After my backpacking trip at Little Death Hollow I made my way back to the town of Escalante to resupply and shower. Along the way I drove the highly scenic Highway 12 between the town of Boulder Utah and Escalante. You drive along an exposed hog back with 360 degree views. I have never seen so much slick rock before. Down below is another backpacking route called the Boulder Mail Trail which is an old burro trail used to deliver mail between the towns of Boulder and Escalante.
So I camped about a mile away from the trailhead and my only visitors weere a couple of cows. I decided to take my mountain bike up the rough 4×4 road to the trail head. The Hole in the Rock road to reach this spot was a bitch to drive. It was 30+ miles of sandy washboard road. It was maintained but felt like it was trying to rattle my whole van apart.
Peekaboo starts off with this triple arch. Thanks Google for stylizing my photo.
I love the layers and depth in this photo.
I was smiling the whole time. I felt so connected to the rock and would run my hands down the sides of the canyon and feel the textures as I walk by.
Spaces so narrow I had to remove my pack. Suck in your gut Jay!
After hiking Peekaboo slot canyon for about 20 minutes I exited the narrow part and came to a wash. I decided to make my way to the next drainage that Spooky was in. It was sunny and 90 degrees at least.
I found some shade under a bush and ate my lunch while listining to my head phones. I remeber feeling really connected to the desert this day.
One of the choke points in Spooky. It took a bit to figure out how to get through many of them. I enjoyed the challenge.
Spooky was really narrow……
and lived up to its Spooky name….Cue the haunted house sound track now!
After hiking through Spooky I made my way over to the Brimstone slot canyon. It was a side hike about 2 miles away where Peekaboo and Spooky can be done as a loop. Brimstone was my favorite slot to explore and since it was a couple miles away I had the whole canyon to myself.
Large boulders caught up in the narrow part of the canyon on your way to Brimstone.
It took awhile for Brimstone to start to narrow. I loved the sandy floor of this slot canyon.
As you make your way down the canyon the lighting begins to do magical things.
Brimstone gets narrower and narrower….
Until you can’t go any further. This was the furthest I could make it. You can see the branch blocking they way. I felt like if I tried to proceed I would have put my self at risk of getting stuck. I am pretty skinny these days but not that skinny.
This sections reminded me of a subway terminal.
I took a seat and spent some time enjoying the magical slot. The wind was blowing very strong outside but I was sheltered from it down below.. Dust from the wind storm above would slowly drop specks of dust that would twinkle in the light as they descended their way to the sandy floor.
Natures art. Reminds me of the inner ear.
I really had a great time hiking these slot canyons. I was at the peak of my adventure and was really feeling this hike.
This video shows how windy it was. 30 mph gusts all day long. I remember right after I took this video my hat blew off and tumbled about 20 yards down the canyon before I could grab it. Hiking the slots was a good choice as it protected me from the elements.
I made my out of the canyon floor, hopped on my bike, and coasted down the 1.5 mile jeep road down to my van.
My camp spots at the trail heads were working out great. They were not the most secluded but offered tons of convenience and plenty of beauty.
journeyvision 