Yeti and I went down to Utah so I could make another attempt to finish the Hayduke Trail in 2023. I was going to be hiking with Dave Greenwood this year.
Our route would start at Hite, a section I had skipped in 2021. As it turned out, my right ankle gave way again on our second section. I barely hobbled up the Burr Trail to end that section and had to get off the trail AGAIN! My left knee got bummed up also because of compensation. It is obvious that I can no longer do these difficult long hikes anymore. It was so disappointing, and I felt bad for Dave. We based ourselves in Escalante to figure out what to do. We managed to see my friend Kim, too, who has a house there. Dave didn’t want to continue. He was not a good navigator, so he didn’t feel like doing it alone. He decided not to try to find a group of other hikers to continue with to the end. So, he headed back home; his wife came to pick him up. Too bad – just when we were getting to an exciting section: Muley Twist and the Halls Creek/Stevens Canyon alternate! Ah, me. In the end, Yeti and I stayed on for a few weeks supporting several of the hikers we had befriended including Silver Bullet, Cruze Control, the Kids (Double Happiness & Weekend @ Bernie’s), Twig and Stellar, and Artimus. After leaving Escalante, we stayed in Cannondale at a great RV park and practiced using that enormous tent that Yeti had bought. It’s huge and can attach to the back of our Subaru, though we didn’t set it up that way. We moved into Tropic once the hikers started to show up. Silver Bullet arrived first (Cruze had to drop out due to a back injury); Yeti picked her up at Willis Creek Trailhead. A day later, the kids arrived. They all did a day in Bryce making a nice loop of trails that were dry, as the main route was still very snowy. On our next to last day there, Twig, Stellar and Artemis came out at Willis Creek. We got there just as they started up the road! So, we were able to help them out at least once with a ride.
We continued to Kanab waiting for the group to make it there. First, we met Silver Bullet at the parking lot where you go to the Wave. She shared a suite with us at the motel. She and Yeti used one of the rest days to retrieve her cache near the Hack Canyon Reservoir. Then, a day or so later, the kids arrived. Yeti picked them up at Hwy 89A. We were happy to see them again. Kanab was nice and had some great eateries including Jakey Leigh’s bakery/café, Rocking V Café, and Wild Thyme Café. We like the Aikens Lodge, too. Again, a funky kind of place.
Our final trip was to the Grand Canyon. We drove Silver to the Tanner Trailhead at the South Rim of the Canyon at Lipan Point. A tearful farewell and she descended into the Grand Canyon for her South Rim route. She ended there after a trek over to the West Tonto Trail/Boucher Trail. Silver made it back via the Rim Trail to the Village, where she got a bus back to Flagstaff. The Kids and a few other hikers are still at the South Rim deciding what route they can do. We are excited to find out what they do, as the North Rim and upper North Kaibab Trail is still closed until June and the West Tonto/North Bass trail alternate is also not passable due to a dangerous stream crossing! A tough year to be on the Hayduke because of the high snow.
UPDATE 05-25-2023: The Kids, Stellar, Artemis, Delta, & Mac all did a shortcut to the South Bass trail, got a hitch actross the Colorado & hiked up to the Shinumo Creek crossing. The creek was really running high & the Kids opted to turn around & go back to the South Rim via the long route. Stellar & crew found a way across & got up to the Bill Hall trailhead via Crazy Jug canyon, then back down to the Colorado & up Kanab Creek. They are probably in Colorado City today (5-25). In the meantime the Kids hitched back to Moab, picked up their car, pulled all their caches & now are supposed to have a ride today (5-25) to the Bill Hall trailhead where they will follow the same route as Stellar & crew but will finish at the Hack Reservoir where they have left their car.
UPDATE 05-28-2023: The Kids (Double Happiness & Weekend at Bernie's) finished their hike at the Hack Reservoir at 12:11pm today. I got texts from them around 3:40pm this afternoon.
Back home in Montana healing and getting anxious to be up and walking and hiking. I’m trying my first short walk/hike on a local Bozeman trail that is mostly flat on Friday with a couple of friends. Then, next week may start swimming to get my cardio back into shape. I’m going back to teaching my classes at the Senior Center in Bozeman next week, too. Glad to be getting out of the house!!! Dreaming of doing more on the Hayduke (may just a section at a time or just day hikes); it’s not out of my system yet!
Go to Photos to see our pictures from the hike. https://fultek.com/showk