Start: Dark Canyon
Finish: Hite Marina
Daily Mileage: 23.4
Trip Mileage: 197.6
Elevation gain/loss: 2099/3265ft
Last night was a bit rough. As predicted, it did rain, and water came in from both up and down the canyon. A particularly strong gust caused some of my rock tent anchors to slide, releasing the tension on my tent, and causing it to sink inwards. I curled up a little tighter in my sleeping bag to avoid it touching the wet tent. It was good enough; I didn’t want to get out of the tent in the rain to fix it.
As soon as it was light enough, I got out of my tent to check the river. It still sounded about the same, but I was concerned about the water level. It had gone up a little, but not significantly. That was a good sign, but the risk of flash floods remained as it continued to rain slightly. I quickly packed up and hit the trail. Although this lower part of Dark Canyon was beautiful and enjoyable, I wanted to exit the canyon swiftly to avoid any flood dangers.
Hiking in the rain, I broke out my full rain gear as it sprinkled. Shortly after, I even saw a couple of snowflakes. Not surprising, and snow can be better than rain since it doesn’t soak you as much.
Dark Canyon unfolded with its beautiful benches, and I continued crisscrossing the river to navigate downstream. It was a puzzle at times, deciding which side of the river to be on, which layer of rock to follow, whether to push through the brush or climb higher on a ledge. Figuring out where the most people had traveled before was part of the game. I processed all this while making my way down the river. I didn’t always make the correct choice; at one point, I ended up on a lower ledge that ran out. To avoid backtracking, I continued forward and found a spot to climb up to the next level.
Another time, I ended up on the wrong side of the river, high on a ledge about 100 ft. above the river. I could see a well-worn footpath on the other side. My ledge got narrower, and I wasn’t sure if it would continue, potentially forcing me to backtrack about a half mile. I continued forward until I found a spot to descend to the river level and cross to the correct side.
The ledge portion of Dark Canyon eventually ran out, opening up more. Afterward, I reached the bottom of the Sundance Trail, which would lead me out of Dark Canyon. The trail’s start was simple with a well-worn footpath, but it climbed very steeply on bright yellow scree and boulders, likely leading to its name Sundance. Cairns were scattered everywhere on the way up, and they seemed to lead in different directions. I concluded that as long as I reached the top in about the right spot, that’s what mattered; the cairns weren’t much help. You could stop at any point and see multiple carins at the same level marking different parallel “paths”.
Climbing out of the canyon, the view back on Dark Canyon was spectacular. It’s amazing how tall these canyons look, but it doesn’t take long to ascend or descend them if you find the right spot, and the elevation difference isn’t as much as it appears.
After the Sundance Trail, I had some cross-country hiking leading to a 4×4 track. Once on the track, I knew I could make good time on clear road. The weather was cool, which helped. I walked briskly and took my first break at 2:30. During that break, I realized I wasn’t sure what time the store at Hite closed, where my resupply package was and a replacement water filter. I thought it might close as early as 5:00, and at that point, I still had more than 9 miles to go. I used my trekking poles to aggressively propel myself forward and covered seven and a half miles in two hours—flying! Then it was a short hop on the access road to the Hite store.
When I arrived at the store, the door was locked! It was Tuesday, and the sign said they were closed on Tuesdays. I rushed for no reason. They didn’t open until 10:00 Wednesday morning. I was disappointed but walked across the street to the ranger station, wondering if they could help with my package. A guy in a campervan approached, asked if I needed anything, and offered his jet boil to use, to ease my Sterno sorrows. He said to return it to the store the next day, and they’d give it to him. How awesome!
Heading to the campsite, the guy, Steve, asked if I wanted a ride. Of course, I did; I was doing bonus miles now. No need for that. He offered to let me camp at his campsite since it wasn’t being used, and I accepted since I didn’t have any companions out there. He introduced me to his friends, Jenny and Joel, who each had their own vans. The store owner showed up, knowing Steve, and we went back up to the store to get my packages and the all-important beer, fuel, and a sandwich—for a second dinner.
I went back to the campsite, and we all gathered in Jenny’s van for dinner and socializing. It was a great group, and we exchanged contact info. Jenny even lent me some sewing supplies to repair my pack. They all had extensive experience in the area, and Steve was even consulted on the Hayduke Trail book before it was published. He’s extremely knowledgeable about this area, and has published definitive guides on canyoneering around here, so it was great to talk to him and the whole group to learn more about it as I continue my journey. I got situated in my makeshift camp and headed to bed.
