maybe 100 yards.
A layover day takes us up into Horse Pasture cabin. An old cabin here, but not Scorrup Cabin.
Nice light on the hoodoos.
See why they call it Horse Pasture Canyon? The bottom was perfectly flat for a long way.
Andy photographing the hoodoos.
Getting into the upper reaches of the canyon.
Its not a box canyon, since there is a way out, but getting out looked like less fun than poking around.
We all climbe up on a side wall to get some views. You can see the heavily wooded plateau in the upper center of the photo.
I guess we are relaxing.
Susie crossing a dry water course.
Nice maple leaves.
The water had carved this overhang.
More red maples. The vegetation is totally different from what one might see in the lower parts of Dark Canyon.
Heading back down the canyon.
Nice hoodoos and colors.
Sue and Susie dropping down from the hoodoo tour to cross the canyon floor.
Scorrup Cabin.
A view inside.
Susie demonstrating what a great bathing spot we had. Flat rocks away from the stream bed and lots of water.
And a great view from the bathing spot.
Back in camp, Roger is fooling with his hydration system tube.
It rained hard duing the night, but at least parts of the old jeep road down the canyon were not muddy.
Unlike the creek, which was no longer water, but thin mud. Fortunately, we had loaded up on water the previous evening, enough to get us to our planned camp in Peavine canyon this afternoon.
Sue and Susie take a breather.
Ok, we have turned up into Peavine canyon, with clouds building.
An arch on the east wall of Peavine Canyon.
Pretty fall colors but the skies are getting threatening.
It has rained once already, and with pack covers on, we are prepared for the next wave.
Camp in Peavine, near the mouth of Kigalia Canyon. Note Andy and Sue's tent in the right background. Skies have cleared for the moment, and it is time to search for water that is not too muddy.
No luck on the water. After a few quarts, A&S's pump stopped completely, Not a good omen. We had enough for dinner, barely. So dinner it is.
Andy, Sue, and Susie at a pre-existing fire ring. Not sure why these people are smiling when there is little potable, or can-be-made potable, water around.
The next morning, after several waves of severe thunderstorms washed over us, we decide to bail, taking a few swallows of remaining water with us.
Roger resting. It is sorta like hiking in a forest with big walls on each side.
Trying to figure out what is wrong with Sue's camera.
Ah, some water. OK, so it is thin red mud. We figure we were only another hour or so away from a stock tank, which proved to be correct.
Climbing up into the aspen groves. Feels more like the mountains. But then, we are nearly at 8000 feet.
Lovely colors.
Ah, it looks like the sun is coming out between storms, so time to strip off the rain gear.
Now THIS is hiking, after some long drinks at the stock tank spring.
Starting the final climb up out of the canyon.
Great aspen grove.
Almost back to the car. Another mega-thunderstorm hit right as we finished the car shuttle, vindicating our decision to come out a day early. Driving out, off the Dark Canyon Plateau, was in a sea of mud.
A&S headed east, while Susie and I headed for Price, Utah. 2005 was a very low water year for the Glen Canyon Area. Here you see Hite Marina. OK, the buildings are near what the water used to be , and the big concrete strip was the boat launching ramp.
