Salt Creek, Canyonlands

I have not done this all the way through. I did Cathedral Butte to AA Man and back. 2 nights at SC1. Explored a lot the ruins and such. Obviously a relaxing schedule.

What was the nature of the pictures the NPS asked you to remove? I wouldn't think there was anything in SC left to keep secret. Does the NPS have employees trolling the internet looking for pictures and asking people to take them down? Really?

What do you think about the idea of driving to Peekabook CG and day hiking from there? Good idea?

How about Peekaboo CG to Angel Arch and back in a day? Good idea or too much?
 
Thou shalt not swim. Thou shalt not enter alcoves containing ruins. Thou shalt remove other stuff they ask you to when it saves you getting a tickets for other broken commandments, even though those other things aren't breaking any rules (maps, specific locations). You're right, nothing about it was a secret. Guidebooks lay it all out well. The NPS just seems extra protective of Salt Creek. They most definitely keep an eye on the interwebs looking for violations. Hi NPS! :) I know another person who got a similar call after a visit to Horse Canyon. The NPS agreed not to ticket him in exchange for removal of the offending materials from the internet, but then two weeks later a ticket came in the mail anyway.

As per your questions on route, I'd have a hard time not doing it as a point-to-point again. I hate out and backs. You can't often drive to Peekaboo though. The road is usually closed at Cave Spring. It would be a very long hike to Angel Arch and back in a day. Just off the top of my head, it seems like it must be at least 10-12 miles one-way. Maybe even close to 15? It's been a while, I could be a bit off, but it's way longer than I'd want to do as a day hike.
 
ogdendude said:
What do you think about the idea of driving to Peekabook CG and day hiking from there? Good idea?
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Over the past 4-5 years, the road to Peekaboo has been open only for a few weeks total (I managed to get there once right after it opened, and it ended up closing because of flash floods a few days later and never reopened that year), so I wouldn't count on being able to drive to Peekaboo.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. So I guess it is possible that people book Peekaboo CG using the online system and then find out that they can't get there when they show up? On the online reservation system now it shows that CG is reservable.
 
ogdendude said:
Thanks for the suggestions. So I guess it is possible that people book Peekaboo CG using the online system and then find out that they can't get there when they show up? On the online reservation system now it shows that CG is reservable.
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You can reserve it, you can camp there, but you can't drive there.
 
IntrepidXJ said:
Road status page: http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/roadstatus.htm
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Thanks!

So if someone was doing the Salt Creek through backpack, then is the only way out the north is via Squaw Flat and not Cave Spring?

I imagine if the Salt Creek/Horse Canyon road is impassible due to quicksand, then it would also be not-backpackable. Or is that an incorrect assumption as one could hike around the impassible road and still make it to the Cave Spring TH?
 
ogdendude said:
Thanks!

So if someone was doing the Salt Creek through backpack, then is the only way out the north is via Squaw Flat and not Cave Spring?

I imagine if the Salt Creek/Horse Canyon road is impassible due to quicksand, then it would also be not-backpackable. Or is that an incorrect assumption as one could hike around the impassible road and still make it to the Cave Spring TH?
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I've hiked the sloggy sand, and it sucks. The route to Squaw flat is much preferable, albeit a bit longer. If I hike that again, I'd MUCH rather hike on slickrock than the sand.
 
I hiked from Peekaboo to Cave Spring and didn't find it sloggy at all. Pretty wet, packed sand when I went through (Memorial Day with dry weather the preceding days). I'd like to try the route between Peekaboo and Squaw Flat sometime.
 
The hike between Cave Spring and Peekaboo is one of my least favorites (done it a few times). Not only can it be a sand slog, but I've encountered some of the worst swarms of mosquitoes in that section! But it can easily be hiked even if the road is closed.

IMO, the park does not seem to like maintaining the road to Peekaboo (and Horse Canyon) and really drag their feet on opening it up. I wouldn't be surprised to see them close it permanently in the future...
 
ogdendude said:
So I guess it is possible that people book Peekaboo CG using the online system and then find out that they can't get there when they show up?
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Yes that very thing happened to a group I was with. We entered via Beef Basin, my friend checked in via phone on the way down and they said nothing about our Peek a boo permit for the final night, spent two nights in the Basin, then spent two nights at Devils Kitchen on the permit, then took Elephant Hill over to the visitor center to get our peak a boo access and heard the bad news. Changed the permit to a day in Davis instead then ended the trip early, but the wind kicked up real strong and the sky turned brown so it worked out. Actually same thing happened the time I packed in with Randy IIRC
 
IntrepidXJ said:
The hike between Cave Spring and Peekaboo is one of my least favorites (done it a few times). Not only can it be a sand slog, but I've encountered some of the worst swarms of mosquitoes in that section! But it can easily be hiked even if the road is closed.

IMO, the park does not seem to like maintaining the road to Peekaboo (and Horse Canyon) and really drag their feet on opening it up. I wouldn't be surprised to see them close it permanently in the future...
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Thanks.

I've seen some discussion about hiking from Cathedral Point to Big Pocket. Ever done it?
 
Yes, I have seen the policy of intentional neglect by the NPS a few times. There are places where a road goes from BLM or NF to NP and right at that the boundary the road goes to total crap. The BLM and NF might grade once a year and the NPS is trying to get the road to disintegrate on its own. So there are roads on maps and have official numbers to named THs and everything, and basically they are slowly, or not so slowly, vanishing.
 
Don't suppose you have any idea how quickly the Squaw Flat CG fills up on a Friday in late March? 9am? noon? 4pm?
 
ogdendude said:
Thanks.

I've seen some discussion about hiking from Cathedral Point to Big Pocket. Ever done it?
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Can you elaborate? Cathedral Butte? From there you can hike into the Big Pocket or go out to Big Pocket Overlook and there is a trail that goes down from there. Bears in the bottom but I've seen none on top.
 
ogdendude said:
Don't suppose you have any idea how quickly the Squaw Flat CG fills up on a Friday in late March? 9am? noon? 4pm?
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I don't know about March but late September last year it was full by 10am or so. You can camp at the store just outside the gate to get an early start for SFCG.
 
Glasterpiece said:
Can you elaborate? Cathedral Butte? From there you can hike into the Big Pocket or go out to Big Pocket Overlook and there is a trail that goes down from there. Bears in the bottom but I've seen none on top.
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There is a peninsula sticking out into Salt Creek Canyon that on my topo map is labeled as Cathedral Point. I think it might be the same thing as Big Pocket Overlook. So you say there is a trail from this peninsula into Big Pocket? Interesting because other blogs have said people looked for a route down, but no trail. Definitely nothing on any map I have seen.
 
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