Lower Brimstone Gulch - Escalante

Bill

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Jan 17, 2012
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This past weekend my pinecone and I were able to get away and spend a few days camping without the kids for our 10th wedding anniversary. Originally we had planned to do some backpacking or tech canyons but the colder weather across the state in the days leading up to the trip helped us decided to hit up a few non-technical and less visited canyons along the Hole in the Rock Road in Escalante.

The HITRR was in great shape compared to the wash board mess we experienced two weeks prior so we made great time and arrived at the Dry Fork turn off around 4pm. We had hiked the Peek-a-boo Spooky loop with the kids earlier this month so we opted to try out the "short cut" route to that leads directly to Brimstone Gulch. Our route in took a bit more time than I anticipated due to cutting down a bit early and getting rimmed out but it still was shorter than the sandy slog from the main trail head. From the car park it took about an hour to hit Brimstone. We were pleased to not find any pools on the lower end and after two short bends our packs were off and we passing the tight slot sideways. Once we reached deep dark slot I spent some time getting some photos while my wife wiggled her way up a bit further. The slot was so tight I had major issues getting my tripod to fit but I was able to get a few decent comps with some pretty long exposures between 2 and 20 seconds depending on my ISO. For the hike out we went south and tired a different short cut route that was much faster and we made it back to the car in a little over 30min. I wish we could of spent a bit more time in Brimstone but I was a bit rushed to get camp setup before sunset. Now that we know about the short cut I'm pretty positive we will be spending more time down there sometime in the near future.











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Brimstone was my favorite of the Dry Fork slots. NateGeesaman and I did all three in one day. A lot of fun!

I've been enjoying your photos on flickr.
 
Gorgeous photos and great TR. Plan to head there over Memorial Day weekend
 
Gorgeous photos and great TR. Plan to head there over Memorial Day weekend

Hey Scott, I'll send you the cords for the sneak route.
It cuts over a mile off each way and you can avoid the madness that is Speek-a-boo / Pooky trail head.
 
How far did you two make it in Bill? There got to be a spot where I really had to suck in to pass, and I'm a little guy at 165-5'10''. We made it to a big opening, a kind of room.
 
How far did you two make it in Bill? There got to be a spot where I really had to suck in to pass, and I'm a little guy at 165-5'10''. We made it to a big opening, a kind of room.

Not too far as it got pretty tight pretty quick. Also, the light was pretty killer where I was so before it got tight I spent a lot of time shooting while my wife went ahead.
 
when is the best time for Brimstone? Especially when you want to do Spooky and Peekaboo too?
We'll be there next weekend and Brimstone is on my list for years. Unfortunately I never made it

For this time of year I would say 3pm and beyond.
Peek a boo and spooky are really REALLY short slots, pretty sure my 6 year old did the loop in a little over an hour a few weeks ago.
 
For this time of year I would say 3pm and beyond.
Peek a boo and spooky are really REALLY short slots, pretty sure my 6 year old did the loop in a little over an hour a few weeks ago.

thanks Bill.
I've done Peekaboo and Spooky twice and simply retake my lost pictures, so Brimstone will be the highlight of that day :)
 
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