The Flint Trail is famous, but as a spur just before descending, the Big Ridge Road takes 4x4ers out to some of the most beautiful almost-road-accessible scenery atop the Orange Cliffs in the Maze District of Canyonlands. (At least in…
Climbing Fern’s Nipple
I finally found my favorite hike in Capitol Reef National Park, but it has a ridiculous name: Fern’s Nipple. So the story goes, Butch Cassidy named it after one of his girlfriends. I prefer the story of an early settler…
Explore Willow Springs Canyon
Willow Springs Canyon is a mostly-unknown scramble of a hike near the western border of Arches National Park. You’ll need 4×4 to get to the trailhead, but with high clearance, you can get close enough to the trailhead to walk…
Scrambling up Lake Hill (aka the Chocolate Drops)
In my perusals of unofficial routes in Death Valley, I ran across three hikes that seemed fascinating (to me, anyway!) in Panamint Valley: Panamint Dunes (which is actually an official route, though its trail is pretty much invisible in many…
Exploring Resurrection Canyon
In the way of explorable canyons, Resurrection Canyon near Big Water in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area is a stand-out. It’s not a slot – it’s rarely less than 20ft. wide – but it boasts a wild assortment of rock…
French Spring above the Maze District
French Spring is one of the minimal number of attractions to see along NP-633 (the road between Hans Flat and the top of the Flint Trail) in the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park.* It’s one of the more difficult…
Hiking to Elephant Arch
I sometimes imagine that it must be hard for explorers to come up with original names for the features they discover. How many Beacon Rocks, Twin Peaks, Old Baldies, Haystack Mountains, Sugarloaf Peaks, and Flat Top Mountains are there in…
Golden Stairs Trail to the Fins Trail to Lou’s Spring
A few days ago, I wrote about hiking down the Golden Stairs Trail and (almost) into the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park. After we had descended to the Dollhouse Road, we decided that we 1) hadn’t had enough adventure…
Golden Stairs Trail into the Maze District
It’s not easy to access the true Maze District of Canyonlands National Park. In fact, most of what is known as the “Maze District” is actually the Orange Cliffs District of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. This includes Hans Flat,…
Drive or Hike Hole in the Wall Road
If you’re looking for a non-traditional hike (or a nice, non-technical 4×4 ride) in the main part of Death Valley National Park, the Hole in the Wall Road is a good option! The scenery is beautiful, there are cool rock…