Beehive Traverse - Capitol Reef National Park

[WanderingTheRockies]

Trip report for the Beehive Traverse in Capitol Reef National Park from earlier this month. For those interested, I have even more pictures on my blog than what I posted here.

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Day 1​

Since this would be a thru hike, the three of us met at the trailhead with two cars. We left one car at the trailhead we would finish the trip at and all hopped in the other car to drive to the starting trailhead together. We didn’t start hiking the first day until 3pm, which led to a shorter mileage day. We each carried ~5 liters of water so that we would be ok to dry camp that night incase we saw no water. With heavy packs and a very specific route to follow, we set out from the trailhead and began the southern portion of the traverse.

We didn’t have to hike for long before we soon found ourselves walking in these beautiful, multicolored slick rock drainages. We found plenty of large potholes full of water. We even saw some bighorn sheep that blended in with their surroundings watching us at one point. We walked from one drainage to another and enjoyed the beautiful views along the way. As we started approaching dinner time, we found ourselves on a ridge that provided some great campsite options with views of Capitol Gorge. We decided that would be a great spot to camp on our first night. We watched a pretty sunset and headed to bed, with a plan to get an early start the next morning.

Day 1 stats: 4.1 miles, +933 ft of elevation gain, -437 ft of elevation loss

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Day 2​

We wanted to make our second day a full day of hiking because there was a decent chance of rain on day 3. We wanted to give ourselves a cushion for day 3 that didn’t require a full day walking on slick rock in the rain. So a full day of hiking on day 2 it would be!

We headed down the ridge and soon found ourselves in Capitol Gorge. We refilled on water at the water tanks in Capitol Gorge and continued on our way. We saw a handful of other potholes that morning with water and were happy to see that water might not be as big of a concern as feared. We ate lunch with beautiful views of Golden Throne and then headed down one of the steeper gullies I have gone down to get to the next drainage.

As we headed down this next canyon, we soon found ourselves in a slot canyon with chockstones to navigate. I’ve seen pictures of this slot full of water and also have seen pictures of it totally dry. It was totally dry for us. It was narrow and scrambly enough that we decided to pass our packs through this section. It was one of my favorite parts of the route. Once we got through the slot, we found a large pothole that looked like a donut that was full of water. We were expecting to see another pothole farther down the canyon so we decided to wait to fill our water up before we headed up onto another ridge where we’d likely make dry camp for the night. 1.5 miles later, we got to the spot where we were expecting a pothole and it was bone dry. Darn! Since we’d be exiting the canyon soon, we didn’t expect to find any more water that day and we didn’t have enough left for dry camping that night plus several miles of hiking the next morning. We took a gamble and lost. So we made the unhappy decision to walk back to the last donut pothole we had seen, 1.5 miles back up canyon. This 3 mile round trip detour ended up adding 2 hours of hiking to our day. With packs full of water, we continued along the route and gained the ridge where we hoped to find a campsite. It was an extremely windy afternoon, and we were having difficulty finding a site that wasn’t getting hit by 30 mph winds that was also flat. We ended up walking farther than we thought we would before we found a good enough site. We had once again hiked until early evening so we made dinner right when we got to camp and retired for the night after the very long day.

Day 2 stats: 9.6 miles (not including the extra 3 miles to get water), +2325 ft of elevation gain, -1754 ft of elevation loss

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Day 3​

The following morning, we slept in a little later than the day before was we waited for the light rain to pass. We then had some of my favorite views of the trip. We did a short scramble from our campsite up to the top of this mesa that had some of the best views I’ve ever seen. These views made us forget what a slog the day before ended up being. Once we were ready to get moving, we headed back down a different ridge towards another canyon that we’d be hiking up that day.

We thankfully found some potholes with water in them pretty quickly in this new canyon, which was a big relief. After seeing a few with water, we decided to wait to refill our water until later in the day so we weren’t carrying 5 liters of water each all day long. After we finished a long, dry section through slow moving terrain that day, we found ourselves at a pothole that we expected to have water, but didn’t. Anxiety set in again, considering the day we had yesterday. We kept walking and eventually came upon a small pothole with a little bit of water in it and quite a few dead bugs. The water was very brown. But it was water and we decided to fill up 5 liters each so we could get rid of our water anxiety and be prepared to dry camp again if needed.

Soon after leaving this pothole, it started raining pretty hard for ~5 minutes, which was just long enough to make the slick rock live up to its name and be quite slippery. With a large dry fall feature coming up that had a very exposed traverse on slick rock to pass it, we decided to find an alternate route that would be safer for us to use considering the conditions. Thankfully, we did find one and made it to the other side of the drywall without any mishaps. We did find a large pothole of water here, which would end up being the last one we saw on the trip. We had a snack and drank a little extra water and then continued hiking. It was another windy afternoon and we set up camp in a semi-protected sand-bottomed canyon. It was the first night of the trip I didn’t listen to wind all night so I slept quite well.

Day 3 stats: 4.8 miles, +981 ft of elevation gain, -1357 ft of elevation loss

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Day 4​

The following morning would be our final day. We headed up to the top of Bear Canyon and then walked along some slick rock ridges that had beautiful 360 degree views. We cautiously made our way down into the canyon that involved one slick rock section that was steeper than desired, but we managed to all get through it. As we made our way towards Grand Wash, we started to see the first people we’d seen in a few days. I wasn’t ready for the trip to end and would have loved to turn around and do the whole route again in the opposite direction. I guess I’ll have to save that for another time.

Day 4 stats: 4.5 miles, +405 ft of elevation gain, -1520 ft of elevation loss

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Total stats: 23 miles, +4644 ft of elevation gain, -5068 ft of elevation loss

 

[wsp_scott]

Looks like a great trip. I like your "action" photos with people doing "moves" in the cracks, nice perspective.

 

[TrailScot]

What an amazing adventure ... your stunning photos really capture the beauty and grandeur of the area

 

[b.stark]

Awesome trip, thanks for sharing! That's a hike that is very high on my list of things to do soon as the opportunity comes.

 

[Yvonne]

what a great trip with amazing scenery

 

[Edge]

Great trip report! I was never really sure exactly where this route went, but following along on a topo map as I read your report answered a lot of my questions.

Looks stellar!

 

[Bad_Luck_Brigade]

This is such a fun route. I've done it before solo and I want to do it again some day.

It looks like you decided to approach the route from the opposite direction I did, going south to north while I did north to south. That's an unusual choice. The nice thing about doing a north to south approach is that for the most part, all the really nasty slopes are slopes you are going down rather than having to climb. There's still some drudgery. IIRC, the approach to the Golden Throne is a little nastier north to south because of the size of the rock pile you've got to climb, but that's balanced out by the large dryfall that feeds the tanks.

I suspect I talked to you on Reddit, asking you about Beta for water in the area just after you got back from your trip.

Going through these pictures makes me yearn for Capitol Reef-

Wow. One of those pictures makes it look like you're standing on unsupported rock. That's a pretty good shot. When I was moving through that section, the exposure of the saddle itself was enough risk for me. Not the biggest fan of heights like that.

Tell me, did you stick pretty close to the route? Or did you do some exploring while you are up there?

The cool thing about this route is how deep it gets you into Capitol Reef's heart. The solitude is amazing, and it puts you smack dab in the middle of the most water-rich kiabab formations. I've spent a fair bit of time pouring over as much satellite imagery as I can get my grubby little fingers on, and have carefully marked every single water-filled pothole I can find in the bulk of the Waterpocket Fold. You could spent a lot more time up there then the route suggests just exploring those canyons and backtracking when you meet a dryfall you can't bypass.

I think some of my happiest memories are making camp and just walking barefoot in that fine blowsand that accumulates at the bottom of the canyons.

Slickrock is coarse, but it doesn't cut when you walk on it. I'd spend nights pacing under the moonlight, or sometimes curled up against a rock wall as I watched stars and satellites pass overhead. Another time, I slept cowboy and woke up with some centipedes curled up next to me.

Those mesas are magical places. Some of the last bits of wild left in the world.

If you ever want to go back there, I'd suggest extending the trip with a stint in in Spring Canyon, and then wrapping around through Pleasant Creek. That, or just pack more and spend longer in the heartland of Capitol Reef itself.

When I went through Spring Canyon, there was this point where there were a lot of reeds blocking my path, and when I looked through them I could see the sky. For a moment, I was confuzzled. I couldn't figure out just how I had ended up on the precipice of such a high cliff. Then I realized that it was water, and that water was so still it formed a perfect mirror of the clouds above. I had approached the marshy sections close to the Freemont river without realizing it.

Pleasant Creek isn't as nice though. The ground there has been destroyed by the cattle the ranchers run through it, which is a real shame after the pristine nature of the mesas.

 

[WanderingTheRockies]

This is such a fun route. I've done it before solo and I want to do it again some day.

It looks like you decided to approach the route from the opposite direction I did, going south to north while I did north to south. That's an unusual choice. The nice thing about doing a north to south approach is that for the most part, all the really nasty slopes are slopes you are going down rather than having to climb. There's still some drudgery. IIRC, the approach to the Golden Throne is a little nastier north to south because of the size of the rock pile you've got to climb, but that's balanced out by the large dryfall that feeds the tanks.

I suspect I talked to you on Reddit, asking you about Beta for water in the area just after you got back from your trip.

Going through these pictures makes me yearn for Capitol Reef-

Wow. One of those pictures makes it look like you're standing on unsupported rock. That's a pretty good shot. When I was moving through that section, the exposure of the saddle itself was enough risk for me. Not the biggest fan of heights like that.

Tell me, did you stick pretty close to the route? Or did you do some exploring while you are up there?

The cool thing about this route is how deep it gets you into Capitol Reef's heart. The solitude is amazing, and it puts you smack dab in the middle of the most water-rich kiabab formations. I've spent a fair bit of time pouring over as much satellite imagery as I can get my grubby little fingers on, and have carefully marked every single water-filled pothole I can find in the bulk of the Waterpocket Fold. You could spent a lot more time up there then the route suggests just exploring those canyons and backtracking when you meet a dryfall you can't bypass.

I think some of my happiest memories are making camp and just walking barefoot in that fine blowsand that accumulates at the bottom of the canyons.

Slickrock is coarse, but it doesn't cut when you walk on it. I'd spend nights pacing under the moonlight, or sometimes curled up against a rock wall as I watched stars and satellites pass overhead. Another time, I slept cowboy and woke up with some centipedes curled up next to me.

Those mesas are magical places. Some of the last bits of wild left in the world.

If you ever want to go back there, I'd suggest extending the trip with a stint in in Spring Canyon, and then wrapping around through Pleasant Creek. That, or just pack more and spend longer in the heartland of Capitol Reef itself.

When I went through Spring Canyon, there was this point where there were a lot of reeds blocking my path, and when I looked through them I could see the sky. For a moment, I was confuzzled. I couldn't figure out just how I had ended up on the precipice of such a high cliff. Then I realized that it was water, and that water was so still it formed a perfect mirror of the clouds above. I had approached the marshy sections close to the Freemont river without realizing it.

Pleasant Creek isn't as nice though. The ground there has been destroyed by the cattle the ranchers run through it, which is a real shame after the pristine nature of the mesas.

It's funny, I think 99% of the time I'd rather go up a nasty slope than have to go down it so I think we have very different approaches there! We stayed pretty close to the route as our timeframe didn't allow for much exploring. As you said, I'd love to go back and explore some of the canyons not on the route. It'd be nice to do that during a year with more water. Spring Canyon also looks pretty neat so thanks for the rec - an excuse to go back!

 

[Bad_Luck_Brigade]

It's funny, I think 99% of the time I'd rather go up a nasty slope than have to go down it so I think we have very different approaches there! We stayed pretty close to the route as our timeframe didn't allow for much exploring. As you said, I'd love to go back and explore some of the canyons not on the route. It'd be nice to do that during a year with more water. Spring Canyon also looks pretty neat so thanks for the rec - an excuse to go back!

*tilts hand back and forth*.

Compared to the parts of the route you've already done, Spring Canyon was more of a 'Meh.'

Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful Canyon in it's own right, but as canyons go, it's more like the Grand Wash than a slot. You start up at the top of it's drainage and make your way down into the bottom. There is no water so you have to carry it in. That limits your chance to explore side canyons if you want because of the carry weight. I talk about it mostly because if you want to do the traverse again, this is how it could be extended. You go throw Spring Canyon, and if conditions are favorable, you may get a small spring in the canyon itself. If not, you fill up at the Freemont river and drop some chlorine tablets into the water to deal with the livestock pissing in it. Same thing with Pleasant Creek.

If you ever want to come down here and explore, that's a different matter entirely, and your options open up considerably. Exploration isn't as glamorous as the traverse; All of that pesky routefinding becomes your responsibility. But it's rewarding in it's own you.

You spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to get from A to B, and you see things no one else has ever seen while you are at it.

I would heavily suggest sheets gulch.

The experience you've gotten in the traverse should have been enough to teach you where you need to look for water in the Waterpocket Fold, and that means you can do some fun things in Sheets gulch. Last time I gandered over there, there was a spring in Sheets gulch, but that one is probably not active all year.



There's some big potholes however. Nothing on the main trail itself, but if you are willing to explore the side canyons and stick to the stream beds, you will find water.


This bugger is nice and deep. If you look at the shape of it, you'd quickly realize that with how deep it is, it's going to evaporate much slower than other potholes. That's nice.



This is a bigger pair of tanks, but if you want to go beyond them, you find yourself in a nice little slot canyon that you can travel in a while. Not long, but long enough. I've seen that canyon from both above and below, trying to figure out a way to get up and down that doesn't involve walking back out the mesa.

That tends to be the theme when it comes to capitol reef.

Water isn't everywhere, but if you get into the kiabab and make sure you're in a big enough drainage, you'll find something as long as the water year hasn't been terrible.



Sheets gulch can either be done as a thorough hike, or you can in and out it over a night or two. When I did sheets, it was part of a larger effort to figure out where all the potholes were (my obsession in this area is the water), and partly it was also to try and find a way into Five Mile Canyon, which I have been looking to get into. I might return sooner or later because I think I've developed another potential way in, which requires going through sheets a second time.

If I had to describe sheets?

Like Grand Wash and Capitol Gorge, but without the tourists underfoot. Sheets is reasonably well known, but more isolated. And because of the water, you can take things as fast or slow as you want, exploring as much or as little as it pleases you to do so. Eventually, the canyon opens up, and then it's not as fun, but it is a beautiful hike for at least a good day as long as you aren't rushing things.

I went other places the trip I explored sheets, and I think my greatest achievement was that I found a single route that started high up in the Mesa between Five Mile Canyon and Sheets Gulch that was pleasant to walk through almost all the way to the the foothills. It was nice, spent most of it's time inside a nameless canyon, and it began with this very picturesque view.



One day, I hope to find a way to connect this particular route to something larger.

Ultimately, Capitol Reef is like this big ditch, and you have a shovel. You are going to get out of her the effort you put in. If you are a a road warrior embarking upon your eternal crusade against the concept of healthy excercise, she will allow you to enjoy Grand Wash and Capitol Gorge. If you are willing to do a little more, she may grant you a place like Sheets Gulch.

If, like me, you are a person willing to get out there and do risky things, she will grant you a chance to go on what is, in my opinion, one of the best hikes in the world. I've done Wire Pass to Lee's Ferry and the Teton Crest, both hikes national geographic agrees are wonderful. But something about the traverse is perfection.

But if you're willing to go a little deeper, and dig a little further, things change even more.

The spectacle of a grand adventure like the traverse gets left behind, and instead, you are left with a very tantalizing thing; Freedom.

There are very few trails in Capitol Reef, and generally speaking, the rangers in Capitol Reef do not hike. When they do hike, they do not hike in a place like you or I went to. Permits are easy; You simply ask for one. And there were few rules and regulations about where you can and cannot be, and what you can and cannot do. If you approach a fork in the canyon, do you wish to go left or right? The choice is yours, and you are unlikely to find any evidence of people regardless of which fork you choose.

The only individuals you are going to encounter are weirdos like me or you.


(Ignore the scowl, I can barely see my screen)

Anyways, happy trails.