Tiff Mapel
Escalante-Class Member
Good morning, Wordlings!
Today's adventure goes to Llewellyn. Lovely canyon! I have not been back in a few years, so I don't know if those delicate arches are still standing....
Next week will be my last article, as I'm finally out of old Lake Powell Magazine articles. Next week, it'll be the SHAD RALLY! With lots of pics. Until then, enjoy this quiet, serene canyon.
Tiff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Llewellyn Gulch
Hiked in June, 2005
Published in Fall/Winter 2005/2006 issue
Llewellyn Gulch is an often-overlooked gem of a canyon, poised near the middle of Lake Powell, and begging for adventure. It is located on the river-right side of the channel at Buoy 63, and between the Escalante and San Juan arms. On the solstice in June, five of us explored Llewellyn Gulch from water’s end. The lake elevation was approximately 3,601 feet that day.
In attendance were Sherae Gronbach of Amarillo, Texas; Shireen Symonds of Durango, Colorado; Dave Tate of Flagstaff, Arizona; and Frank and Tiffany Mapel of Durango, Colorado. This was a first-time visit for both Sherae and Shireen, and they both absolutely loved Lake Powell.
On any Lake Powell map, Llewellyn Gulch looks unassuming—a small canyon that doesn’t go very far. But don’t let that deceive you—Llewellyn Gulch is worthy of exploration. It is a long, wide canyon, over three miles in length, and it follows the southern edge of the Straight Cliffs of the Kaiparowits Plateau.
Llewellyn Gulch sports a year-round running stream in its depths, and has many sandy campsites when the lake level is up. Young cottonwood trees are growing near the stream and the invasive tamarisk and Ravenna grass can be found there too.
This canyon has it all—amazing scenery, running water, plant life, aquatic life, petroglyphs, ruins, trails, and narrows. Llewellyn Gulch was named for Llewellyn Harris, a Utah pioneer. Far into the canyon, under a rock ledge on the right side, a faint “L. Harris 1891” is inscribed in the sandstone. I’d like to go back and look for it, because we did not see it on our hike.
As we hiked from the water’s edge, we followed the trail to the right side of the canyon. It is well marked, and easy to follow. We knew we were looking for petroglyphs and an old cowboy camp along the wall, so we stayed close to the towering Navajo Sandstone cliffs.
Just above the high water mark, around a corner on the right is a small alcove with seeps and ferns growing from the wall. Also in this alcove is an interesting formation in the sandstone. Rising from the floor is a large fin of rock with two small arches in it. The arches look very delicate, so if you visit Llewellyn’s arches, please enjoy them and get some great pictures, but please don’t touch them.
The first panel of petroglyphs appears higher up, and beyond the arches. Walk up the rounded slick rock toward the high straight walls. You’ll see a corner where a drainage spout plunges from the rim into a triangular dark-water plunge pool. Look to the left of the pool, and you’ll see the petroglyphs at eye-level, faintly etched into the black desert varnish. There are some bighorn sheep, some vertical marks, and what appears to be a spirit figure.
According to another guidebook, there are two other petroglyph panels, about 300 meters up from this one. Maybe those petroglyphs were too faint or hidden, or further up than stated, because we did not come across any more petroglyphs. We surmised that the old cowboy camp was in the alcove near the arches—sheltered from the elements.
Farther up the canyon and on the right side again, we found a small storage box. It is well preserved with the mud mortar still intact. It’s debatable whether the Anasazis or the cowboys who used to run cattle in the canyon used this box. Perhaps that is where the cowboy camp was?
On the left side of the canyon, there’s an old rockfall near the high water mark. Just beyond this rockfall is a sandslide where an old cattle trail takes you up to the rim and out of the canyon. Beyond the rim, just to the north, you can access Hole-in-the-Rock Road.
As you go further up into Llewellyn Gulch, there are many more exits to the rim and cattle trails. The canyon gradually narrows into a spectacular slot canyon, which can be difficult to hike at times. This is where the stream first begins to flow. As the stream flows toward Lake Powell, there are many deep pools that offer cool wading to hot, tired hikers. The pools have dams formed from flood debris of sticks and grasses. There was no evidence of beavers, although they are present in some canyons at Lake Powell. The clear pools will have the occasional Bluegill fish, tadpoles, and crayfish.
One particular five-inch crayfish was curious enough that he walked over to investigate us, and came out of the water onto shore! Interestingly enough, crayfish are not native to Lake Powell. They are escaped fish bait that have established themselves in quiet side canyons. Since they are not native, they tend to disrupt native amphibian populations. So Lake Powell visitors are encouraged to catch as many crayfish as possible. Make it a contest, and then have a crayfish boil back at camp.
Our hike took almost three hours round-trip, and we explored maybe a third of the canyon. To do the whole canyon will likely take you all day. A good way to do the whole canyon would be to have someone drop you off at the Hole-in-the-Rock Road and hike down from the top. You’ll get into the narrows right away, but be ready: you may need some rope to get down over some chokestones, and make sure you go with two or more people.
Arrange for a boat, fully furnished with food and drinks, to pick you up at the water’s edge—a rewarding end to one of Lake Powell’s finest hikes, in the unassuming, yet spectacular Llewellyn Gulch.
Today's adventure goes to Llewellyn. Lovely canyon! I have not been back in a few years, so I don't know if those delicate arches are still standing....
Next week will be my last article, as I'm finally out of old Lake Powell Magazine articles. Next week, it'll be the SHAD RALLY! With lots of pics. Until then, enjoy this quiet, serene canyon.
Tiff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Llewellyn Gulch
Hiked in June, 2005
Published in Fall/Winter 2005/2006 issue
Llewellyn Gulch is an often-overlooked gem of a canyon, poised near the middle of Lake Powell, and begging for adventure. It is located on the river-right side of the channel at Buoy 63, and between the Escalante and San Juan arms. On the solstice in June, five of us explored Llewellyn Gulch from water’s end. The lake elevation was approximately 3,601 feet that day.
In attendance were Sherae Gronbach of Amarillo, Texas; Shireen Symonds of Durango, Colorado; Dave Tate of Flagstaff, Arizona; and Frank and Tiffany Mapel of Durango, Colorado. This was a first-time visit for both Sherae and Shireen, and they both absolutely loved Lake Powell.
On any Lake Powell map, Llewellyn Gulch looks unassuming—a small canyon that doesn’t go very far. But don’t let that deceive you—Llewellyn Gulch is worthy of exploration. It is a long, wide canyon, over three miles in length, and it follows the southern edge of the Straight Cliffs of the Kaiparowits Plateau.
Llewellyn Gulch sports a year-round running stream in its depths, and has many sandy campsites when the lake level is up. Young cottonwood trees are growing near the stream and the invasive tamarisk and Ravenna grass can be found there too.
This canyon has it all—amazing scenery, running water, plant life, aquatic life, petroglyphs, ruins, trails, and narrows. Llewellyn Gulch was named for Llewellyn Harris, a Utah pioneer. Far into the canyon, under a rock ledge on the right side, a faint “L. Harris 1891” is inscribed in the sandstone. I’d like to go back and look for it, because we did not see it on our hike.
As we hiked from the water’s edge, we followed the trail to the right side of the canyon. It is well marked, and easy to follow. We knew we were looking for petroglyphs and an old cowboy camp along the wall, so we stayed close to the towering Navajo Sandstone cliffs.
Just above the high water mark, around a corner on the right is a small alcove with seeps and ferns growing from the wall. Also in this alcove is an interesting formation in the sandstone. Rising from the floor is a large fin of rock with two small arches in it. The arches look very delicate, so if you visit Llewellyn’s arches, please enjoy them and get some great pictures, but please don’t touch them.
The first panel of petroglyphs appears higher up, and beyond the arches. Walk up the rounded slick rock toward the high straight walls. You’ll see a corner where a drainage spout plunges from the rim into a triangular dark-water plunge pool. Look to the left of the pool, and you’ll see the petroglyphs at eye-level, faintly etched into the black desert varnish. There are some bighorn sheep, some vertical marks, and what appears to be a spirit figure.
According to another guidebook, there are two other petroglyph panels, about 300 meters up from this one. Maybe those petroglyphs were too faint or hidden, or further up than stated, because we did not come across any more petroglyphs. We surmised that the old cowboy camp was in the alcove near the arches—sheltered from the elements.
Farther up the canyon and on the right side again, we found a small storage box. It is well preserved with the mud mortar still intact. It’s debatable whether the Anasazis or the cowboys who used to run cattle in the canyon used this box. Perhaps that is where the cowboy camp was?
On the left side of the canyon, there’s an old rockfall near the high water mark. Just beyond this rockfall is a sandslide where an old cattle trail takes you up to the rim and out of the canyon. Beyond the rim, just to the north, you can access Hole-in-the-Rock Road.
As you go further up into Llewellyn Gulch, there are many more exits to the rim and cattle trails. The canyon gradually narrows into a spectacular slot canyon, which can be difficult to hike at times. This is where the stream first begins to flow. As the stream flows toward Lake Powell, there are many deep pools that offer cool wading to hot, tired hikers. The pools have dams formed from flood debris of sticks and grasses. There was no evidence of beavers, although they are present in some canyons at Lake Powell. The clear pools will have the occasional Bluegill fish, tadpoles, and crayfish.
One particular five-inch crayfish was curious enough that he walked over to investigate us, and came out of the water onto shore! Interestingly enough, crayfish are not native to Lake Powell. They are escaped fish bait that have established themselves in quiet side canyons. Since they are not native, they tend to disrupt native amphibian populations. So Lake Powell visitors are encouraged to catch as many crayfish as possible. Make it a contest, and then have a crayfish boil back at camp.
Our hike took almost three hours round-trip, and we explored maybe a third of the canyon. To do the whole canyon will likely take you all day. A good way to do the whole canyon would be to have someone drop you off at the Hole-in-the-Rock Road and hike down from the top. You’ll get into the narrows right away, but be ready: you may need some rope to get down over some chokestones, and make sure you go with two or more people.
Arrange for a boat, fully furnished with food and drinks, to pick you up at the water’s edge—a rewarding end to one of Lake Powell’s finest hikes, in the unassuming, yet spectacular Llewellyn Gulch.
