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Stevens Canyon 2009 – Day 4

Synopsis: Dayhike to unnamed side canyon. April 19, 2009.

This would be an easy day, with a moderate dayhike to one of the unnamed side canyon we’d passed above the blocking fall. Thus, we had one of our two “slow” communal breakfasts – pancakes for Your Mom.

Hanky drying on the slickrock across the creek from camp.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Applying butter to pancakes.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Morning in camp. We had sun on the tents at 9:20 and left on our dayhike about 10.

Photo by Charles Yeamans.
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Katie adds: Sibyl and I stayed at camp on day four. Everyone had brought a book with them, although I had brought Erin’s extra book instead of a book of my own. Since most of us were quick readers, this led to a library of sorts being set up on a rock. While some people, like Dr. Andy, were reading scholarly works like The Sound and The Fury, others like Erin and I were reading the trashy chick lit wonder, Comfort and Joy. Other books read by multiple readers include The Lovely Bones, Anansi Boys, and The Fifth Child. Word on the street is that Joel enjoyed Comfort and Joy so much that he is now a secret Kristin Hannah fan. He would never buy her books for himself, but would love to receive them in the mail.

Hiking downstream.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Pinnacles.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Charles peeing.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Slickrock bench and pinnacles.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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The side canyon left from an interesting three-way convergence. There were a couple of options for side canyon exploring, and we chose the one that seemed bigger. Not too far up, there was a giant blocking fall of Navajo Sandstone (as we expected from looking at the map).

Trees in the side canyon.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Huge blocking fall in the side canyon.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Charles looking up at the huge blocking fall.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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We had lunch under the fall and then headed back.

Yes, that is indeed a deer turd stuck on cactus spines.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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At the mouth of the canyon, we split – Charles, Erin, and I would go up and over the pass by our tower that we could see from camp, while the rest would continue home in the streambed.

On the way up to the pass next to the tower.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Giant slickrock benches in the area above camp.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Panoramic view looking upstream from the tower pass.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Other, wimpier hikers in our team walking along the streambed.

Photo by Reid Priedhorsky.
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Descending. I believe I was too wimpy to go down this and went around at much greater effort.

Photo by Erin Tatge.
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After crossing over the pass, we decided to traverse along the Wingate benches above camp and return from upstream. I hoped to surprise/confuse the others, but they saw us when we were looking at them and so it was not surprising.