click here to view a gallery and slideshow of all 237 photos from this trip

This is Page 4 of a hike on the Escalante Route. Page 1 Page 2 Page 3

looking downstream from 75-Mile toward Pagago and Red Canyon

Originally I had planned to camp at Neville Rapid on this night and explore upstream in 75-Mile, but with the impending blizzard and increasing clouds on this day, I chose to continue as far as I could toward the rim of the canyon, on this second day of my trip on the Escalante Route.

This is the only time I have ever gone off-permit on a hike in Grand Canyon, and feel that the logic was valid. The storm that blew in later the next day carried the most snow accumulation northern Arizona had seen in a long time.

The route between 75-Mile and Papago follows what is essentially a jumble of rocks along the edge of the river.

This is the mouth of Papago Canyon. The “climb” on the Escalante Route that gets so much discussion is seen here in the right-center of the photo – the “Papago Wall”. If you look closely you can see a cairn marking the beginning of the ascent.

From the top of the climb up the wall, a cairn can be seen on the left side of the photo.

This is the view looking down the “Papago Slide,” a loose chute of rocks that hikers on the Escalante Route must negotiate. It’s notorious for hikers sending mini-rockslides down upon each other, best travelled one person at a time.

looking up from the bottom of the slide

another view of the slide

The remaining stretch of the Escalante Route was a simple walk along the river to Hance Rapid and Red Canyon.

At one of the beaches at Hance Rapid I caught up with the three guys I’d been seeing. They chose to spend the night there (Off-permit as well), and cut their trip short to avoid the snowstorm by hiking out the New Hance Trail on the following day. There was still some daylight left, so I chose to begin my hike out the New Hance Trail that evening.

The Solomon Temple sees some evening light.

Wotans, Vishnu, and Red Canyon in the evening

I made it as far as the open area below the Redwall before calling it a day.

dawn

The morning was cold so I was slow to pack, and the three guys caught me before I started the third day’s hike. We went out the New Hance Trail together, as I offered to drive them back to their vehicle at Grandview Point. Jed and I had left my car at Moran Point before the trip.

I left my camera packed away for the majority of this day, and ascending the New Hance in the snow was not as difficult as one would imagine. A handful of people had already broken trail, and it was not too tricky or difficult to follow it to the rim.

This is Page 4 of a hike on the Escalante Route. Page 1 Page 2 Page 3
(final page)

click here to view a gallery and slideshow of all 237 photos from this trip