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By Golden Webb
Grand
Staircase-Escalante National Monument is big (at 1.7 million acres, almost the
size of Yellowstone), rugged (even today, it’s crossed by only one paved
road), and physically varied, encompassing three distinct geographical regions:
the upper steps of the Grand Staircase, the 2,000-foot high Kaiparowits Plateau
(beloved of Zane Grey–in his books he called it "Wild Horse Mesa"),
and the water-carved Canyons of the Escalante (the "crookedest river in
the world").
In the Southwest, names often tell stories, and the names on a map of Grand Staircase-Escalante resonate with adventure, danger, solitude, and whimsy: Death Hollow, Trap Canyon, Hell’s Backbone, Smoky Mountain, Hole-in-the-Rock, the Cockscomb, Little Egypt, Coyote Gulch, Paradise Canyon, Sitdown Bench, No Man’s Mesa, Carcass Wash, Death Ridge, Last Chance Gulch, Mollie’s Nipple, Harvey’s Fear.
A landscape like this holds many secrets: hidden seeps and hanging gardens, giant alcoves, thousand-year-old juniper and pinyon trees, remote mesas, ancient ruins and faded pictographs, shimmering cottonwood leaves, black, impenetrable slots, beds of pure white, red, and yellow sand, streams poisoned with alkali and arsenic, slickrock monoliths, unbroken seams of starlight, and crystalline pools left over from the last rain.
"There is no moderation here," writes Gibbs M. Smith. "This is a large, exciting land of extremes: from green oases to parched deserts; from flash floods to winter snows; from hot summers to cold winters; from soothing horizontal mesas to violently uplifted and agitated lands. We approach it best as seekers. If we are willing to enter the land on its own terms, listening to its message for us without imposing our will or technology, we will not be disappointed."
Many travelers seek out a place like Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument for its high adventure quotient: unbroken days or weeks of wilderness solitude; endless, trackless miles of outback; the opportunity to leave a Vibram-soled footprint where no human has ever placed a step. But adventures in the backcountry require generous amounts of time–and time is a luxury weekend warriors simply don’t have.
Luckily, there’s plenty to see and do right off Highway 12, Grand Staircase-Escalante’s only paved road. Highway 12 passes across the northern portion of the monument between the towns of Tropic, Cannonville, Escalante, and Boulder. This famous stretch of pavement is considered by many to be among the prettiest in the nation: it was recently awarded the designation of All-American Highway, the highest designation for any American road (there are only twenty All-American Highways in the entire United States).
Lower Calf Creek Falls
A perfect place to start is the Calf Creek Recreation Area, located along Highway 12 approximately 15 miles east of Escalante. The self-guided nature trail to Lower Calf Creek Falls follows the course of Calf Creek through a beautiful box canyon that pioneer stockmen once used as a natural holding pen for weaned calves.
A 2 _-mile hike passes beaver ponds and prehistoric rock art sites enroute to the 126-foot waterfall, which cascades over a fluted cliff into an emerald plunge-pool. Luxuriant hanging gardens of moss, ferns, watercress, columbine, sedges, and monkeyflower grow on the Navajo Sandstone walls around the falls, while willows, oak trees, and abundant grasses create park-like atmosphere.
The pool itself is deep, clear and cold. The Shoshone Indians believed that when a good warrior died in battle he fell into a stream of sparkling water that carried him into a land of eternal bliss. Dive into the green depths of Lower Calf Creek Fall’s plunge-pool on a hot summer day and you’ll understand what the Shoshone had in mind.
Roundtrip distance to the falls is approximately 5-1/2 miles. There’s almost no elevation gain, but most of the trail is quite sandy, which makes for somewhat strenuous walking, especially in the hot summer months between June and August (bring plenty of water). Facilities at Calf Creek Recreation Area include individual camping units, five individual picnic units, and a group picnic area. There’s also playground equipment, a culinary water system, two volleyball courts, a paved road, paved parking area, vault toilets, and a footbridge across Calf Creek. Camping fees are $5.00 per night on a first-come basis; day-use fees are $2.00.
Escalante Natural Arch and Escalante Natural Bridge
If you have a couple more hours at your disposal, head south two miles along Highway 12 to the Escalante River–the "crookedest river in the world" (here thirty-five meandering river miles are equal to only 14 straight-line miles). Cloistered for years by its remoteness and the rugged topography it flows through, the legendary Escalante was the last major river in the Lower 48 to be discovered.
The Escalante Canyon Trailhead is located on the west side of the highway near the bridge. A self-guided trail leads upstream to the Escalante Natural Arch and Escalante Natural Bridge, which lie in close proximity to each other about one and a half miles from the highway.
The canyon is quite wide here, with the white, red and orange Navajo Sandstone walls set far back from the river. Towering cottonwoods line the riverbed and provide cool respite from the desert sun. At 130 feet high and 100 feet across, the Escalante Natural Bridge is the largest stone span in the entire monument. The best views of the Arch are located a quarter mile upstream of the Natural Bridge. Keep your eyes peeled for the Anasazi Indian ruins on the cliff face below the Arch, set in an alcove about 25 feet above the river.
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