Names On A Wall

With the sun shining down brightly on this crisp autumn day, it warmed us up as we began hiking down Capitol Gorge. I went along with our friends, Tom and Justine, even though it is a hike that Tom and I did back on December 6, 2019. When Tom and I had done this hike, it had snowed, and the road to the trailhead had been closed for the season. This added an extra 5 miles to our hike that wintery day. This time we were lucky enough to be able to drive the road all the way to the trailhead, and that saved us time and many steps.

The gorge did a good job of keeping us on the trail, since all we had to do is stay between the walls. Even with a few side canyons coming into this one, it was easy for us to tell which way to go. It wasn’t long before we were able to see a few petroglyphs on the left wall. Unfortunately, time and the weather are taking their toll, as this rock art appears to be fading. Only a few images remain visible. We also saw an interesting rock with a spiderweb of layers running through it, with small pockets of softer rock worn away. Nature never ceases to amaze me.

A little further down the gorge the pioneer names came into view. They are carved on the canyon walls just like the petroglyphs. The earliest names date to 1871, but most of the names there are from later as the settlers traveled through this gorge heading west. Some of the them went on to settle in the Capitol Reef community of Fruita. There are also names high on the wall as the pioneers stood on their wagons to add their names. I found the cursive written names to be the most interesting, but they all provide a historic record of who passed through this space. Just a reminder for everyone that it is now illegal to carve, paint, scratch, or otherwise deface on any canyon wall, historic or archeological site, and cameras record all activity as they did when I was last here.

As the narrow section of the canyon opens up, a trail heads off to the left. We climbed up some boulders and rock steps to get up on the top of the weathered slickrock. Up near the top, we found the Tanks nestled in a wash. Tom and I had searched for these back in 2019 with no success, but the trail is better marked and more worn now, making them easier to find. Tanks are deep potholes scoured in the floor of the wash. They hold a considerable amount of runoff. These pools proved to be a good source of fresh water for travelers. Just below the Tanks is a small arch that has formed across the wash. That was a bonus find for this hike and fun to see. Next to the tanks, the layers of rock were making strange patterns. Some looked like wood grain or driftwood, while others looked more like fish swimming, seaweed flowing in a current, or as Tom noted potato chips with burnt edges. Special thanks to Tom and Justine for asking me to go with them, and to my Tom, for staying back with Suki and Cassie, who are forbidden to enjoy most trails of our national parks.

We have attached a couple photos from our trip in 2019 for comparison.

We were on the road this morning around 11:00 am. I took some time to stop at the scenic overlooks along the way and fell behind Tom. Since we were driving right past Bryce Canyon National Park, we planned on spending a little time visiting it. Tom got there well before me and decided there were too many people for him to enjoy it, especially since we’d been hiking the last two days and he was feeling irritably achy, preferring not to add to it. When I got there he suggested I go in and explore while he continues to the next camping site. I spent the afternoon exploring the park and the scenic views between Bryce Canyon and our overnight camping spot. Special thanks to Tom for this offer and for taking care of the girls, setting everything up, and cooking dinner while I write this.

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