Cottonwood Canyon Road (Grand Staircase Escalante NM) - 10/1/21

Cottonwood Canyon Narrows

Rita and Kay in Cottonwood Canyon Narrows

Cottonwood Canyon Narrows

Cottonwood Canyon Narrows

Trailhead sign on Cottonwood Canyon Road

On the ninth day of the road trip, we were still a little worried about the dirt roads but Cottonwood Canyon Road is a little more travelled than Butler Wash Road. Therefore, we had faith and forged ahead. Passing the Paria Canyon, Yellow Rock and Hackberry Canyon Trailheads, we drove 24.5 miles north to a signed trailhead for the South Cottonwood Canyon Narrows. The road was in better condition than Butler Wash Road and we didn't have any problems in Old Abe, the Lincoln MDX. A trail with a sign-in box led us down into the wash. We should have just turned to the right but a trail led us up and over a corner. This trail was unnecessary but another trail led up and around on the right side after that and it was necessary to climb around a bouldered dry fall area.

Hiking up Canyon Wash

Hiking up Canyon Wash

Entering Tall Walls

Entering Narrows Section

By starting at the south end of the narrows, we gently worked our way up the canyon wash that narrowed slowly and prettily. The canyon was colorful at times. We came to a side canyon to the left and decided to explore that on the way back. The higher we hiked into the canyon, the more narrow the canyon became. We passed the north trailhead coming in from the road up the hill. It was here that the canyon really narrowed and strutted its stuff! We also passed a few other hikers that had come in from the north. We later saw these people hiking down toward the south end to make sure that hadn't missed anything. I think it makes more sense to start at the south end unless you just don't have time for anything except the most narrow parts.

Color in Narrows

Curve in Narrows

David Scrambles Up

Fab Four in Cottonwood Canyon Narrows

There were few scrambles until you reached the northernmost end. We found ourselves climbing up and over rocks that had settled in the center of the narrows. Finally, we came to a more difficult scramble and decided to call it quits. About face! We started back and I think I took about the same number of photos going the other direction! These are very nice narrows that sometimes offer splashes of color. We hiked back through all the narrow sections then reached that side canyon that leads off to the west. We hiked up the deep sand and up some slippery sandy sandstone waterslides to enter into the side canyon with high walls. At the end of the short box canyon, a larger area showed signs of holding water in a small pool at times.

Tim Scrambles Up

The End of the Narrows

Starting Back

Shadowplay

Very high above us, a pour over was obvious. Probably, this is a very nice waterfall when the weather creates it. But for now, we had to use our imaginations. We returned to the car and drove another 5 miles up the road to turn right at a sign for Grosvenor Arch. There was a one mile road to the parking/picnic area for the arch. A short hike out to the base of the huge arch allowed us to take the photos below. It was a very impressive arch ranking up there with Delicate, Corona and Landscape Arches. (Not ranking up there with Druid Arch! 😁) So, we set out to drive the 30 miles of dirt road back to SR 89. Fun stuff ... again!

Stats: 5 miles; 300' gain; 2.75 hour

Tall Walls and Shadows

High Dry Fall

Colorful Section of Cottonwood Canyon Road

Grosvenor Arch

Grosvenor Arch

Tim and Kay at Grosvenor Arch

The Toadstools

The Toadstools

Exploring the Toadstools

On our way back down the road, we tried to find the old trail that would take us to the overlook of the Rimrock Hoodoos but the park service has eliminated parking for this trail and designated it a "Wilderness Study Area." We settled for the Toadstools found off the highway below. A short exploration of the touristy hike finished off our day and we continued down to Kanab, UT for the night.

Stats: 1.4 miles

White Section of Toadstools around the Corner

White Toadstool

Red, White and Blue