Taylor Creek, Kolob Canyons

After a few more draining hikes the past few weeks, Liz and I decided to try a little more family friendly hike. We decided on a short 5 miler up in the picturesque Kolob Canyons portion of Zion National Park. Our neighbor, Matthew Arscott, decided to come with us.



The trail head.

Getting to Kolob Canyons is easy, just take exit 40 off of I15, check in at the visitors center, and start driving up the road which leads back into a beautiful and rugged wilderness. The Taylor Creek trail head and parking area is about 2 miles up the canyon road on the left side of the road.

We arrived there about 10:10 and with a bit of a chill in the air got started on our hike about 10:15. The trail head is clearly marked and starts by dropping down some wooden steps to the creek. The trail crosses the small stream several times on it's way to the confluence of the North and Middle forks of Taylor Creek about a mile from the trail head.



Horse Ranch Mountain (left) and Tucupit Point (right)

By this time, Tucupit Point, which had been watching over our approach, now towered above us. It makes up the left (north) wall of the Middle fork of Taylor Creek. Also just after reaching the confluence is the old Larson homestead cabin. This cabin was built in 1930 by Gustav Larson, who spent summers here from 1930 to 1933 raising pigs. Although parts of the cabin have been refurbished, some of the original white fir logs, which were hauled in by wagon from Cedar City, are still present on the cabin.

The trail continues past the Larson Cabin and up the canyon between Tucupit and Paria Points. About a mile up canyon from Larson Cabin is Fife Cabin, built by Arthur Fife also in 1930. He used this area to raise goats. We took some pictures and continued about another half mile to Double Arch Alcove, the end point of the hike (although it appeared that exploration further up canyon was possible).

Double Arch Alcove

The first thing I noticed about the alcove was the echo that was produced from it. There was also a little seep that had been working it's way through the sandstone for hundreds of years to finally see the light of day once again, and then trickle down to Taylor Creek.

The hike back to the car is just a backtrack of what we had already done. Over all, we hiked for about 4.8 miles (round trip) and it took us just shy of 3 hours. It is a very family friendly hike, as there is not much elevation gain or loss, Taylor Creek which you are constantly crossing is very shallow, the cabins are a nice piece of the area's history, and the alcove is a really cool culmination of the hike.

Larson Cabin

A small waterfall along the trail.

Fife Cabin

Side view of Fife Cabin

Just about to Double Arch Alcove

The seep coming through the sandstone in the Alcove

 

 

Ashdown Gorge via Potato Hollow

Two weeks ago, Liz and I started off on what turned out to be quite the adventure. Somehow we lost the Potato Hollow trail and ended up bushwhacking our way through Long Hollow until we came to Ashdown Creek.

So this week, we decided to go back and try to figure out where we went wrong. Holli, my step-daughter, is leaving in just a couple of days to be a nanny in New York for a year so we wanted her to go on another hike with us before she left.

The turnout where the pick-up car is left

Two cars are required for the hike. The first is dropped off at a small turn out just before the construction on the left side of hwy 14 seven miles from Cedar City. The turn out is easy to miss - in fact I drove right by it today even though I've been there the past 2 weeks.

The actual trail head, although we parked .2 miles up the road from here

We dropped the pick-up car off there and continued up the canyon. Just past the campground and the "S turn" in the road, there is a dirt road that comes in on the left that is marked with a small wooden sign which reads, "Crystal Spring." We took our Accord up the well grated dirt road until we reached the top of the hill. This is where we left our car last time and we decided to leave it there again, even though the dirt road continues down hill for another .2 of a mile.
We started down the dirt road at 10:15 and quickly made it to the trail head. Maybe 100 yards after the trail head, we came to a fork in the trail. A small post sign indicated that the "trail" went off to the left, although no trail name was given. The main trail that we were on (which was really a grown over old 4-wheel drive road) wasn't marked at all. In studying my map, I came to the conclusion that the crossing trail was possibly the Blowhard trail.

We continued on the overgrown road through the meadow and just as the trail started to transition into a forested area, we came to a sign marking the Ashdown Wilderness.

Shortly after the trail took us through the forest, we came to a trail sign staked to a tree indicating that the "Black Canyon Trail" went off to the left and the Crystal Springs trail continued ahead. I looked on all 3 of my maps for the Black Canyon Trail but it isn't found on any of them. I'll have to go back to explore where that trail goes.

The Long Hollow and Potato Hollow split. Stay right.

The well worn trail continues through the forest for a while and then comes to a meadow where a sign marks the Potato Hollow trail joining the Crystal Springs trail. I guess officially, this is where the Crystal Springs trail ends and the Potato Hollow trail takes over although there's no significant change in the direction or upkeep of the trail. (Note: The sign indicates that it's the blowhard trail, but the map indicates that it's the Potato Hollow trail.)

Maybe .25 of a mile later, the Long Hollow and Potato Hollow trails split, as is indicated by a big sign. The Long Hollow trail continues to follow the Long Hollow canyon, which we had been hiking in, and breaks off to the left. The Potato Hollow trail breaks off to the right and traverses up and over the small ridge to the right and then down into Potato Hollow.

At first the Potato Hollow is well defined, just as had been the Crystal Springs trail. But after only a hundred yards or so, the trail starts to look more like a game trail. At one portion of the trail it cuts back and switches back up the ridge. This is the trickiest part of the hike, and just two weeks before Liz and I missed the switch back up the ridge and continued heading straight. Eventually we caught up with the Long Hollow Trail, still thinking we were on the Potato Hollow trail, but that's another story that can be read about in the Long Hollow Bushwhack trip report.

This is the spot where the "trail" does a 180 and switches back up to the right

Once you pass the sign indicating the Long Hollow and Potato Hollow trail splits, keep an eye out on the ridge to the right because it's actually easier to spot a cairn up there than it is to see the actual spot where the trail switches back because there is no trail at that point. There is a downed tree that has apparently been placed at the spot where the trail switches back to try to discourage hikers from going the wrong way, but with all the downed trees and brush that we had already had to hike through or over, it looks just like part of the landscape.

The ridge top between Long Hollow and Potato Hollow

Once to the cairn up on the ridge, the trail becomes well defined once again. It climbs steeply up the ridge and the 8500+ feet of altitude take their toll, but this is just about the only ascent on the entire hike. Once to the top of the ridge, the surrounding views are beautiful. The trail then descends through a forested area down into Potato Hollow. A small meadow is encountered where there is no trail at all but if you scan the area below, you'll see a sign marked "trail" which lets you know which way to head. From here, the trail is hit and miss for a while, but there are numerous large cairns and just knowing that you have to follow Potato Hollow down to the road, means that the way to go is pretty obvious.

The dirt road as seen from the trail

After 3.2 miles of hiking from where we parked our car, we came to the dirt road and a sign marking the Potato Hollow trail. When we got on the road we took a right, as the maps indicated we should. After maybe a tenth of a mile, right after the road turns back east, a well defined trail, marked with a sign reading "Potato Hollow Trail," breaks off on the left and heads down to the river. We decided to stay on the road and take it to the river instead because we wanted to see the old sawmill which is right across the river where the road ends. In all, we were on the road for .8 miles until we came to the river at 7730 feet in altitude.

The sawmill

We took some pictures at the sawmill, being mindful that it's on private property, and left for our hike out down Ashdown Gorge. I tried to remember to look for the Potato Hollow trail that leads into and crosses the river, and where we entered last week when we started at the Rattlesnake Creek trail, but I missed it. We came to the Grotto, the amazing cave like area that words don't do justice describing, and had some snacks.

We continued down canyon until we came to Tom's Head which marks the confluence of Rattlesnake and Ashdown creeks. We asked Holli if she wanted to add the extra mile round trip on to see the waterfalls, but she decided not to so we continued on our way. If you have the time and the energy, I highly recommend seeing the waterfalls. I have pictures of them on my Rattlesnake Creek trip report. Seeing them is definitely worth the time and effort.

Flanigan Arch

The route continues to follow the stream course and by this time me feet were starting to ache from being so cold, hiking in and out of the water. A little short of a mile down from Tom's Head is Flanigan Arch which can only be seen from the left bank of the river and is easily missed. A large dark colored boulder is a land mark to look for and there is a large cairn marking the view point.

From Flanigan Arch, it's not much longer until the road can be spotted in the distance. Once the road is right above you, the most unpleasant part of the hike begins. The landslide has completely covered whatever trail there might have been before and navigating the stream course is impossible because of all the brush that over hangs it. So we made our way up out of the stream and through trees, over boulders, around potholes, and in mud to get around the landslide.

Once you get to the man-made water ways, the trail climbs out of the river to the right and follows an overgrown road that will eventually take you back to the pick-up car. We made it back at 3:10 after about 8.5 miles of hiking.

The trail as it heads up the ridge out of Long Hollow right after the trail splits.

A meadow with no trail. If you look closely in the distance on the left hand side you can see a sign making the trail

A close up of that sign

 

This is Potato Hollow. Follow the cairns or just follow this ravine down to the road.

A blurry picture of the Potato Hollow trail that breaks off of the road. We didn't take this trail - we continued on the road so we could see the sawmill.

Holli was determined not to get her feet wet at first. That didn't last long...

Entering the grotto

 

A view of the grotto from the side

Tom's Head. This landmark marks the spot of the confluence of Rattlesnake and Ashdown Creeks



Splash! Liz jumping into the water.

 

 

 

Rattlesnake Creek to Ashdown Gorge Sept 13, 2012

It had been a week since our bushwhack through what turned out to be Long Hollow in the Ashdown Gorge Wilderness and Liz and I wanted to get another look at the area so we decided to try the Rattlesnake Creek Trail.

The turnout where you leave the pickup vehicle

Two cars are needed for the Rattlesnake Creek trail hike. The first car is left at a small parking area off the left side of hwy 14, about 7 miles up the canyon from Cedar City. It is very easy to miss. The pullout is immediately before the construction to repair the landslide that closed hwy 14 for a year.

After leaving our first car here, we loaded into our other vehicle and continued up the canyon. At the Hwy 148 junction, we took a left and headed through Cedar Breaks National Monument. The Rattlesnake Creek trail head is just on the outside of the North boundary, exactly 20 miles from where we left the first car. There is a parking area and signs marking the trail head.

Rattlesnake Creek trail head

The elevation at the trail head is about 10470 feet. There was still a little chill in the air when we started on the trail at 10:18. The trail starts by following the National Monument boundary fence over open terrain until dropping slightly through pine and aspen forests. After about a half mile, a trail comes in from the left that, if followed, will go for about 50 yards to a great overlook of Cedar Breaks. Another similar lookout trail connects to the main trail a quarter mile further. We took the side trails to take in the view and then continued on our way.

After about a mile, the trail turned south across a mountain side giving us a spectacular view of where we would be going. We could see the canyon formed by Rattlesnake Creek and where in joined the Ashdown Creek wash. From here the trail heads back through a forested area before getting to Stud Flat after 2.9 miles from the trail head.


Stud Hollow

Stud Flat is an expansive open meadow that descends gradually toward Rattlesnake Creek. The top of Stud Flat provides beautiful views of the surrounding landscape from forested mountains to deep river gorges to open meadows. There are cairns throughout the meadow but the trail was well enough worn that we didn't need the cairns to help us find our way.

Crossing Rattlesnake Creek

From Stud Flat, the trail starts a steep decent down to Rattlesnake Creek via some switchbacks. At first the trail parallels the creek from above on the east side until it drops down the rest of the way and crosses the creek at 4.3 miles from the trail head. After crossing Rattlesnake Creek, the trail stays on the west bank about 30 feet above it. As we hiked on the west side, we came within about 15 feet of a surprised deer which apparently didn't hear us coming. It spotted us and ran off into the forest.

The junction with the high mountain trail.

We actually lost the trail about a mile after crossing the creek because we had stayed too low. We climbed straight up the steep hillside and found it again and continued on our way. Just .3 miles after losing the trail, and 1.3 after crossing Rattlesnake Creek, the High Mountain trail comes in from the right. We were greeted by the back of a sign indicating the junction of the two trails. At the junction, the trail crosses Rattlesnake Creek again just above a pretty 5 foot waterfall before climbing out of the Rattlesnake Creek canyon.

The spot where we enter Ashdown Creek.

After climbing out of the canyon, the trail parallels it for a little while before turning back east and climbing over a ridge to the Ashdown Creek canyon. The views into the canyon from above are awesome and I saw many spots that I was looking forward to checking out once I got down in the canyon. The trail was heading back up the canyon towards Cedar Breaks, taking us to a place where we could enter into the wash. Finally after 6.64 miles from the trail head, we were able to enter the Ashdown Canyon.

I had planned on trying to locate the Potato Hollow trail that continues out of the Ashdown Creek on the other side but was so excited and taken back by the beauty of the creek and canyon, I forgot to. Unlike Rattlesnake Creek which runs clear, Ashdown Creek was a bit silty, matching the color of the rocks around it. From here on, it's a water hike, much like the Narrows of Zion Canyon.

Looking out from inside of the Grotto

A short time after entering the Creek (not sure about the mileage from this point on because my GPS was without satellite reception for much of the rest of the way), we came to an amazing grotto that we had spotted from the trail high above before dropping into the canyon. The grotto is the highlight of the hike. As I walked over to check it out, I felt like for a moment I was on another planet. The magnitude of the walls and the great force of the water it took over thousands of years to create it was mind numbing. We took out some snacks and took in the beauty.

Tom's Head

After enjoying the moment for a while, we continued on our way down the river to our next point of interest, the confluence of Rattlesnake Creek with Ashdown Creek. I had read about the beautiful waterfall in Rattlesnake Creek and wanted to see this impassible object that made us have to leave Rattlesnake Creek, go all the way over the draw, and down into Ashdown wash to get around it.

Lake Creek waterfall

After winding our way through the Ashdown Gorge for a little short of a mile, we came to Tom's Head - the familiar land mark rock formation that marks the confluence of Rattlesnake and Ashdown Creeks. It was fun to see the clear water from Rattlesnake Creek that I had just been hiking in a short time before. There are actually 2 waterfalls to see - the one from Rattlesnake Creek and also one from Lake Creek, which joins Rattlesnake Creek. The trip up to the confluence of Lake and Rattlesnake Creeks is only .6 miles (although it seems longer than that with the anticipation of seeing the waterfalls. There is also a mini waterfall of about 8 feet about half way to get to the waterfalls that is bypassed by taking a somewhat rickety but stable ladder that was made with tree trunks and boards.

Rattlesnake Creek waterfall

From the Lake and Rattlesnake Creek confluence, it is only a 200 yard walk to get to each of the waterfalls. The creek entering from the left is Lake Creek, which waterfall is very unique as it passes underneath massive choke stones high above which create a neat alcove of sorts. The creek on the right is Rattlesnake Creek which has a minor obstacle to get passed before getting to the actual falls. The obstacle is just an awkward climb up 3 foot rocks that requires you to stand in knee deep water to get to the base of them. The falls are magnificent and the small slot canyon of Rattlesnake Creek is worth the side trip it's self.

At this point I should mention that it was fun to notice the height of the canyon walls around us from time to time as they started out at just a few feet and by the end of the hike were about 600 feet above us. Below the confluence of Rattlesnake Creek, Ashdown Creek continues meandering through the canyon. Here and there, remnants of debris washed down during flash flooding gave me pause and encouraged an occasional scan of the sky for rain clouds.

Flanagan's Arch

After leaving Tom's head by Rattlesnake Creek we continued downstream until we located Flanagan's Arch high above on the north (right) wall. It was probably only a half mile to a mile below Tom's Head, but seemed farther than that. If you're not looking for it, it's easy to miss. It's at a point where the south canyon wall recedes back, and the river course widens. On the south side is a large boulder which has some black coloration to it. To see the arch, you have to be on the south river bank. There is a large cairn on the south bank to mark the spot, but if you're hiking with your head down through the river, you will miss it.

Just around the bend from Flanagan's Arch, we saw the spot where we had joined the Ashdown Creek a week prior during our Long Hollow bushwhack adventure. Soon we saw the highway off in the distance and were forced to scramble through knocked down trees, mud, boulders, and sink holes to get past the landslide that covered the trail a couple of years back. This scramble is by far the least enjoyable part of the hike.

Once to the man-made coverts, the trail heads up on the right side and follows and old overgrown jeep trail back to where you've left your first vehicle. We made it back to the car at 5:24 after seven hours and six minutes and about 12 miles of hiking.

The start of the Rattlesnake Creek trail

A Look down into Cedar Breaks National Monument from one of the lookout points

Cedar Breaks National Monument

A view of Rattlesnake Canyon and Ashdown Canyon in the distance from the trail.

 

The trail as it transitioned from meadow to forest.

Just after crossing Rattlesnake Creek, the trail paralleled it to the right.

The front of the sign marking the junction of the High Mountain Trail.

Where you cross Rattlesnake Creek the second time before heading over to Ashdown Gorge.

The trail as it heads to Ashdown Gorge

 

The view of Ashdown Creek from the trail above before it descends down to it.

A cairn marking the spot where you enter Ashdown Gorge.

The entrance to the grotto

The mini waterfall up Rattlesnake Creek.

A view of Lake falls from a distance. You can see the front big choke stone.

Underneath the waterfall looking up at the three choke stones. The front stone is to the left.

A look at the back of the alcove created by the waterfall.

The last few steps before seeing the Rattlesnake Creek waterfall.

The last obstacle before the falls. Easy to climb up, just awkward.

The Rattlesnake Creek falls.

 

The side of the canyon walls on the way out of the Rattlesnake Creek Canyon.

Liz coming back down the ladder.

Ashdown Gorge

A little boulder hopping...er...bum sliding...

Debris from a flash flood.

This is a picture of the parking area where the first car is left. Notice the gate in the background.