Bracken's Loop

 

Okay, so no NCAA Tournament. That stinks. No start of Major League Baseball. Also stinks. Spring Break, awesome! First day of spring, great! Going back to school online. Confusing, but still kind of awesome just because it is so different. I was going to be blessed with a lot of free time and nowhere to go. Luckily we could still go under the freeway. I invited the family to go with me on this day. Jacqueline was excited. The kids were reluctant enthusiasts. They were happy once we were out in about. It was up the paved hill behind the house and down by what we call the water tower, though it was only a water tank. The hill was somewhat steep but everyone was excited going under the freeway through the culvert.

 It was like emerging to a brand new world. Gone was suburbia and hello wild nature. I had just been here a couple of days before, so it wasn't too new to me, but the rest of the group was thrilled. Jacqueline took many pictures that she would never look at again. We wandered up the wash. Jacqueline was excited to see some flowers coming out and the tent caterpillars filling up the sage. The way was open at first and we stuck to the wash until we encountered Bracken's Loop. I had hiked Bracken's Loop once before only to find it one of the sandiest trails I have hiked. Today, was not so bad. If it rains in the desert, the trails can harden up a bit and that is what we found. 

Plus, if we get on there before the horses, we were okay. On this day, we would run into some horse ladies and the trail would get a bit more difficult, but for now we were able to just hike. To describe most of our hike was that Conrad and I would be in the lead. Jacqueline would be last taking pictures of absolutely everything that seemed somewhat interesting. Zyla would sometimes be up with Conrad having conversations about imaginary worlds and sometimes hiking on her own. Regardless we kept moving forward and heading toward the big blocky peak that made up our view. At almost exactly noon we stopped for a lunch break.

 Lunch on time was very important to the kids. After this is when the horse people passed, so we were stuck following the beaten trail. It was not much farther to get to what we were going to call the endpoint of Bracken's Loop. At this point the trail dropped steeply off below the blocky peak. There were some potholes of water and nice views, but a good place to turn around with the kids. The way back was slower because of the horses, but at least it was downhill. Everyone had an easy time with it as our kids never seemed to complain about distance. I enjoyed the place we got into Grapevine Wash. The lava rock capped the slickrock of an ancient lava flow. You gotta appreciate the contrasting colors. We made it back home a bit after 2 having 4-5 hours out and about. The kids and the wife did well on the exploring hike and were up for some further adventures exploring the area around Red Cliffs. 

Under the Freeway

 

So our paranoia and concern was off the charts with coronavirus. Not only were businesses shut down, some people did not even want to leave the house. We combated this situation with the the fortunate fact that we were living right across the freeway from the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve. The problem was getting under the freeway. I had lived here this long and not realized that it was possible. Walking up the hill on the paved bike path, I could cut off down the slope to a large culvert that ran under the freeway at Grapevine Wash. From here it opened up a world of possibilities. I decided to do my own thing and stay away from the trails. It turned out to be a great idea. 

The wash was a bit muddy still, but fun to explore. I followed it back quite a ways with only a few obstacles to get around until the terrain started to open up more. It did not end up being too bad of a situation for me and I was able to climb up pretty high. There was a peak that I had been looking at scrambling up from our house and it proved to be a fairly straightforward scramble. 

I considered that a success, so I kept going until I ended up on the other side. From here, I was able to pick my way down another drainage having to negotiate a few obstacles. I was really enjoying this hike as it was really just of my own choosing. Eventually I came upon this really incredible slick rock formation with an immense amount of perforations in the slick rock just perfect for raptor nesting.

 I looked around and sure enough, there were two large raptors which I took to be peregrines circling around a large nest. I stood there and watched them for some time admiring the wildness and majestic nature of their beauty just right across the interstate from suburban sprawl. From here, I had to check out if I could make it back under the freeway without having to go back to where I came from. Sure enough when I picked my way down to the natural drainage, I came across another culvert. This one was a little narrower and you could tell that the enthusiasm for people crossing this one was not quite as high as you had to go through a little island in the freeway to make it.

 Luckily though, it worked, and I now had a loop hike that I could do from my house that allowed me to get out into nature really easily without having to even drive the car anywhere. I was going to definitely have to exhaust all possibilities in the immediate future as we were confined to our homes and families to ride out the corona wave.

Cathedral Wash and Spencer Trail

 

Still Spring Break and with the coronavirus sickness derailing everyone's plans, we were not looking to travel very far. Still, my dad was in Grand Canyon staying with his wife, Laura, who was working there. Since we were only 5 hours away from each other, I thought we could meet up for the day and do a hike together. He was probably hoping to see the kids also, but Jacqueline did not feel like making the trip. Instead, it was just me taking off early in the morning. We made a plan to meet at the Cathedral Wash Trailhead in Lee's Ferry. The drive was not too bad taking through Jacob Lake. 

It seemed pretty quiet. I got to the trailhead right on time, but it seemed as if they had been there for a while. The hike was down a wash to the Colorado River. The wash was interesting with a different kind of sandstone than was in Southern Utah. It would narrow up and have drop offs that we had to negotiate and mudholes to avoid. We would pick our way around the ledges and slowly maneuver our way downstream. Mostly it was good to just see my Dad and Laura. It was a good time for us to converse about the ongoing situation and decide how to deal with it. I know that they were taking it seriously since they were older. 

Me, being still in my late 30s, it was not as big of deal, but I knew I needed to keep other people safe around me. We were all adjusting to the newness of it. There would be a lot of changes in my life given that school was not quite the safest place during a pandemic. Laura worked at the Grand Canyon and a lot of major services were shutting down there also. The newness of the situation kept for some good conversation as we found ourselves picking our way down the wash. Eventually the wash popped out to a more open area and we continued on down until we came to the river. 

The river gave us a natural stopping point and there was nowhere really to go, but back up the wash. We met a few other people coming down, but it was probably still quieter than it likely would have been during a Spring Break in Arizona. After making it back up the wash, we still had a bit of time. My dad suggested that we go out to Lee's Ferry. They had hiked the Spencer Trail in the past and suggested that I do it. We decided that could work so we went there. They parked and walked the first bit with me through the ruins of Lee's Ferry. The trail went by the river for a short time and then started charging up the hill. 

Eventually they had their fill and we said our goodbyes. It was good to see them and I was happy I had a day at least to spend some time with family. The hike continued, though, and I was able to let loose. It was nice to just be burning some energy and finding my way to the top of the hill. Up and up it went with sweeping views of the river and surrounding country at all times. There was nowhere on this trail that I would have described as having big dropoffs, but still I am not sure if Jacqueline would have wanted the kids to be on it. Eventually after a lot of exertion, I found myself at the top of the cliff. From the other side, I could see the city of Page. It was definitely worth the effort to make the trek up there. I took some pictures and then it was time to go back down. After the hike back and the drive home, it was evening before I returned to settle in for the long haul at home with the family.