With the recent moisture (which makes sand more compact) it seemed like a good time to explore the Swags (drainages), as they are known, that help form Kitchen Canyon. Our original plan was to hike No Mans Mesa, but upon arriving it was clear there was no passage up from the southern end. After studying our GPS's we decided to drive a little further up the North Swag and hike to Potters Butte. This ended up making for a nice trek and gave us several other ideas for future explorations.
On the way back, we made a two-mile detour to an alcove on the West Swag that Kent had read contained an ancient Anasazi granary. After a pleasant walk, up a draw, we were able to locate not one, but two granary's and enjoyed reflecting back on what life must have been like in this harsh landscape.
One last stop brought us to the site of an old CCC camp from the 1930's. Although there wasn't much left, it was fun to explore and take a small hike to the Kitchen Canyon Spring that provided water for these workers.
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No Mans Mesa is huge! It is three miles long and one mile wide and surrounded by 800ft cliffs
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No Mans Mesa is a type of "sky island" - meaning it is isolated, by itself, away from or connecting to any other geological features in the area. Per
Michael R. Kelsey, there is only one known way to reach the summit and that is by using the Jepson goat trail. According to Kelsey, a man named Lewis Jepson built the trail in 1927/28 so he could graze his Angora goats on top of the mesa. Watch for a post on this trail sometime in the near future, as we plan on hiking his trail and exploring the top of
No Mans Mesa.
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Since No Mans Mesa wasn't going to happen today, it was time for a backup plan . . .
Potters Butte looks like a fun place to explore . . . let's go! |
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| We waited while Tom searched for a route up to the top by using this crack |
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| With no viable route to the highpoint we decided to check out the southern part of the butte |
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| A scratch circle in the snow, a unique find! |
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Using this weakness in the cliffs we were able to make it to the top with our dogs . . .
It was steep and slick all the way up |
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| Kent is almost to the top . . . have you ever walked on sand covered ice? |
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We had nice views up on top . . . that's Mollies Nipple in the distance . . .
This was a great place to sit and take our lunch break |
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| We took turns climbing this fun formation . . . our 'highpoint' for the day! |
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The red line shows the route we took to the highpoint . . .
Notice all the sand . . .
Be prepared to drive through this type of terrain if you want to explore the Swags |
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| Time to head back to our vehicles |
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Next it was on to the West Swag . . .
It was here we found an alcove, with beautiful walls, that hid an ancient Anasazi granary |
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| The reason we are here . . . to see these ruins |
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Tom and Kent checked out the log book that someone had placed here
Chipper is trying out Ezy's dog-pack . . . it fits like a glove and he likes it! |
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It looks like Tom is about to teach Chipper how to grind corn . . .
Chipper wants to know when he gets to sample the corn chips! |
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| Stunted pine trees growing up high in the cracks of the alcove wall |
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Sandstone is very porous allowing this moss to thrive . . .
We're sure moisture collects here, during certain times of the year, for the wildlife |
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This alcove was really fun to see . . .
Notice the trees clinging on for "dear life" at the top |
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The walls, surrounding the alcove, are so high that the sun
doesn't shine here during the winter months |
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On our way out we passed by these hoodoos that guard another alcove . . .
What mysteries lie in this alcove?? You'll have to explore to find out! |
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Our last stop for the day was the Telegraph Flat CCC Spike Camp
Pictured here is the remnant of the old camp cement water cistern |
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We hiked up to Kitchen Corral Spring . . .
and found a trickle of a stream and a lot of frozen ice . . .
This was the water that was piped to the cistern that the camp used |
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This rock caught Allison's eye!
(She thought it looked like some galaxy or moon rock) |
What a great day this backup plan provided for us. If you're interested in hiking Potters Butte you can click
here to view Tom's Peakbagger post. As always, you can find a topo map and gps tracks for our five-mile (r/t) hike. As for the granary (which was two-miles r/t), you can purchase a copy of Kelsey's "
Hiking and Exploring the Paria River" or
contact us. Without being a "killjoy" we want to make you work at it a little bit so we can keep this place special . . . hope you understand!
