Bogley

[marc olivares]

great trip.... :2thumbs:

[mroy]

Makes me want to go back and do it all over again. There was only one spring flowing good enough to fill up at last May/June, and we missed all the petroglyphs. Half the time we didn't know where we were cause who wants to stare at a map when you have so much to look at? It looks like the angle of the sun this time of year was good for producing well exposed pics in Buckskin. My current profile pic is from Buckskin actually.

Great TR

[Cirrus2000]

Glad you guys are enjoying it!


Day 4: Upside Down Rock to Lees Ferry

I was up at about 7:15, and packed up a bit while waiting for the sun to crest the hills.



I wanted better lighting for the petroglyphs. One boulder has art that appears to be done upside down on the top edge - hence the name "Upside Down Rock":



A couple other boulders had some OK stuff on them (nothing spectacular), but my battery was starting to show signs of wearing out, so I started limiting my photo taking a little bit.

I got moving around 8:30, expecting to be at Lees Ferry around 12:30 to 1:00. Here the flood plain is very wide and sandy. This section is an old uranium-hunting mining road:



At P33.4, 2 miles past the petroglyphs, was Wilson Ranch. All that is left is a bit of foundation, and a few scraps of metal equipment scattered around, as well as a bit of fencing. Here is some of the foundation.



Right beside the old ranch is a small spring, but it's more like a very wet patch on the grass. Apparently, it was once fenced off and piped, but no longer.

At about P34.7, there is a bench that starts up on the left side, where the Moenkopi formation begins. This is where the old Dominguez, or Ute, Trail heads up towards the rim. Apparently, a mining road followed the route as well. At the very base of the ramp that heads up is a boulder with a couple of petroglyphs, plus the initials "FTJ" and the date 1896. I later read that "PWJ" is also on the boulder, but didn't see that. Anyway, Frank Tilton, and Price William Johnson were sons of the man who ran the ferry from 1875 to 1896. They left their mark just before leaving the area.



More of the wide open sand flats:



As I continued, I wanted to look for the "Spencer Place" - apparently there was an old car from the 1920s out front. I finally realized that I'd gone too far, and had (once again) been on the wrong side of the river. I put down the pack, and started heading back up the correct side of the river. I went for a while - 10 minutes or so - and decided that I didn't feel up to continuing the search; I was getting pretty tired by then. On the way back, I found this fence post, with a small tangle of old barbed wire on it. Looked like a good spot for a siesta photo:



I think this is where I was last sure that I had my written diary of my trip. After that... :ne_nau:

At 12:20, I arrived at the trail register, and signed out.

A little way beyond was the old Lonely Dell Ranch's Cemetery. The Johnson headstone is the same family as the initials on the boulder. Sadly, Frank and Price Johnson lost 4 young siblings in May and June of 1891 to fever. There were some other touching ones - Lucy Emett, "B & D" June 11, 1902, and Calvin Johnson (son of Price Johnson, from the boulder) who lived only seven months in 1928. Really made me think when I realized he would have been only 5 months older than my dad, who passed away a couple of years ago.



Next I reached Lonely Dell itself. Just before was this truck. Seen better days...



That's when I realized I didn't have my diary anymore. I dropped my pack and headed back up the trail for 10 or 15 minutes, but there was nothing I could see. The wind was blowing pretty good, so I figured 3 folded sheets of paper could have got anywhere in that time, especially the further back up the trail I went. Dejectedly, I returned to my pack and continued in to Lonely Dell Ranch.

This is called the Picture Window Cabin. I wonder why... The structure was built sometime between 1873 and the mid 1920s, and moved to this location in 1946. The window was originally much smaller, and enlarged between 1946 and the mid 1960s.



This is the dugout, or root cellar - built between 1878 and 1898. The roof was replaced around 1970, and stabilized in 1992. There is a possibility that John Emett is buried in here. He died in the winter of 1909, and the "womanfolk" buried him here, as it was the only unfrozen ground around. Accounts differ as to whether he was disinterred and moved to the cemetery. His marker there may be only that.



A couple of cabins at the ranch. First is the "Samantha Johnson Cabin", built in 1881. The second is the "Jerry Johnson Cabin", built in 1925.





From the ranch, I tried cutting through the orchard to cross the river directly to the parking lot. I found my way down to the river OK, but the south bank was almost impassable. I had to walk a long way to find a way back up out of the stream bed. Then I got lost in the bushes for a while. Finally, at 1:20, I made it back to the car.



Most important gear on the trip:



Final day: just under 5 hours, covering 7 miles.

Total: over the course of 4 days, a little over 30 hours of hiking, and about 46 miles total covered. Sweet.


I just wanted to get the final day up before I pack up for my flight. I'll put my thoughts and impressions into words later in the day, as I'm waiting at the airport. (Gotta love free wireless internet at the Las Vegas airport!)

[Cirrus2000]

northernoutpost wrote: You gonna bring that balloon shot over to CT? There's points for that, you know!
Hadn't thought of that, Chris. Yeah, I'll have to put up a whole trip report there (since WCC's not at full capacity...) Points? Balloons?

I'll be doing the BCMC slideshow in May with this trip and touching on a couple other Utah trips as well. Oughta stop by!

[utidcapaco]

Most excellent. I need to get back to Buckskin soon. I suspect the solo aspect adds a nice quality to the trip, especially being your first time.

Thanks for taking the time to post this!

[accadacca]

Cirrus, You are the ultimate trip reporter. IMO...you can NEVER have enough photos and the captions next to each photo too. You ROCK!!! This was a GREAT read and on the eyes too. Glad you enjoyed yourself...I feel like I was there.

WE SALUTE YOU!!! :rockon:

[Win]

Terrific report, quite an adventure!

Win

[Scott Card]

Thanks for a great read. One of the best photo TR's yet. :2thumbs:

[rockgremlin]

This is probably the best, most comprehensive TR I've ever seen. Thanks for taking the time to share this with us. I appreciated the personal spin you added to the story - made for a great read!

Very well done! :2thumbs:

[Mtnman1830]

Wow. I enjoyed every bit of it. Thanks for sharing!

[Cirrus2000]

Afterword and Author's Notes

The trip is over, but fortunately the memories will last a lifetime.

I feel incredibly fortunate to have had such an... atypical introduction to Buckskin and Paria - and Wire Pass, for that matter. Not everyone gets to experience it for the first time in such a way - alone, with not a single other human in sight or earshot from start to finish. I think it made it special. Yes, I read a bunch about it beforehand, I took copies of Kelsey's info, and the BLM guide. I still felt like I was exploring, though. Like I was the first to see these things. Sure, I missed some stuff, but it will leave things for me to find next time.

The only canyons I'd been in prior to this were Dark Canyon around the Sundance Trail, the Virgin Narrows in Zion, just a few hours up from the bottom, and a short way up Orderville Canyon from the Virgin confluence. I'd heard, and I'd seen pictures, but the actual experience of Wire Pass and Buckskin - that was incredible. The light wasn't always ideal, and I'm sure that it varies from spot to spot, but once in a while it just struck right, and I had to stare at it in awe. I think that I captured some really nice photos in a few places.

The Paria Canyon was more like the canyons I'd seen previously - wider, and more open to variations in route-finding. A lot of fun, and more sustained than any other trip I've taken. This was not only my longest desert/canyon trip, but the longest (farthest) backpacking trip I've done yet. (I know, it's not a whole lot, but I'm working up to it! Gimme some time - I've got years ahead of me to do this stuff!)

I certainly am glad that Buckskin was so easily navigable for this trip. Two short puddles to mid-thigh, and nothing else beyond mid-upper calf - well, highly unusual, and it really helped keep the experience manageable for a solo rookie. Sure wish I hadn't carried the inflatable cooler float, for my pack, though. And I really could have got away without the wetsuit, for the tiny amount I really needed it. Still, glad to have had everything I actually needed.

My memory card and battery woes were lamentable, but I think I did okay with what I had. I would compose each photo in my mind, set the camera where it needed to be, then turn it on, click, and turn it off. Very few photos with flash - better to get the natural light, anyway. I can not believe that the battery lasted right to the end - and took over 250 photos, plus a bit of video. Kudos to the crappy no-name manufacturer.

I know that I've kind of overdone it with this trip report (that's me, trying to set the bar higher!) but keep in mind that I lost my notes about the trip. I wanted to save all the memories I could about the trip. I wanted to get the details down while they were fresh (I'm also presenting this trip as a slideshow to my local mountaineering club in May.) So actually, I've been typing this all into Word, and copying it into uutah.com day by day. This, along with the photos, is my permanent record of the trip.

Thanks for your patience in getting through all this stuff. This was a trip that has brought me a long way in how I feel about my capabilities (though not necessarily improved my actual capabilities), and really broadened my experience. I would like to do this trip again, when it's warmer, greener, and generally less harsh (like the wind was on the second day, and a short while on the third. Yikes!) I'll probably try to drag my usual partner, Tony, along on this trip one of these days, and I realize that I'll probably see more people - any people would be more - next time. That's OK. I've seen it on my own, and I'll never forget that - never.

Here endeth the entirety of my Wire Pass - Buckskin Gulch - Paria Canyon trip report. Whew.

[denaliguide]

fantastic trip!! next time you will have to see what else you can do without. loved all the great photos!

[tanya]

Wonderful!

[americanhero]

Cirrus2000 wrote: Sombeech wrote: They've been Hasselhoff'd!!!!
Really though, haven't we all...

We need to see if he's still really popular in Germany. Jolly? americanhero? Is it true?

Hasselhoff? :eek1:
He was very popular in Germany in the 90ies, that's true. Actually the younger ones don't know much about him. I can remember the popularity he once had here in Germany, but I never understood it.

By the way, a wonderful Trip Report!!! :2thumbs:
What an adventure. I really enjoyed reading it completely. The Paria Canyon is something I will do someday. But I'm sure I won't do it in March. Looked a little chilly sometimes :roll:
And what kind of wetsuit did you use?

[Cirrus2000]

americanhero wrote:
Hasselhoff? :eek1:
:roflol: :roflol:

americanhero wrote: By the way, a wonderful Trip Report!!! :2thumbs:
What an adventure. I really enjoyed reading it completely. The Paria Canyon is something I will do someday. But I'm sure I won't do it in March. Looked a little chilly sometimes :roll:
And what kind of wetsuit did you use?

Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, it was chilly, but I don't mind the cold too much. Every morning the sun was strong enough to thaw the frost off the outside of my sleeping bag and the inside of my bivy shelter pretty quickly! :haha:

I borrowed the wetsuit from a friend, who does some scuba diving. I used his 3 mm "Bare" Farmer John suit. I could have easily done without it, considering how dry Buckskin was.

I visited the Kanab BLM Field Office the day after I came out of Paria, and there was a fellow there considering doing a quick trip through Buckskin up to White House. I told him that shorts and a towel would be adequate for Buckskin at that point. Put on shorts, run through the water, towel off, put long pants back on, and continue. It really was that easy.

How rare is that? Pretty uncommon, I think.