Return To Coyote Gulch

powderglut

In search of Fresh
Joined
Oct 17, 2012
Messages
367
We saw some really cool pictures in an Edward Abbey picture book back in winter 1978-79. "This place looks awesome!!" So it goes 34 years ago, I first hiked into Coyote Gulch with my wife and friends, and... yes, a dog. We also had campfires and, the best part.. we had it all to ourselves for 4 nights. Not a soul did we see.
So... A friend from Salt lake said it was her dream to visit this place forever, and would I be willing to backpack in and join her. All the pictures on the internet showed this place to be as pretty as I remembered it. Alrighty then. I guess I better go see it once more before they start selling tickets or start a lottery. "Honey, we're going to backpack Coyote Gulch." " Yah Right!!" 4 more skiing buddies from Steamboat and we have the crew. Now.. this is not exactly a spring chicken crew, but.. we all believe in "motion is the lotion" to stay young. I also told them I had a route that would get us in quick. We'd set up base camp, and then, do all day hikes. Sold! "Oh, there is this Crack in the Wall we have to get thru."
We drove down on a Sunday 7-1/2 hours from Steamboat Spgs Co. (Sorry IntuitiveCat, I meant to stop and talk coming thru, but my wife figured it was time to get this ride over with.) We stayed in Escalante that night, and then went down Hole in the Rock rd to our predetermined campsite (Thanks Nick). Set up camp and then cruised over to Devils Garden for a couple of hours.
Coming over Boulder Mt.
IMG_4244.JPG

Base Camp
IMG_4292.JPG

Base Camp
IMG_4295.JPG
Devils Garden
IMG_4263.JPG
Devils Garden
IMG_4271.JPG
The Devil's snake
IMG_4267.JPG
Devils Garden
IMG_4279.JPG
Sunrise at Camp
IMG_4299.JPG

Next day. The rest of the crew is not due until tonight. We head over to the Egypt TH to try and hike to Neon. We get a late start. Oh well, first night in the tent. We drop down the slickrock and get drawn a little north and end up between Fence Canyon instead of our intended B-line rt. Do we just drop down to the Escalante and head downstream to Neon? We've got our backpacking trip tomorrow. We choose to eat lunch above the confluence of both Fence Canyon's and then return back up to the car.
Egypt slickrock trail
IMG_4312.JPG
Lichen covered Bunny Rabbit formation
IMG_4314.JPG
Upper and Lower Fence Canyon Confluence
IMG_4325.JPG
Lower Fence
IMG_4328.JPG
Lunch
IMG_4334.JPG
Upper Fence
IMG_4336.JPG

Back at camp, the others show up and set up. We fix up fajitas for everyone and have a few beverages. Everyone is quite pleased to be out of the snow and camped at this really nice camp spot. Get a good nights sleep and get ready to hike into the Coyote the next day.
Packed up and ready to go. 3 nts in the gulch should be just right. We leave base camp and head for the Crack. We start the hike about 1 PM. Not exactly the crack of dawn, but hey, we're on vacation. The hike is pretty visual compared to Hurricane Wash. We shuttle packs across the the Crack and walk down the sand into Coyote. Oh yes!! I'm back here again. We find a nice spot a ways upstream and set up Coyote camp. Seep water is 5-6 minutes downstream on the wall. Piece of cake! Delicious ground filtered water to keep us quenched for the trip.
Slickrock above the Crack
IMG_4350.JPG
Huge dome on the lower sandhill into Coyote
IMG_4354.JPG
Coyote Camp
IMG_4364.JPG
T-Rex
IMG_4366.JPG
Coyote waterfalls
IMG_4376.JPG
Coyote waterfalls
IMG_4377.JPG
Coyote waterfalls
IMG_4384.JPG
Pictographs
IMG_4393.JPG
Wife and I at Coyote Natural Bridge
IMG_4402.JPG

IMG_4406.JPG
Jacob Hamblin Arch
IMG_4410.JPG
Deer At the Bridge
IMG_4417.JPG
Coyote Camp
IMG_4427.JPG

After a lovely day, just taking our time exploring up to Jacob Hamblin Arch, we amble back to camp for dinner. We have seen very few people today. A couple coming the opposite direction and another couple of folks up near the arch. Maybe it's not as busy as people say. Wrong! While doing dinner we start seeing people working their way upstream. Glad we took this elevated campsite on the inside bend. Next morning we see a few more come thru as we get ready to head down to the Escalante. Another stellar day in the canyons. I even manage to get a triple dunking in the Escalante. I am one clean kid. We stop at the seep to fill up on the way down.
The seep
IMG_4433.JPG
Pure desert perfection
IMG_4434.JPG
Clean and fresh as a daisy
IMG_4452.JPG
The perpetrators
IMG_4458.JPG
Hiking upstream on the Escalante
IMG_4460.JPG

A last look at Stevens on the way out
IMG_4353.JPG

Some of the well over 50-60 people we saw coming in on a Saturday morning
IMG_4474.JPG
Timing Baby! Go in the middle of the week.
Still a beautiful place after all these years!

Featured image for home page:
slide.jpg
 
Nice! That train of people is one of the saddest pictures on this site. But we BCPers have added our own numbers to the crowd quite a bit this year.

Looks like a great trip.
 
Sweet!!! Great trip report and glad I could help with the campsite. So it sounds like i just need to not work anymore and then I too can backpack mid-week and have all sorts of solitude in Coyote Gulch! :)
 
Great TR and pics.
My wife and I spent 4 days on our honeymoon there in 1981, we went in and out Crack in the wall. It was a paradise (other than Fence Canyon as it had been trampled by cattle), we saw no one. Our clothing theme (how should I say this, as this is a family site) was "back to nature" for most of the time. It would be hard to do that now I think, looking at your one shot of the line of people. I also remember Lake Powell backed up to Coyote Gulch, with higher water? Maybe my bad memory.
 
Great TR and pics.
My wife and I spent 4 days on our honeymoon there in 1981, we went in and out Crack in the wall. It was a paradise (other than Fence Canyon as it had been trampled by cattle), we saw no one. Our clothing theme (how should I say this, as this is a family site) was "back to nature" for most of the time. It would be hard to do that now I think, looking at your one shot of the line of people. I also remember Lake Powell backed up to Coyote Gulch, with higher water? Maybe my bad memory.
We also enjoyed the waterfalls and seep showers in the au natural back then too. I remember the lake level was very close to the Coyote. Not much Escalante flowing past the confluence. I remember a lot of debris and mud down there.
Sweet!!! Great trip report and glad I could help with the campsite. So it sounds like i just need to not work anymore and then I too can backpack mid-week and have all sorts of solitude in Coyote Gulch! :)
Thank god we went down during the middle of the week! C'mon!!!! You can't tell me, that all these hikes and trips you do, are all on the weekend. Dude, I want to hang with you!!!
Nice! That train of people is one of the saddest pictures on this site. But we BCPers have added our own numbers to the crowd quite a bit this year.

Looks like a great trip.
The numbers of people coming in that weekend was staggering. We have no idea how many people came down the Crack and hiked upstream that day we went down to the Escalante. That same evening, we met 7 guys who had packed small float rafts down Fence Canyon and floated the Escalante to Coyote. They planned 1 nt up canyon, then hike out Jacob Hamblin rt. Burly crew! The parking lot at the Hamblin rt was full when we left on Saturday. So was the Crack lot, as we can attest to the major traffic jam at the Crack in the Wall. Hurricane Wash lot had their fair share of cars. Who knows at Red Well or any of the others. I feel blessed, that we got to experience our hike upstream at the Coyote, and down to the Escalante, without hardly meeting a soul. It was nice to show my friends how it should look. I got a lot of "atta boys" for getting us in the middle of the week.
Yes it looks like this place is getting loved to death.
 
Timing is everything. Good info to know about Coyote. Still pretty staggering numbers of people. Still amazes me how many other trips I have done recently and not seen a soul for days while other places are mobbed. I think the strategy now is to go to the places that are just as beautiful as the Coyotes but not as well known.
 
You can't tell me, that all these hikes and trips you do, are all on the weekend. Dude, I want to hang with you!!!

I'm tellin' ya! Everything I do is over a weekend. I haven't been on a pure mid-week trip in close to a decade. Hoping to change that soon.
 
Similar threads
Thread starter Title Forum Replies Date
IntrepidXJ Return to Coyote Buttes South Hiking & Camping 4
TrailScot Lake Powell and the 'return' of Glen Canyon General Discussion 24
Jackson A Successful Return to the Bechler Backpacking 18
K Retired From Work Today ... Time to Return to the Wilds! General Discussion 20
LarryBoy IGBC Prepares for Grizzly Return to Bitterroots General Discussion 17
OldBill A return to the Winds: Sept 12-28, 2019 Backpacking 8
mattvogt7 A Rainy Return Backpacking 8
Nick New REI return policy? Gear 30
Jackson Return to the San Rafael River Gorge Backpacking 17
AbinadiWitness Return to THE FORMATION, etc. - The Second Time Was, Indeed, the Charm - 18-20 May 2017 Hiking & Camping 5
Parma Bighorn Crags, Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness Backpacking 14
Udink Return to Amethyst Basin Backpacking 2
WasatchWill Family Backpacking: Return to Ruth Lake Backpacking 0
Ugly A Return to La Verkin Creek and Kolob Backpacking 4
John Goering Return to Goose Lake/Grasshopper Glacier area of the Beartooth Mountains Hiking & Camping 7
WasatchWill Return to Middle Basin, Hayden Pk, & Bald Mtn Backpacking 13
Scott Chandler A Return to Desert: Little Wild Horse Hiking & Camping 7
Nick Return to Fiftymile On The Water 10
ram Return to Mumbai Canyon Canyoneering 4
IntrepidXJ Return to The Island Hiking & Camping 0
Chuck the Mauler A return to Lost Lake Winter Sports 5
IntrepidXJ Return to the Unexpected Hiking & Camping 8
IntrepidXJ Return to Zion Hiking & Camping 5
jdgibney Possible Early April Return Trip Planning 7
IntrepidXJ Return to Big Dominguez Canyon Hiking & Camping 0
IntrepidXJ Return to the Great Gallery Hiking & Camping 6
Janice Coyote Gulch Plus... Trip Planning 21
SteveR Coyote Buttes South- New Daily Permit Process Trip Planning 8
S Driving to poverty flats (South Coyote Buttes) on AWD Trip Planning 11
XID_AZ Coyote Gulch Northish Side Canyons Trip Planning 0
Janice Vermillion Cliffs Trip - Part 2 - White Pocket & Coyote Buttes South Hiking & Camping 7
Janice The Wave - and SO MUCH MORE! (Coyote Buttes North, South, White Pocket, Buckskin, Condors, Bighorns...) - Part 1 Hiking & Camping 14
dhertbag Camping at Cottonwood Cove - Coyote Buttes South Trip Planning 11
RyanP Coyote Gulch to Halls Creek via Steven's Canyon and the Baker Route (car/key swap) Meet Up (Members Only) 8
A Coyote Gulch crowds? Trip Planning 0
C Coyote Gulch via Chimney rock trail Trip Planning 0
J Trip first week of April 2021 Southern UT/Anywhere AZ - Death Hollow, Coyote Gulch, or other suggestions? Trip Planning 9
D Coyote Gulch to Lake Powell Trip Planning 8
D Coyote Gulch additional parking Trip Planning 3
RyanP Coyote Gulch to Halls Creek via Stevens Canyon Trip Planning 28
Nick Coyote Buttes South - Jan 18, 2020 Trip Planning 1
F Coyote Gulch via Dry Fork? Trip Planning 2
Janice Opportunity to provide input on policies for Coyote Buttes North ("The Wave") and nearby areas General Discussion 27
Jon Carbaugh A Leisurely Stroll Through Coyote Gulch Backpacking 11
DrNed Coyote Gulch Pit Toilet Trip Planning 14
Mikjik86 Backpacking Coyote Gulch, 3 Days, 2 Nights- October 2018 Backpacking 2
D South Coyote Buttes. We are going to put in at Lone Tree Reservoir because we don't have 4wd but we want to make it to White Pocket. Trip Planning 30
pixie1339 White Pocket, South Coyote Buttes Advice Trip Planning 11
Tystevens Buckskin or Coyote this week? Trip Planning 3
Mike Jones Coyote Flats and two 13k Peaks in one Day Hiking & Camping 5

Similar threads

Back
Top