Utah Canyon Fun!

Summary
OwnerMITOC Gallery Administrator
Creation Date2007-04-03 21:54:44 UTC-0400
DescriptionSpringtime Canyoneering in Utah
Kate D'Epagnier, Matt Weldon, Mike Kokko

The three of us decided to take a week and head out to Utah to check out this crazy western sport they call "canyoneering." We set out from Boston with some clothes and a metric ton of gear ready for fun week in the hot Utah desert. The only problem was, it seems that Southern Utah schedules their "winter" to coincide with MIT's "spring" break. Despite a couple of chilly nights, we had a great time exploring some interesting features of the Colorado Plateau. Here is a little itinerary and a few highlights of the week:




  • Saturday: Flight, Boston to Vegas. Kate rented us a classy SUV. Slept in some rest area near St. George, UT.
  • Sunday: Drove to Escalante. Started backpacking Coyote Gulch. Amazing (best ever?) campsite.
  • Monday: Hiked rest of Coyote. "Free soloed" crazy steep ascent out of canyon w/ packs. Car-camped above Peekaboo and Spooky.
  • Tuesday: Explored Peekaboo & Spooky slot canyons in the AM. Drove to Bryce Canyon in the snowstorm. Temp was 18° or less at night: hooray for heated bathrooms.
  • Wednesday: Hiked/ran around Bryce in the AM. Drove to Zion in rain in PM. A Zion guide told us that the canyons are wet. And cold. Tinfoil dinners on the campfire at Mosquito Flats flood plain.
  • Thursday: Hiked "Angel's Landing" in the AM. Kate ran around Emerald Pools in PM and Matt/Mike hiked up to Observation Point. Still staying at Mosquito Flats.
  • Friday: Birch Hollow technical canyon just north-east of Zion NP. Lots of fun rappels, looong hike out. Last night on the flood plain.
  • Saturday: Went for showers in the AM! Hiked a little ways down the Subway approach trail. Drove to Red Rocks (NV) and hiked into Icebox Canyon a bit. Buffet at Treasure Island Casino in Vegas, then red-eye back to Boston.




Total per-capita lodging expenditures $3.33


Total per-capita shower expenditures $4.00


Miles on the rental car
1000

Pounds of chocolate consumed
many