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 Cascade Bill (William Mooseker) | Home > Backpacking Trips > 2005 - 2011 Trips > gg 2005 > 
GG 2005 - Days 1 & 2

Grand Gulch 2005 -Days 1 & 2

Day 1:
Government Trail down to Grand Gulch, Polly's Island to Dripping Canyon.

Day 2:
Dripping Canyon to Step Canyon, Two Story Ruin. Step Canyon to junction of Bullet Canyon.

Grand Gulch Just Below Polly's Canyon

Photos titles ending in "b" are by Bill;in "r" by Roger; and, in "a" by Allison.

Troop 24 Kickass Trekkers: "The High Adventure Troop" Alumni Backpacking Trip
-Cascade Bill Mooseker


Date(s): March 2005. Album by Cascade Bill. Photos by Bill/Roger. 1 - 142 of 142 Total. 3118 Visits.
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Gov't Trail  Trailhead: Danny, Allison, and Shelby - getting ready to head out.  
We had a rough time getting to the trailhead the previous night.  There had been a snowstorm on Cedar Mesa and after it melted, the road was a gooey mess.  I gunned my Corolla but only made it about a hundred yards from the paved road before getting stuck.  The guys were able to push it back to the main road.  Our other vehicle was an old Cadillac sedan with 2WD but we had the advantage of a crazy driver (Shelby).  So we packed what gear we could into it and Shelby, Roger, Dan, Allison took off.  Eric and I wated to see if they would make it back for the second triop.  About 45 minutes later the Caddy roared back.  After packing the rest of the gear in, we shuttled the Corolla back to the Kane Gulch Ranger Station.  What followed next was the wildest ride of my life.  What we lacked in traction we had to make up for with speed.


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So off we went, with Hip Hop Rap blaring from the speakers, we tore down the road sashshaying back and forth as we tore through the mud and large pools of water covering the road.  Somehow, we made it to about a couple of hundred yards from the trailhead, stopping only when the bedrock threatened the undercarriage.  We packed our gear to the trailhead and made camp for the night - as it was getting dark we did not want to repeat our 2002 experience.

It was a beautiful morning with no sign of the thunderheads that had brought the previous day's snow and sleet.  Here Roger and Danny are getting their gear together.


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This is the start of the mesa top Government trail with the trail register at the left.

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A good view of the mesa and the far off mountains.

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Dan and Eric with a little morning levity.

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Eric and concertina provide "Entertainment!!" for the rest of the group.

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Obviously Eric is not much of a singer.

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Getting my stuff together.

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We're off - Roger in the middle distance.  You would never know that there was a deep canyon between here and the low ridge beyond.

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The trail heads down an old road across the mesa top.

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Another view.

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You can see the edge of the canyon in this view.

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Looking towards the "Bears Ears".

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Looking down Gulch from the mesa top.

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The "Bear's Ears"

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After hiking across the mesa top you suddenly come to the edge of the cliff that is Grand Gulch.  Here Danny is taking a break in the sun.  Notice the water in the pools, indicating the previous day's precipitation.

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Roger - taking a break at the mesa top.

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Eric at mesa top.

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Roger got this shot looking back to the point the Gov't trail leaves the mesa top.  Allison waving for the camera.

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Looking towards Polly's Canyon.

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More potholes filled with water - it had been a wet spring.

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Looking down into the Gulch - that is Polly's Island on the left with the old rincon (green area) going around it.

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Looking down to abandoned Rincon around Polly's Island

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Looking down the Gulch was something we didn't expect to see - a river.  While there was a trickle from Polly's Canyon in 2000 that soon dried up, it had been bone dry in 2002.  If you look closely you can see the Gov't trail on the bench at the left of the picture.

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Roger's telephoto of the water flowing in the canyon.

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Looking up the gulch you can see the where Polly's Canyon comes into the Gulch (at large cottonwoods in distance).

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Roger - on mesa top.

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Top of Polly's Island across the Canyon - note ruins below the mesa top.

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Across the canyon there are these ruins near the top of the cliff on Polly's Island. See picture by F.E. Leeka (Green Expedition 1891) on page 43 of "Cowboys & Cave Dwellers" by Fred Blackburn and Ray Williamson.

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Roger's Telephoto of Polly's Island Ruin.

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Extreme closeup - note "porch and steps" at middle window.

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View from near the top of the Gov't Trail - Looking down into the Gulch - Polly's Island is to the left.  You can see the mouth of Polly's Canyon beyond the ridge at the right.

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Looking down at the river - the riffles show the volume of the flow.

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Shelby and Dan coming down the Gov't trail.

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Eric heading down the Gov't Trail.

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Allison - at a big switchback in the Gov't Trail.

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Allison.

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Danny on the Gov't Trail.

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Eric looking for a good place to cross the stream just below Polly's Canyon.

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Eric

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Danny - also looking for a place to cross.

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Down in the Gulch - this slick rock section is very beautiful.  See 2000 trip for more pictures.

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This section is just below the mouth of Polly's canyon.  Polly's Island is to the left.

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Above Polly's Canyon the water flow in the Gulch made travel much more difficult than in a normal year.  As this section is almost always dry, you usually hike in the wash so no trails are made through the brush on either side of the wash.  You had a difficult choice to make - Wade or fight through very tough brush.  Here Roger has waded across and is entering the brush on the far side of the wash.

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Big Man Panel

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It was a longer slog than I remembered to the trail up to the Big Man Panel.  This was Eric's first trip here.  See both 2000 and 2002 Grand Gulch trips for more photos of this panel.

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Eric

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LEBOWSKI: Is it... Is it being prepared to do the right thing? Whatever the price?  Isn't that what makes a man?

DUDE: Sure, that and a pair of testicles.


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Pensive Eric

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Allison at Big Man Panel

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Allison

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Shelby.

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"Obviously you're not a golfer" - Shelby isn't either.

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Whoops!

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Group at the Big Man Panel.

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Looking up canyon from the Big Man Panel.

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A few clouds building up as the day goes on - pretty typical.

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This natural arch is much easier to spot going up canyon.  We missed it coming down in 2000.

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A closer view of the arch (just down canyon from Long House.)

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We found a small ruin and pictograph panel.  Erosion has taken it's toll on the paintings.

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If you look closely you can see these large yellow figures which have faded over time.

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Ruin - there was another room using the stick and mud construction at the right.

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Long House Ruin Grand Gulch ut05-d1-036b
The "Long House" sits up on a sandy bench located at the western end of a huge bend in the Gulch.  See 2000 and 2002 trips for more photos.  Our slog through the river and brush was slowing us down a great deal so we didn't go up and look at the ruin.  Also see F.E. Leeka's 1891 photo in Cowboys & Cave Dwellers.

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Danny & concertina- This was the second day at our camp at the mouth of Dripping Canyon.  The camp is located in a grove of cottonwoods at the junction of the Gulch and D.C.  In 2002 we camped here but had a long trek to find a pool up Dripping Canyon for water - not this year as there was a stream coming down the gulch.

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Dan at camp at mouth of Dripping Canyon.

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Shelby - goofing off in camp.

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Shelby mainlining Kool Aid.

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Cottonwood where we camped.

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More Cottonwood.

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A view of our camp acrosse the stream flowing down the Gulch - Dripping Canyon is at the right.

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I took out first and was soon passed by Roger.

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What's your choice - wade thru the muck or beat the brush.  The stretch from Polly's Island to Step Canyon was pretty rough.

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Almost to Step Canyon - there is a trail over a bench and you get this view.

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Just below Step Canyon.

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There is still considerable flow in the Gulch below Step Canyon.

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Another view.

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Cactus along "trail"

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Two Story Ruin

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Entrance of Two Story Ruin - you can see the mouth of Step Canyon (to right) in the background.

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Spring has yet to come as none of the cottonwoods are budding out yet.

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Note the poles that form the floor of the 2nd story.

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A good look of Two Story Ruin. - note small ruin in foreground.

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Shelby at Two Story Ruin.

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Note large rock cantelivered over cliff at base of structure - This would prevent anyone from going around structure if door was barricaded.

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Roger strikes a pose (See various trips - and Bridger 98 for the Buckwheat original).

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Closeup of ruin.

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Roger's favorite tee shirt.

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Thumbs Up!

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Back of Two Story Ruin -  note very large rock used as the base of the structure and how it two cantilevers over the cliff.  It must have been quite a task to move and place this boulder.

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Two Thumbs Up!!

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Interior of Two story Ruin showing smoke blackened walls and timbered ceiling/floor.

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Opening thru 2nd story.

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Junction of wall and bedrock - very black from smoke.  No asthmatics lived here (for long,

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800 year old Corn cob remnants.

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Another view of window through 2nd story.  Note mud "plastering" at opening.

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Looking upcanyon along ledge from door of Two Story Ruin.  The larger ruin is a wall that extends across the ledge for defensive purposes.

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Another view.

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Small opening thru small ruin.

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Defensive wall - door could be blocked to prevent anyone from coming in.

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Roger in doorway.  Note lintel.

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Peek a boo!

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Pottery Shards - note green pigment.

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?? - was this a small crypt or box or just some random arrangement of rocks.

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Rubble along bench.

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Corncob.

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More corncobs - note corn husk that still survives.

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Corncob resting place.

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More cobs.

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Roger's shadow (see previous trips) photo.

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Handprints at Two story ruin.  Note how small the hands are in comparison to Roger's.

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Square pictograph - the rock here was pretty soft so pictographs were eroded and faded.

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Another wavy line pictograph with hand prints above and below.  Note faded figures at bottom right.

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Figure - typical wide shoulder - thin waist.

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More handprints.

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Whoaaa! Handprint panel at Two Story Ruin.

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Faded Figure.

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More figures - the red dye seems to wear better than the white.

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I wonder what this was supposed to be - is that a figure on the right.

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This photo starts a series made by turning in a circle and taking shots.  This one is looking upcanyon from ledge at Two Story Ruin.

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Next photo in series.

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A third view up canyon.  There was less water in the wash here and there were more trails

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4th photo- looking across the canyon.

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5th photo.

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Eric and Allison coming up the gulch from Step Canyon to Two Story Ruin.  Note convenient cottonwood log to cross the stream.

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Allison & Eric crossing wash - these crossing were difficult because of the steepness of the bank and the depth of the water.  Long Legged Danny could jump across with ease - I usually ended up with both feet in the water and my knees covered in mud!

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Almost to Two Story Ruin -wide angle view of stream crossing.

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Eric and Allison- you can see how the canyon has become clogged with the alien Tamarisk plant - the scourge of the southwest - which has forced out many native plants.

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View of Two Story Ruin

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Shelby and Roger at Two Story Ruin.

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More Tamarisks among the sage bushes.

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Good example of the brush in the canyon.

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The Totem Pole - a prominent hoodoo between Step Canyon and the Bullet Canyon/GG

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This small ruin is near the mouth of Green House Canyon.

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Eric - This is between Green House Canyon and Bullet Canyon where the trail crosses a wide bench.

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Eric along Trail.

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Allison Crossing Bench

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Allison - following the trail across a bench between Green House and Bullet Canyon.

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Allison Crossing Bench

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Another view.

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Allison - the trail is about to dip back down to the wash again.

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The trail crosses this bench for welcome views.

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Roger caught up to me at this dip in the bench.

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