Coyote Gulch

Sunday, July 10th

Kathy and I had reservations about taking the family down Coyote Gulch.  In favor of this hike was that it is considered to be the southwest hike that all others are compared to.  The argument against included the fact that we had to drive the Pilot down the Hole in the Rock Road again, and the fact that the exit from the canyon required a sketchy climb up slick rock.  Just how sketchy was a matter of debate.  The BLM classified the climb as class 5, which means you need a rope and harness because a fall could be fatal.  Many others considered it a class 3, in which scrambling is required.  From research, it was apparent that many boy scout troops and families backpacked this hike and did not use ropes.  But the BLM said class 5...  In the end, we decided to risk another flat tire on 'that road,' and brought along a rope and harnesses to belay the exit climb.  On, on!

We awoke at 4 am, and departed promptly at 4:30 am.  The plan was to drive the 40 miles of dirt road in 1.5 hours, arriving at the trail head shortly after sunrise.  This would avoid hiking in the hottest part of the day.  The entire hike was 13 miles, so we figured five hours of hiking, followed by another 1.5 hours of driving, would get us back to camp by 1 pm, when we would finish the day soaking in the reservoir.

The drive was brutal.  I was going much slower than anticipated, and in continuous fear of another rock cut in my tire.  The washer-board road got worse and worse. The last ten miles were done blindly, as the rising sun was in our eyes.  Saint Christopher, protect us!  The drive took 2.5 hours.  If I had known how bad the drive would be at the start, we would have bailed.

We parked the car, and the Edwards family, Brandon, and Devin headed on down the dirt road.  After two miles, the jeep road turned to bonifide trail and we followed cairns and compass towards the Crack in the Wall.  It was only 7 am, but it was already hot.  We successfully arrived at the edge of canyon and were blown away by the vista, which included both the yawning canyon and the dominating Stevens Arch.  We were also hit with the disbelief that there was a safe route to the canyon bottom.

Gearing up at the trail head

Cross-country, towards Crack in the Wall

The edge of Coyote Gulch

We found the 'crack' and headed down.  The entrance involved squirming through a massive vertical slot between the top of the canyon and a slab of rock that had separated.  At first we walked sideways.  Then my pack was removed and lowered to the the bottom of the cliff with rope.  Our personal coolness factor doubled.  We were officially adventurers.

Someone in Crack in the Wall I Found in Google Images

After negotiating the crack. we hiked down a huge sand dune, all the while being dwarfed by our surroundings.  We reached Coyote Gulch, prepared to filter some water, but found it DRY.  The nice lady at the BLM office told us water was reliable, but there was nothing but mud.  Surely, there will be water up canyon, we told ourselves while simultaneously thinking, "Uh, oh."

Do you see us little people?

Stevens Arch in the background

Up canyon we hiked, and shortly we found a stagnant pool of water.  We filtered, hoping less musty smelling water would be found further upstream.  Within another mile, we found good water and our outlook improved.  Within another two miles, we were walking beside, or in running water, which continued for the remainder of the canyon.

The hike was indeed beautiful.  We hiked up and around waterfalls.  Passed under a natural bridge.  Marveled at immense rock amphitheaters.  My words cannot properly capture what we saw, and pictures didn't either.

Coyote Natural Bridge

Towards the end of our hike, we encountered two college age guys who hiked down into the canyon and were just hanging out there.  They were very enthusiastic, and seemed eager to share what they were experiencing with anyone who would listen.  My nephew Brandon thought that this was a cool idea.  I wouldn't be surprised if he does this next summer instead of getting a job.  Not my fault, Lisa and Brian.

At the other end of the canyon, we reached Hamblin Arch.  This is another huge, photogenic arch.  While the rest of the crew filtered some more water for the exit and snapped photos of the arch, I contemplated our exit.  If we had to rope up, that meant going up one at a time, which would take a very long time.

Hamblin Arch

I found the trail up and came to the slick rock exit.  The first section required a few handholds, but the consequences of a fall were nothing but a few bruises.  The next section didn't look too bad either.  Maybe it is just a class 3.  I started up the slick rock, and quickly came to the realization that this was indeed a class 5 climb.  As the guidebook states, the route requires the lead climber to ascend without protection, and I did my best to reach a secure place to belay from without falling or peeing myself.  Great relief came when I found such a place.  And to my great joy, others had left behind caribiners and webbing tied off to the rock.  I added my webbing to the mix and tied myself in.  Let the belaying begin...

Without going into all the ugly details, the process of getting the group of six to the top was frustrating and exhausting.  The rock face was not straight down, so I had trouble throwing the rope down to the next climber.  The wind often took the rope sideways and hung it up on the rocks in between.  It was hot.  It took two hours.  To top it all off,  I lost my hat to the wind.

Class 3?!!

Kathy Topping Out

When Kathy topped out, we gathered our gear and began the two mile cross country walk back to the car.  We were all beat, and the little water we had left was the temperature of tea.  At 5:30, we reached the car and rejoiced at our completion of an amazing adventure.  The only thing left was a 2.5 hour, bone jarring, nerve-fraying drive back to camp on the Hole in the Rock Road.

And did we have a good time?  You betcha!