Hiking down Fiftymile Creek to Lake Powell | GEL Part 8
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- Опубликовано: 7 сен 2024
- Continuing my 33-day solo backpacking adventure in spring of 2023, I walk down the amazing Fiftymile Creek drainage all the way to Lake Powell. Along the way I enjoy some rock art, an arch, several incredible undercuts, and some exciting narrows. I saw zero other hikers on this day, but I did run into an owl who evidently was not as excited to see me as I was him!
This is the extended series for my hike and includes a bunch more footage and stories not seen in the original all-in-one overview video. This 12-part series takes a deeper dive into the route I dubbed the Grand Escalante Loop and covers over 400 miles through southern Utah's amazing canyon country, remote plateaus, and high elevations. It was a slow go at times, but still a great hike. 2023 was a unique year with record-breaking snowpack over winter and a rainy spring. Thanks for following along!
The original Overview Video:
• The Grand Escalante Lo...
Detailed map of the route on my website:
www.acrossutah....
So glad Lake Powell is raising again! So vital for the West
It's had a heck of a run in 2023 and 2024 -- Bullfrog just re-opened one of the boat ramps. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Thanks for a new adventure. Greatly appreciated.
Thanks again for watching and the comment. Still a long ways back to Escalante -- but only three more episodes after this. Cheers! 🌞✌
Wonderous Owls, beautiful rock formations, thanks for sharing Jamal...
I agree. Thanks again for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
Absolutely gorgeous episode man, fantastic section!
Thanks -- glad you enjoyed it. Cheers! 🌞✌
This one looks amazing ! I’ll have to try this year it’s been on my list
Yep -- at the end I said I wouldn't recommend it to many people, but that's probably not correct. I would -- I'd just also warn them that it's a long hike and can be tedious at times. If you go I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Fantastic video. Thanks for sharing. 👍160
Thank YOU -- I appreciate you for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
Total count for Mollies Nipple: 3. Thanks for sharing your adventures with us, always a pleasure to come along for the ride.
Haha -- that's actually more than I expected for NOT really going close to Mollies Nipple on this hike. Thanks again for watching and the comments. 🌞✌
Mollie has three nipples?
Yeah!! It's a Jamal night! All Those washes you hiked down were wonderful. In a part of the world we are a little familiar with. Know Sooner (not Sooner) Wash. Just kept thinking about your first long hike. You probably had about as much experience in the area as we do. What a leap of faith that must have been to step out into that vast wilderness --even with all the research prep and hike for several weeks. Amazing. Thanks so much for this!!
Thanks -- glad you liked it. This was my first time in this canyon and I was glad to finally make it there. I do feel very confident in that area in general. The weather definitely helped me out along this portion as well -- dry, but not too hot. Thanks again for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Hello Jamal,
the encounter with the owls was pretty cool.
Perfect timing for the turn around at Lake Powell. Now a packraft would have been great. But that would have been a bit too much luggage for this tour too.
Keep up the good work
Martin
Thanks! Yes, many people packraft this canyon and either connect it with Willow (one up) or Davis (one down). It would be an awesome way to see the rest of the canyon including Gregory Bridge when it's above the water line. Thanks again for watching! 🌞✌
I went down 50-mile canyon a few years ago as a day hike. Never saw another person. I ate lunch at the alcove next to the arch. Incredible canyon!
I've had it on my itinerary several times, but for some reason or another it never happened -- so this was my first visit. Yep, pretty great canyon and surprisingly I didn't see any other hikers either. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
another fantastic episode, so many amazing canyon scenes and wow the owl!! / i know about losing stuff maybe not quite as bad but ive gone a mile back uphill to retrieve things
Thanks! Yeah, I really like a tan-colored bandana -- but it is the absolute worst for trying to spot on the ground in most locations! I talk more in a later episode about my drops and walk backs. 👎 Thanks again for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
Great video! I hope one day they stop using Lake Foul as a holding station and send it all to Lake Mead. It would be amazing to explore what has been hidden beneath the water for the last 60 years. Like having a blank spot on the map.
Yep -- that would really be something. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Outstanding episode! One of the few places in Escalante I have not been to... yet. 😁
Thanks! This was my first time there as well. I've wanted to get there for a while since the water has been relatively low. So this year even though I was behind schedule I wasn't going to miss the opportunity. Hope you get there before too long. Cheers! 🌞✌
I've recreated on Lake Powell and loved it, but every time I'm hiking/backpacking in Glen Canyon/Grand Staircase, I always feel the same way. Imagine what was lost. Imagine if in our lifetime it was drained and all the wonders we would get to see... wishful thinking at best in our lifetime, I think?
Yeah, there was definitely quite a bit lost. The natural part would return with enough time, but much of the archaeology/history is likely lost forever. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Quicksand is no joke! Glad you got to keep both your shoes!
Definitely true -- and that was the "sticky" variety that is so tricky. That's always my biggest fear -- losing a boot! It would be gone for good in that situation and I'd be hiking back barefoot (to my gear, and then crocs to town probably!) Thanks for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
It is so good to see so much water in all of the canyons. I remember some years seeing you struggling to stay hydrated. I have had some success in using pine and juniper pitch to seal small leaks in my sleeping pads. Always great story telling on your part.
That's interesting re: pine/juniper. I think in this case the hole was just in a really bad location -- right near a perforation on top of my pad (which was strange I thought -- indicating it was a defect or that I took a "pokey" to bed with me.) Yes -- it was pretty nice that water was not much of an issue on this hike. Thanks again for watching and the comment. ✌
Sacred datura is one of my favorite plants. Those baby owls were great.
I believe the Daura is part of the genus that includes the potato. It is however quite poisonous. I brought some seeds back to the UK in the early 1990's , and raised some plants. They don't survive in this climate though.
Thanks -- I really loved seeing the owls, even though I felt bad for freaking that one out! Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Yeah -- I like the Datura as well. I used to think it was related to the squash and think I even said this in a previous video (I so wish RUclips allowed for on-screen corrections after a video has been published!) I've since learned the natives used it for a medicinal and/or ritual purpose. Interesting and beautiful plant for sure !
@@martinforrester8249 my mother has a couple of plants from the same genus that she babies through inside every winter in the Midwest then the get put out in the spring and grow like crazy.
Lucky mum, i live in England so didnt withstand the cold, wet winters. Thats why i love your South West so much.@marycallanwieth2152
Hi Jamal, thank you so much!
Thank YOU for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
The owl defending its territory was really something. Never been down Fifty Mile Canyon, thanks for taking me along! You are the essence of exploration. 😀😀😀😀😀👍👍👍👍👍
It really was -- the owl was one of the highlights of the whole trek for me. Thanks for the comment and "following along". 🌞✌
Amazing video! The owl footage was very fun. The canyons were beautiful. The quicksand was scary. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Greg! Yeah, seeing the owls was a great memory -- as were the views throughout the canyon really. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Loved the Owl Defense. New gear and you're having issues with it... I am hoping you meet a hiker with a real patch kit. Bad sleep and you are still pulling it off with these great vlogs!
Thanks. No other hikers to meet... I saw ZERO in Fiftymile (which surprised me) and then zero other people over the next week! (not as surprising.) Yeah, I was a bit disappointed with some of the new gear this year (more complaining coming up.) But... I did manage to make do. Cheers! 🌞✌
Amazing owl footage!!
Thanks! Definitely one of the times I wish I had a better camera with a good telephoto lenses with me. But still -- pretty cool just to see it (and glad it happened in a spot that I could get around him.) Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Thank you again for a great video. I love the owl footage, and how kind you were kind to tread lightly around the one owl who had had enough. Such a great memory to keep!
Thanks! I wish I'd taken a photo of the embankment I had to scramble up. Luckily it was much easier to get down. I hated scaring him, but the interaction was definitely one of the most memorable of the hike. Thanks again for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
The owls were beautiful birds, great footage and the rest wasn't too shabby as well ;-p
Thanks! Yeah, in a way the owls were one of the highlights of the entire trip for me this time. Thanks for watching and the comment! 🌞✌
I hope rest comes to you soon…or came to you eventually! Cool owl experience!
I just ended up taking more naps during the day. 😀👍 And yeah, the owls were awesome -- hated to scare them, but it really was one of the highlights of the hike for me. Cheers! 🌞✌
I wish I could see the Glen Canyon restored. If they hadn't filled it, it would rival the Grand Canyon in terms of awe. Beyond just the beauty and recreation of having the canyon restored, it just makes my heart hurt a little to think of the archaeological and paleontological sites of significance within the canyon that were submerged.
Yep -- I agree. I guess at the time there was a plan to dam the Green/Yampa, but after protests there the substitute ended up being Glen Canyon. Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Thanks for posting another part of your adventures! What do you usually do when you get your boots soaked? Do you swap into your crocs or just keep wearing wet boots+socks until they dry out?
Thanks for watching! I usually just continue to wear them until I know I'm done with the water for the day. Then at camp I'll turn them upside down and position them to get the early morning sun so that if possible they'll be mostly dry by the time I start hiking again. I carry two pairs of socks, so in theory I always start off the day with a dry pair of those at least. Cheers! 🌞✌
If Everett Ruess gets found it will by you.
Haha -- that would be quite the find! Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
I wonder if the old inner tube repair kits would be effective patching an air bag?
Absolutely! That's very similar to what used to ship with most pads. After my hike I found an old kit, but the glue had gone bad. Still need to find something like this to carry for future trips though. In the meantime I just got a new pad which has been perfect so far. Cheers! 🌞✌
I dont know how familiar you are with Edward Abbey Jamal ? ( I have all that he's published, non/ and fiction) I admired his stance against the population growth and degradation of the land he loved so much. He would be highly pleased at the state of Lake Powell, with the drought conditions over many years now. Nature reverting back to its original state. Bet hes chuckling in his grave. I admired him so much.
Oh yeah -- I'm a fan too. I read Desert Solitaire long ago and then again more recently along with another non-fiction book of his. I enjoyed The Monkey Wrench Gang as well, though didn't make it far into Hayduke Lives for some reason. I definitely like his style and his perspective on many issues. Cheers! ✌🌞
@Acrossutah Yes, The Monkey Wrench Gang was a good read. He was certainly "one of a kind". I had the greatest respect for his views on how our environments are being abused by profiteers.
I think you meant defensive with the owl posture.
You scared me -- I thought you meant I had a typo! So yeah -- I corrected myself with on-screen text saying that the owl was being defensive (instead of aggressive.) I frequently say the wrong words while hiking (case in point -- "Sooner Wash"!) Thanks for watching and the comment. 🌞✌
Maybe try smearing some shoe goo on your pad
I hadn't heard of that stuff -- but just looked it up. Interesting idea -- thanks for the tip and for watching! 🌞✌