Capitol Reef Area Hiking
Upper
Muley Twist Canyon
Capitol Reef National Park |
 Distance:
9.7 miles (plus 6.9 miles by car)
Walking
time: 5 1/2 hours
Elevations:
260 ft. gain, 1,1080 ft. loss
Chimney Rock Trailhead
(start): 6,050 ft.
Fremont River: 5,220
ft.
Trail:
Most of this hike is through the sandy bottom of a
desert canyon. There is no maintained trail, but the
route is easy to follow. At the end of the hike it
is necessary to ford the Fremont River. This is usually
not a problem, but if there has been a lot of rain
you should check the river before beginning the hike.
Season:
Spring, summer, fall, winter. There is snow on some
parts of the trail during the winter months. The trail
is very hot in the summer, with temperatures often
exceeding 100 degrees F. There is no reliable water
along the trail, so be sure to carry plenty. For current
conditions call the Visitor Center, Capital Reef National
Park, at (801) 425-3791.
Vicinity:
Capital Reef National Park
Chimney
Rock Canyon is a long, narrow desert drainage on the
northwestern side of Capital Reef National Park. It
begins just outside the park on the eastern slopes
of Thousand Lakes Mountain and meanders for some 15
miles through the Waterpocket Fold before draining
into the Fremont River. This hike intersects the canyon
at its midpoint and follows it for its last six miles.
The hike is particularly
interesting from a geological point of view because
it passes through so many different geologic strata.
The route begins in the Moenkopi Formation, then passes
through the Shinarump, Chinle, Wingate, and Kayenta
Formations, and finally ends in the center of the
Waterpocket Fold at the base of the Navajo Sandstone.
The sequence is unusual because the Navajo Sandstone
was deposited about forty million years after the
Moenkopi Formation, yet here it lies a thousand feet
lower.
As you descend through
the canyon you will see successive layers of younger
rock slanting downward along the walls to meet the
older layers at the bottom. The Waterpocket Fold is
a giant wrinkle in the earths crust that was formed
in southern Utah about 65 million years ago. Because
of the uplifting and subsequent erosion along the
Fold, the exposed rock is now older on the west side
than the east. The streambed of Chimney Rock Canyon
cuts into the Waterpocket Fold from its western side
and ends near its midpoint.
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Chimney
Rock Canyon was named after Chimney Rock, an impressive
pinnacle of Moenkopi Shale that rises from the desert
floor near the trailhead. The trail begins by winding
gently upward from the parking area on the west side of
Chimney Rock and then around to its north side. After
walking 0.5 mile and climbing 250 feet you will come to
a junction where another trail takes off to the right.
This alternative route veers south again to pass by the
base of Chimney Rock and then rejoins the main trail 1.7
miles later. If you have the time you might want take
this detour for a closer look at the monolith, but doing
so will add about a mile to the total length of the hike.
If you take the shorter route, to the left, you will reach
the point where the two trails come together again after
about 20 minutes.
After the second junction
the trail descends gradually down a short, unnamed canyon
for about 1.6 miles before finally intersecting Chimney
Rock Canyon. To reach the Fremont River you must turn
right when you reach the main canyon, but if time permits,
or if you are doing this hike as an overnighter, you may
want to make a side trip to the canyon’s best known
spring. The spring lies about 1.0 mile upcanyon to the
left. It is situated in an alcove just above a small pool
of water under the north wall of the canyon. You will
know you are near when you see a grove of large cottonwood
trees. (Cottonwood trees in the desert country of southern
Utah usually mark the presence of water.) Chimney Rock
Canyon is often called Spring Canyon, because of this
spring.
From the point where the
trail first meets Chimney Rock Canyon it is 6.9 miles
to the Fremont River. There is no real trail, but the
route is generally easy to walk. You will be following
the sandy creek bed nearly all the way. There are some
deer tracks in the canyon bottom, but the most interesting
aspect of the hike is the geology. Much of the rock is
a deep red color, and in the section of the canyon that
passes through the Wingate Formation, the sandstone walls
are sheer and smooth. You may be surprised to find frequent
boulders of black volcanic rock. These worn boulders were
washed downstream by flash floods from a volcanic area
near the source of the canyon. Now they lie in stark contrast
to the reddish sandstone and shale of the Waterpocket
Fold.
About half way through the
gorge you will enter a half-mile section of narrows, where
the canyon walls converge to a mere five feet apart. There
are also two ten-foot pouroffs, or dry falls, in the bottom
of this stretch of canyon. These falls are relatively
easy to climb down and should not be a problem unless
you are carrying a large backpack. But if they do present
a problem, there is an alternative route around them.
When you come to the first pouroff retrace your footsteps
a few hundred feet back to a point where you can climb
up to the ledge on the north side of the narrows. There
you will find a primitive path that bypasses the obstacles
before dropping back to the canyon bottom.
Finally, just before you reach
the end of the hike, the canyon widens and becomes less
arid. The walls change from the ruddy, fissured Wingate
and Kayenta Sandstone to the smooth, white crossbedded
texture of the Navajo Sandstone. Soon you will round the
last bend in the canyon and be confronted with your last
obstacle-the Fremont River.
Under normal circumstances,
fording the Fremont is no problem. It is seldom more than
18 inches deep. If there has been a lot of rain, however,
its depth can easily rise to twice that. Find a stout
stick to help you with the crossing. Walk slowly, taking
small steps, and make sure the stick and one foot are
firmly planted before moving your other foot. The stick
should be positioned on your downstream side, with your
right side facing upstream as you walk. |
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Content
from the book
Utah's Favorite
Hiking Trails
by David Day |
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Utah's
Favorite Hiking Trails
access
info for 113 trailheads
75
detailed trail maps
250
photographs
loads
of hiking tips
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