[John Morrow]

March 29, 2018: Upper Pleasant Creek Canyon with loop over Pt. 7430’. Pleasant Creek is perennial flow but today it was low enough to keep the feet dry. Pleasant of a canyon, indeed, but not the most spectacular. I also wanted to view upper Sheets Gulch and a number of Flats for a future backpack loop. Lastly I checked all the wingate sandstone faces around Tantalus Flats but found no rock art. Great views of the Reef from the top.

Upper Pleasant

Upper Pleasant Canyon

little arch

stone bottom

narrows

moving up

big ponderosa

nice scene

Capitol Reef National Park, UT

sculpted

looking back downcanyon

Upper Pleasant Creek

Tantalus Flats

The Salmon

The Reef

Buck Benchmark looms

Capitol Reef Natioanl Park, UT

March 30, 2018: Exploring the domes and fins above Hickman Bridge with a scramble of Navajo Dome 6489’. This was excellent exploring and a fine scramble on solid Class 3 slickrock. The map explains it. I feel a bit responsible sharing this so please bust no crypto crust and walk on solid rock as much as possible. From the Hickman Bridge Trail/Overlook junction spy a scree gully to the NE that leads to a broad ledge going right to the horizon. That is the key. After that keep it at Class 3 or look around and there are always bypasses of small dryfall and cliff obstructions. This was fun!

Navajo Dome 6489'

My gully through to ledge

the ledge

domes and fins

Navajo Dome 6489' to left

View west

View north

Capitol Reef National Park, UT

Cohab area

Capitol Reef National Park, UT

The Henry Mountains

ascent route

crazy fallen snag

through there

impassable dryfall below

Exit canyon descent route

lower in exit

Exit side canyon

Last look at destination

March 31, 2018: Singletree Trail to a couple peaks. OK truth is I want to get out backpacking but Villanova keeps winning which keeps me close to Torrey for a TV of tonight’s National Championship! This hike was something to do I haven’t done yet. I descended the Singletree Trail from Hwy 12 and took a left northward on the Slickrock Trail. Then I veered east to Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks, 7858’ has a fun solid low angle Navajo sandstone slickrock Class 2 ascent. Then I descended the south gully and on over to Three Brothers 8126’. Three Brothers had 400 feet of an excellent Class 3 Navajo sandstone scramble on the west ridge. Can go easy with Class 1 vegetated slope (descent) to as hard as Class 4 to the north. I chose a nice depression of slickrock just climbers left of the vegetated sw slope. Descended the sw slope to the fenceline around Happy Valley community until I returned up the Singletree trail. Could not find any rock art on the many fins, spires, and domes of Navajo sandstone in the vicinity.

Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks ahead

Happy Valley

Lyon Mtn outcrop

snadstone color

Distant Buck Benchmark

Three Brothers next

Back at Twin Peaks

Tantalus Flats

Jorgenson Flat

fun area

nice trail route

Lots of rock

Singletree Falls

April 1, 2018 Pectol’s Pyramid bail and success on the Cockscomb, 7880’. From the Cohab Trail I explored some benches around Pectol’s Pyramid but had no luck. Then I failed on Cockscomb later in the day but spied the correct route. On the 2nd I finished the Cockscomb. From a dispersed campsite parking on the map, work around the west buttress of the Cockscomb to a broad west trending drainage on Cockscomb’s south side. Contour into the basin w/o gaining altitude and a good cattle trail appears to take one all the way to the south saddle. Directly above is a west ridge notch. Fun Class 3 solid scrambling on a rising ledge to the SE of the notch leads to a face and solid gully. The route starts to the right of the three prominent pines in the photo and is above the lowest pine. Great, albeit short route.

Cockscomb

Searching for Pectols Pyramid

More sunsets

glowing Ferns Nipple

Last light on Ferns Nipple

Moonrise

South face of The Cockscomb

Fish Creek Cove

Fish Creek Cove

View NE

View North

The Cockscomb from NW

Cockscomb route

Go ‘Nova! Maybe tomorrow I’ll actually go somewhere remote and special.

[Abert]

I was confident you'd find a TV, John. At least you don't have to worry about the Phillies messing with your fall planning.

[Malachai Constant]

Cool report you hit a lot of the less crowded hikes. We have been going down the past couple years. CR is one of our favorites far fewer folks than Canyonlands or ugg Arches. This year went to North Rim of GC far from paved roads on abandoned cowboy routes now that was really lonely.

[natural_log]

My favorite park in the system. Thanks for sharing these desert wanderings, that alpenglow on the reef is beautiful!

[silence]

If anyone is going to find those special places in CR it would be you ... oh and our mutual Flickr friends. Makes me want to get back over there again.

[Rainie Too!]

Just can't stay away from Capital Reef can you?

[Backpacker Joe]

[John Morrow]

[natural_log]

Pie over crowds any day