Our Cobble Creek Hiking Club is large and active. I'm in awe of these seniors that trek around the outdoors with unabashed enthusiasm. Wearing sturdy shoes, ugly hats and backpacks with granola and water systems, they conquer the highs and lows of this beautiful country. We have been lax this year in joining them on the Wednesday and Saturday hikes and I always feel guilty when I head to the golf course instead. But this week, we joined in and headed with about 15 couples over to Utah. Above is the view as we drove through Capitol Reef NP. We were there about 3 years ago so just passed by.
We took the MH and camped at a SP in Escalante. A small town supported by tourism, it is in the heart of the Grand Staircase. ( A huge geological area that I do not understand fully but our government apparently feels that it should be plundered and assaulted.....and that's all I'll say about that for now......)
The next morning, we headed out to hike Lower Calf Creek Falls. Considered 'easy' in some guide descriptions, it follows the creek for 3+ miles.
The trail is rocky and requires careful footfalls and hiking poles to maneuver the serious ups and downs. On the levels, it is sandy, much like a fluffy beach without the ocean. It was hard work. Some turned back, concerned about the return trip.
Across the canyon were these pictographs.....a bit below center and above the shadow are 3 figures. I tried to zoom in closer but then it got blurry. The Fremont culture lived in this canyon 900 years ago. I can understand why with it's water, open space for crops and safe from invaders.
Our destination was the beautiful falls. It was very cool and peaceful and a good place to contemplate our lunch and our tired feet.
It took us 5 hours for the 6+ mile walk and altho we probably wouldn't do it again, we highly recommend it. And I would rate it 'easy/moderate'.
I've divided this trip into 3 blog posts in order to get the pictures in the right place....so keep reading.
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