Many are familiar with Water Canyon, located just outside of Hilldale on the Utah-Arizona border, but few have heard of Squirrel Canyon that is accessed from a nearby trailhead. From here one follows Short Creek for a mile until veering off to the north up Squirrel Canyon. After following an enchanting stream for another mile, a hike out of the canyon is required to access The Beehive.
We had read that it was possible to summit The Beehive, without ropes, if we scrambled up the slickrock from the north side. Sounded like a plan, until we stood at the base and looked up. “Wow, that looks steeper than I expected” was the general consensus, but we hadn’t come this far to not give it a try. After all, we wanted to see the unique hoodoos that can be found on top of this sandstone mountain. We didn’t make it – let’s just say, “We were stung by the Bee!”, but what gorgeous scenery and fun memories were made. We’ll be back – we have a plan to get the best of the Bee!
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| It's early morning and the sun hasn't yet come over the ridge . . . Short Creek flows gently beside the trail . . . it's rather soothing |
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| After crossing the creek, we followed an ATV trail to Squirrel Canyon That's the Beehive in front of us . . . Even though it looks close, it's another two miles until we can attempt our ascent |
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| The ATV trail ends in Squirrel Canyon at this small diversion dam . . . Water is channeled into a pipe, which flows under the ATV trail . . . We assume it ends up in Hildale and is used as part of their water supply |
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| Ahhh . . . it feels good to be up and out of Squirrel Canyon . . . We're looking back to the south towards Short Creek |
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| The terrain quickly changes . . . it looks like we are in for a treat! |
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| There is no trail in this area and Allison "sort of got lost" for a few minutes . . . She blew her whistle and Tom quickly spotted her! Whew! |
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| There it is! They call it The Beehive . . . we call it The Beast! |
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| Kent and Tom planning our ascent . . . it looks different from here, huh? Hey, Tom, "Is it really that steep? No, it's just an optical illusion" . . . yeah, right! |
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| It really is as steep as it looks! |
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| Tom is trying to get good finger holds along this crack to work his way up to Kent |
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| Traction on the slickrock was an issue We spent 30-45 minutes (on the rock) contemplating the "what if's!". . . Ultimately, it came down to . . . "If we make it up (and that was a big assumption), could we safely get back down." |
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| Here we are answering our question . . . Butt scooting our way back down . . . bummer! |
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| Hmmm . . . I think I could have made it . . . really! Those other two guys are just a bunch of wimps! |
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| This place is as remote as it is beautiful . . . no one, but us! |
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| Moqui Marbles . . . aka, iron concretions They are made of iron oxide and sandstone and then formed by the wind |
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| Tom and Kent "think" we will return one day and conquer The Beehive . . . from the southwest side . . . we shall see! |
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| Not sure what to call this . . . a moqui marble blob? Still needs a little more wind work to get them separated |
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| Feeling defeated by The Beast, Tom had to summit something . . . This hoodoo was the lucky winner! After all, he is a Peakbagger! |
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| Not to be "outdone" . . . Kent had to poke fun of The Beehive in the distance! "We're coming back for you!" |
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| Indian Paintbrush growing near the base of he sandstone |
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| What? No Coke! Who left an empty cooler out here in the boonies? It actually served as a good trail marker for heading back down Squirrel Canyon |
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| On our way back down the trail we could hear trickling water, a mini waterfall . . . You gotta love springs in the desert! |
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| So pretty . . . a Brassicaceae or member of the Mustard family |
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| Unique alluvial fan swirl in Squirrel Creek |
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| Cushion Phlox |
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| 8.6 miles later and we have come full circle . . . that's the trailhead in the distance What a great day it has been . . . despite the fact that we were "stung" by The Bee! |
As a side note . . .We came back in January 2021 and bagged The Beehive using a route that came in from the southern end. Click here for a link to that post - it was amazing!
