JFRCalifornia
Keeper of San Juan Secrets
If you’re tired of fishing and looking for a new perspective on seeing Glen Canyon below the dam from above, head to Lees Ferry and spend a morning tackling the Spencer Trail. This overlooked gem is worth the effort for the views alone, but be warned—it is a tough and relentless hike. It’s also a little scary in places. It’s not a long hike—maybe 1.5 miles from the river to the top, so 3 miles round trip if you don't do any wandering once on top (you'll be tempted, and you should)—but it is steep, and a false step could be disastrous. Once at the top, the Echo Cliffs are basically flat, and it’s fun to wander around, where you can get some easy walking and unbelievable views. But there is no shade up there. If you’re prepared, you can also continue hiking along the top of the monocline toward Dominguez Pass to the north, which is another fun hike with its own history.
The Spencer Trail is over a century old, carved out by coal mining impresario Charles Spencer in 1910 as a shortcut between his coal fields in Warm Creek and Lees Ferry. He also built it to impress potential investors, who would be awed by the views of his operations. A shortcut it might have been, but there’s nothing easy about this trail. Whether it impressed (or just scared) investors is an open question.
Before getting started, here’s the most important tip of all: do it in early in the morning, when most of the hike is in the shade. If you wait, you’ll not only be in the sun, but it’s going to be in the heat of the day. Sunstroke and dehydration are real possibilities on this trail. It’s a series of very steep switchbacks right up the Echo Cliffs, where you gain something like 1,500 feet in maybe a mile and a half. The rewards are great, however. Not only do you get the best possible birdseye view of the last mile of Glen Canyon before the river reaches Lees Ferry, you get a fantastic view of Lees Ferry itself and miles of Marble Canyon far beyond the Navajo Bridge. You’ll also see the great colorful clays up the lower reaches of the Paria River canyon. But that’s nothing compared to the real reward—from the top of the Echo Cliffs, head east maybe 2,000 feet to have another outstanding overlook of the Colorado River in Glen Canyon a bit farther upstream around the bend from Lees Ferry, but below Horseshoe Bend, with Navajo Mountain and the buttes near Padre Bay far in the background. Unbelievable views. This is essentially what Glen Canyon looked like before Lake Powell, which is a thought worth soaking in as you sit there alone in silence. What’s particularly nice is that unlike Horseshoe Bend, you’ll get this view all to yourself. If your knees and nerve can take it, I highly recommend this hike. Hiking poles and at least 2 quarts of water are a must.
If you’ve been to the launch ramp at Lees Ferry, you’re within a stone’s throw of the trailhead. Just walk along the river trail beyond the launch ramp for maybe a quarter mile, and you’ll see a good sign—take a left up the Spencer Trail. It starts easily enough. You’re headed up on a well-marked trail, steep but easy to follow. Steps have been carved out of the rock in the lower end, making walking feel more like climbing the staircase of the Empire State Building. But as you look up, you’re going to wonder how the trail ever gets up that cliff. Keep going. But after a while, as the views continually get better, the trail gets progressively sketchier. It’s a lot of zig zags, the steps disappear, and you’ll need sure footing to make sure you don’t tumble down the steep cliffside. But the trail is still there. You’ve just got to take it slowly, be glad you have shade (if you started early), and just keep going. For me, I started at 8 AM Arizona time (should have started at 7), and with lots of stops I reached the top at 9:45. The shade disappeared by about 9 or so. The temperature was in the 70s, maybe 80 or so by the time I reached the top. Don’t do this on a summer afternoon, or even much later than I tried.
But if you plan right, and get there very early, this is one of the better Glen Canyon-related hikes you can do without needing a boat, or without having to drive on any dirt roads into the wilderness. Even on a busy Memorial Day weekend, you can have the trail to yourself.
******
The first photo shows the trailhead, maybe a quarter mile upstream from the Lees Ferry launch ramp.
The next photo gives a pretty good idea of how the trail starts... steep but with steps, in the shade...
The views of the river upstream just keep getting better as you continue climbing, especially with the early morning shadows....
The next one is a panorama of the river to Lees Ferry and just beyond.... This is from about a third of the way up the trail.
The next photo gives you a pretty good idea of how steep the cliffside is as the trail switches back and forth.
Here's a great view of Lees Ferry from about halfway up the trail...
Here's the view up the lower Paria River Canyon, beyond Lees Ferry...
A close-up of the colors of the Chinle clays along the lower Paria...
The next shows a panorama from the Echo Peaks, Marble Canyon, Lees Ferry and the lower Paria River canyon...
The view from the top! There's a wooden marker here to help you find the trail down if you wander off.... From bottom to top took me an hour and 45 minutes....
Another view from the top toward Lees Ferry....
This one shows the terrain on the top of the Echo Cliffs... easy walking in any direction. The view is east-northeast toward Navajo Mountain, with the gorge of Glen Canyon visible in the foreground. You can hike to the the left (north) to the Dominguez Trail and Pass (where the Spanish priests of 1776 went), maybe 2 miles away. Or you can do what I did, which is to walk about a quarter mile east to the next bend in the river...
Here's the fantastic view of the river in Glen Canyon below the dam, maybe 4-5 miles above Lees Ferry. If you look closely, you can see Gunsight Butte, Dominguez Butte, Boundary Butte and Tower Butte, alnong with Navajo Mountain. I could have sat there all day long.
Another view of the same thing...
Finally we made our way back down from the top...
The trail is steep and in full sun on the way down, and it's only 10:30 or so.... Good thing it was only about 85 by then...
The Spencer Trail is over a century old, carved out by coal mining impresario Charles Spencer in 1910 as a shortcut between his coal fields in Warm Creek and Lees Ferry. He also built it to impress potential investors, who would be awed by the views of his operations. A shortcut it might have been, but there’s nothing easy about this trail. Whether it impressed (or just scared) investors is an open question.
Before getting started, here’s the most important tip of all: do it in early in the morning, when most of the hike is in the shade. If you wait, you’ll not only be in the sun, but it’s going to be in the heat of the day. Sunstroke and dehydration are real possibilities on this trail. It’s a series of very steep switchbacks right up the Echo Cliffs, where you gain something like 1,500 feet in maybe a mile and a half. The rewards are great, however. Not only do you get the best possible birdseye view of the last mile of Glen Canyon before the river reaches Lees Ferry, you get a fantastic view of Lees Ferry itself and miles of Marble Canyon far beyond the Navajo Bridge. You’ll also see the great colorful clays up the lower reaches of the Paria River canyon. But that’s nothing compared to the real reward—from the top of the Echo Cliffs, head east maybe 2,000 feet to have another outstanding overlook of the Colorado River in Glen Canyon a bit farther upstream around the bend from Lees Ferry, but below Horseshoe Bend, with Navajo Mountain and the buttes near Padre Bay far in the background. Unbelievable views. This is essentially what Glen Canyon looked like before Lake Powell, which is a thought worth soaking in as you sit there alone in silence. What’s particularly nice is that unlike Horseshoe Bend, you’ll get this view all to yourself. If your knees and nerve can take it, I highly recommend this hike. Hiking poles and at least 2 quarts of water are a must.
If you’ve been to the launch ramp at Lees Ferry, you’re within a stone’s throw of the trailhead. Just walk along the river trail beyond the launch ramp for maybe a quarter mile, and you’ll see a good sign—take a left up the Spencer Trail. It starts easily enough. You’re headed up on a well-marked trail, steep but easy to follow. Steps have been carved out of the rock in the lower end, making walking feel more like climbing the staircase of the Empire State Building. But as you look up, you’re going to wonder how the trail ever gets up that cliff. Keep going. But after a while, as the views continually get better, the trail gets progressively sketchier. It’s a lot of zig zags, the steps disappear, and you’ll need sure footing to make sure you don’t tumble down the steep cliffside. But the trail is still there. You’ve just got to take it slowly, be glad you have shade (if you started early), and just keep going. For me, I started at 8 AM Arizona time (should have started at 7), and with lots of stops I reached the top at 9:45. The shade disappeared by about 9 or so. The temperature was in the 70s, maybe 80 or so by the time I reached the top. Don’t do this on a summer afternoon, or even much later than I tried.
But if you plan right, and get there very early, this is one of the better Glen Canyon-related hikes you can do without needing a boat, or without having to drive on any dirt roads into the wilderness. Even on a busy Memorial Day weekend, you can have the trail to yourself.
******
The first photo shows the trailhead, maybe a quarter mile upstream from the Lees Ferry launch ramp.
The next photo gives a pretty good idea of how the trail starts... steep but with steps, in the shade...
The views of the river upstream just keep getting better as you continue climbing, especially with the early morning shadows....
The next one is a panorama of the river to Lees Ferry and just beyond.... This is from about a third of the way up the trail.
The next photo gives you a pretty good idea of how steep the cliffside is as the trail switches back and forth.
Here's a great view of Lees Ferry from about halfway up the trail...
Here's the view up the lower Paria River Canyon, beyond Lees Ferry...
A close-up of the colors of the Chinle clays along the lower Paria...
The next shows a panorama from the Echo Peaks, Marble Canyon, Lees Ferry and the lower Paria River canyon...
The view from the top! There's a wooden marker here to help you find the trail down if you wander off.... From bottom to top took me an hour and 45 minutes....
Another view from the top toward Lees Ferry....
This one shows the terrain on the top of the Echo Cliffs... easy walking in any direction. The view is east-northeast toward Navajo Mountain, with the gorge of Glen Canyon visible in the foreground. You can hike to the the left (north) to the Dominguez Trail and Pass (where the Spanish priests of 1776 went), maybe 2 miles away. Or you can do what I did, which is to walk about a quarter mile east to the next bend in the river...
Here's the fantastic view of the river in Glen Canyon below the dam, maybe 4-5 miles above Lees Ferry. If you look closely, you can see Gunsight Butte, Dominguez Butte, Boundary Butte and Tower Butte, alnong with Navajo Mountain. I could have sat there all day long.
Another view of the same thing...
Finally we made our way back down from the top...
The trail is steep and in full sun on the way down, and it's only 10:30 or so.... Good thing it was only about 85 by then...
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Glad you survived the experience....my hips envy you.....
