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- Aug 9, 2007
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Funny how trip reports often come in sets around here. I can only think of one Halls Creek trip report being posted on BCP prior to this month and now we've had three posted in the last few weeks. It's awesome to see the different perspectives and route variations. Here's mine to add to the collection.
After stopping by to see intuitive cat and pick up some emergency firewood (thanks, Darren!), we set out on the Burr Trail in the dark to find a spot to car camp. Thanks to an awesome tip from Darren, we found a sweet spot next to a big cliff and enjoyed the fire until nearly 2am. In the morning we were greeted to amazing views of the Circle Cliffs as we packed up our bags for the descent into Halls Creek. Our goal for the day was just to hike in from the airstrip route and setup camp near the mouth of the narrows so we weren't in too much of a hurry.
I'd driven through Capitol Reef before but never hiked and this was a first for the rest of the group so the drive in on the Burr Trail was a real treat. We stopped at the top of the switchbacks to take in the view. There was an awesome echo up there. You could quickly yell pretty big strings of words like "Backcountrypost Rules" and a very clear echo would bounce off the wall to the south a second later repeating it back nearly as clear as you said it. We had fun with that for a minute or two before heading down.
We ended up blowing past the turnoff for the road that leads to our trailhead and didn't realize it until we were on the far end of the loop. We checked out the map and decided we could approach it from the south so we started out on the unknown dirt road towards what is known as the 'airstrip route'. Most hikers enter Halls Creek from the Halls Creek Overlook which is just a little further north off of the same road but adds 3.5 miles each way.
The road that we came in on was a bit rougher than if you come in from the north like most would, but totally doable with a good 4WD vehicle. Soon enough we had found the airstrip and were parked right at the rim of the canyon and ready to head out. The view from the trailhead was quite nice.
We took our time picking down the steep slope to the weakness in the cliffs that allows access to the bottom. Nothing was particularly difficult on the descent and it stayed around 3rd class with occasional bits of 4th class but not very exposed.
This was probably the worst part on the way down. It looked kind of bad at first but it was easy with plenty of hand holds. People that aren't comfortable with this kind of thing might want to remove their packs. There were a few other spots on the lower section that involved climbing through little ledges but none of it was too bad.
Looking back up at the air strip 'sneak route' to Halls Creek. Most of the route follows the right side of the crack in this photo. It is pretty well cairned from the rim to near the bottom.
With an abundance of time on our hands, we decided to aim for the first Cottonwood we could see and have a little break in the shade and lighten our packs a bit by having an afternoon beer. Well, I think it was afternoon... either way, it was nice to see leaves on the cottonwoods again, especially sitting in it's shade, sipping a beer.
The hike down Halls Creek to the narrows is mostly dry and drops in and out of the wash. It would be pretty brutal to do in mid-summer like NateGeesaman and slc_dan did last year. You guys are hardcore!
Within a mile or two of the airstrip route, we started encountering pools and short sections of flowing water that eventually dried up. The whole area had flooded within the last week so the slimy mud made things a little tougher.
After about 5 miles of hiking, the creek started cutting into the Waterpocket Fold. We were debating camping out in the sun or going into the narrows.
We decided to drop our packs and wander in a bit. The warmth of the sun sounded nice, but those big walls were looking good.
A few bends in, we found this massive alcove and immediately knew where we would be calling home for the next two nights.
Chillin' on the tarp that first night.
We were hoping for some early morning light in our deep alcove and we really got it. The moment the sun broke over Halls Mesa, it shot straight into our corner of the alcove. It was glorious...
But sadly, the sun did not stay out. By the time we had packed up for our day hike, it was overcast and a bit cooler than we would have liked.
But still amazing beautiful
We were in super leisure mode walking down the canyon. We knew we had the whole day so we just kind of wandered and appreciated all the sights and sounds. After a few bends, the sun had peeked back out so we sat down on the beach across from a spring to have a snack. After a few minutes, we realized that we had sat down below the nest of a very large bird of prey. Not sure if it was an eagle or a hawk but one of the adults must have had a wing span of 7+ feet. We sat there for at least 30 or 40 minutes as it circled above us drifting on the air currents, occasionally stopping for a break on the tiny cracks in the soaring walls above us. It was a real treat to watch.
Now that is leisurely hiking.
About 2/3 of the way through, we reached what lostlandscapes had warned us about. A swimmer! And lucky for us it was overcast and a bit windy and cold right at that moment. But it was only like 2pm, we can't turn back! Being the polar bear in the group, I went in first to see just how deep it was. It turned out not to be a full swimmer. It was nearly neck deep if going in from the left or a little less than chest deep from the right. What was strange through was that there was nearly 2 feet of gravely mud at the bottom. It literally went all the way to my knees but it was pretty easy to walk through.
colefeet and neiloro stripped down as I soaked in the pool and shuttle packs over. For those that don't know Jen, she is quite petite so this had potential to be a full swim for her. She also lacks the insulation I have, so after watching her psyche herself up for a few minutes to get in, I offered a piggy back ride across.
After the deep pool we found a bit of sun and finished off the beer before heading further down canyon.
This was the next deepest spot. It was about waist deep on me.
We were debating whether to use Halls Divide to go back to camp or go back the way we came and maybe get some better light for photos. We opted to see something new and use the divide. We took this little side canyon that comes in on the left LDC just as the narrows let up. There was a really nice spring feeding the canyon a couple hundred yards up.
As we climbed up towards the divide, the views of the reef to the west were calling out to us. We didn't plan to walk to the rim but looking at that terrain, how could we not?
The first Whipple's Fishhook for me this year. Actually the first flowering cactus period. There were a lot that were close on the hike in, but none flowering.
Walking up the reef was SO much fun! You have to pick your route but it wasn't very hard. I just aimed to the left of the high point in this photo.
We ended up at one of the best possible spots on the rim. It was right above the part with the swimmer and an awesome double abandoned meander. Standing on the edge was freaky cool.
Looking down into the canyon. The swimmer is the far left.
Jen playing it safe and laying on the edge.
Looking back at neiloro. I absolutely love the scale and drama in this photo.
And whats this? The sun is back to see us back to camp? Yes!!!
It was warm and the light was wonderful for the remainder of the hike. We picked our way through the slickrock before finally reconnecting with a little trail over Halls Divide and returning back to the top end of Halls Creek Narrows and our campsite.
Jen soaking up some sun as the photographers move slowly down the reef.
And more blooms! What a day...
The next morning we were up bright and early and on the trail. We booked it up to within sight of the exit crack in about 1 hour 45 minutes.
After a little snack break, we tackled the exit. It was easier going up but there were some moves that actually felt a bit scarier going up than going down. Not a big deal but some people might want to pull packs off here and there. Here's a shot of Jen with Neiloro way down below on the final stretch of the climb.
We made it back to the truck before noon and had celebratory beers in the sun before heading out. All said, I think we hiked about 20 miles on the route we took. My GPS clocked nearly 28 but it went crazy in the Narrows. It was definitely around 6 miles from the airstrip TH to the big alcove near the start of the narrows. Here's a map with my tracks cleaned up a bit.
View larger map.
Featured image for home page:
After stopping by to see intuitive cat and pick up some emergency firewood (thanks, Darren!), we set out on the Burr Trail in the dark to find a spot to car camp. Thanks to an awesome tip from Darren, we found a sweet spot next to a big cliff and enjoyed the fire until nearly 2am. In the morning we were greeted to amazing views of the Circle Cliffs as we packed up our bags for the descent into Halls Creek. Our goal for the day was just to hike in from the airstrip route and setup camp near the mouth of the narrows so we weren't in too much of a hurry.
I'd driven through Capitol Reef before but never hiked and this was a first for the rest of the group so the drive in on the Burr Trail was a real treat. We stopped at the top of the switchbacks to take in the view. There was an awesome echo up there. You could quickly yell pretty big strings of words like "Backcountrypost Rules" and a very clear echo would bounce off the wall to the south a second later repeating it back nearly as clear as you said it. We had fun with that for a minute or two before heading down.
We ended up blowing past the turnoff for the road that leads to our trailhead and didn't realize it until we were on the far end of the loop. We checked out the map and decided we could approach it from the south so we started out on the unknown dirt road towards what is known as the 'airstrip route'. Most hikers enter Halls Creek from the Halls Creek Overlook which is just a little further north off of the same road but adds 3.5 miles each way.
The road that we came in on was a bit rougher than if you come in from the north like most would, but totally doable with a good 4WD vehicle. Soon enough we had found the airstrip and were parked right at the rim of the canyon and ready to head out. The view from the trailhead was quite nice.
We took our time picking down the steep slope to the weakness in the cliffs that allows access to the bottom. Nothing was particularly difficult on the descent and it stayed around 3rd class with occasional bits of 4th class but not very exposed.
This was probably the worst part on the way down. It looked kind of bad at first but it was easy with plenty of hand holds. People that aren't comfortable with this kind of thing might want to remove their packs. There were a few other spots on the lower section that involved climbing through little ledges but none of it was too bad.
Looking back up at the air strip 'sneak route' to Halls Creek. Most of the route follows the right side of the crack in this photo. It is pretty well cairned from the rim to near the bottom.
With an abundance of time on our hands, we decided to aim for the first Cottonwood we could see and have a little break in the shade and lighten our packs a bit by having an afternoon beer. Well, I think it was afternoon... either way, it was nice to see leaves on the cottonwoods again, especially sitting in it's shade, sipping a beer.
The hike down Halls Creek to the narrows is mostly dry and drops in and out of the wash. It would be pretty brutal to do in mid-summer like NateGeesaman and slc_dan did last year. You guys are hardcore!
Within a mile or two of the airstrip route, we started encountering pools and short sections of flowing water that eventually dried up. The whole area had flooded within the last week so the slimy mud made things a little tougher.
After about 5 miles of hiking, the creek started cutting into the Waterpocket Fold. We were debating camping out in the sun or going into the narrows.
We decided to drop our packs and wander in a bit. The warmth of the sun sounded nice, but those big walls were looking good.
A few bends in, we found this massive alcove and immediately knew where we would be calling home for the next two nights.
Chillin' on the tarp that first night.
We were hoping for some early morning light in our deep alcove and we really got it. The moment the sun broke over Halls Mesa, it shot straight into our corner of the alcove. It was glorious...
But sadly, the sun did not stay out. By the time we had packed up for our day hike, it was overcast and a bit cooler than we would have liked.
But still amazing beautiful
We were in super leisure mode walking down the canyon. We knew we had the whole day so we just kind of wandered and appreciated all the sights and sounds. After a few bends, the sun had peeked back out so we sat down on the beach across from a spring to have a snack. After a few minutes, we realized that we had sat down below the nest of a very large bird of prey. Not sure if it was an eagle or a hawk but one of the adults must have had a wing span of 7+ feet. We sat there for at least 30 or 40 minutes as it circled above us drifting on the air currents, occasionally stopping for a break on the tiny cracks in the soaring walls above us. It was a real treat to watch.
Now that is leisurely hiking.
About 2/3 of the way through, we reached what lostlandscapes had warned us about. A swimmer! And lucky for us it was overcast and a bit windy and cold right at that moment. But it was only like 2pm, we can't turn back! Being the polar bear in the group, I went in first to see just how deep it was. It turned out not to be a full swimmer. It was nearly neck deep if going in from the left or a little less than chest deep from the right. What was strange through was that there was nearly 2 feet of gravely mud at the bottom. It literally went all the way to my knees but it was pretty easy to walk through.
colefeet and neiloro stripped down as I soaked in the pool and shuttle packs over. For those that don't know Jen, she is quite petite so this had potential to be a full swim for her. She also lacks the insulation I have, so after watching her psyche herself up for a few minutes to get in, I offered a piggy back ride across.
After the deep pool we found a bit of sun and finished off the beer before heading further down canyon.
This was the next deepest spot. It was about waist deep on me.
We were debating whether to use Halls Divide to go back to camp or go back the way we came and maybe get some better light for photos. We opted to see something new and use the divide. We took this little side canyon that comes in on the left LDC just as the narrows let up. There was a really nice spring feeding the canyon a couple hundred yards up.
As we climbed up towards the divide, the views of the reef to the west were calling out to us. We didn't plan to walk to the rim but looking at that terrain, how could we not?
The first Whipple's Fishhook for me this year. Actually the first flowering cactus period. There were a lot that were close on the hike in, but none flowering.
Walking up the reef was SO much fun! You have to pick your route but it wasn't very hard. I just aimed to the left of the high point in this photo.
We ended up at one of the best possible spots on the rim. It was right above the part with the swimmer and an awesome double abandoned meander. Standing on the edge was freaky cool.
Looking down into the canyon. The swimmer is the far left.
Jen playing it safe and laying on the edge.
Looking back at neiloro. I absolutely love the scale and drama in this photo.
And whats this? The sun is back to see us back to camp? Yes!!!
It was warm and the light was wonderful for the remainder of the hike. We picked our way through the slickrock before finally reconnecting with a little trail over Halls Divide and returning back to the top end of Halls Creek Narrows and our campsite.
Jen soaking up some sun as the photographers move slowly down the reef.
And more blooms! What a day...
The next morning we were up bright and early and on the trail. We booked it up to within sight of the exit crack in about 1 hour 45 minutes.
After a little snack break, we tackled the exit. It was easier going up but there were some moves that actually felt a bit scarier going up than going down. Not a big deal but some people might want to pull packs off here and there. Here's a shot of Jen with Neiloro way down below on the final stretch of the climb.
We made it back to the truck before noon and had celebratory beers in the sun before heading out. All said, I think we hiked about 20 miles on the route we took. My GPS clocked nearly 28 but it went crazy in the Narrows. It was definitely around 6 miles from the airstrip TH to the big alcove near the start of the narrows. Here's a map with my tracks cleaned up a bit.
View larger map.
Featured image for home page:
