Melanie in Muley Twist Canyon 4/10/2025

The trip down to Utah was uneventful. For the first time, we did not have a snow storm. We got to the motel in Boulder and had a great lunch at the Burr Trail Grill. We started out for the trail early on Thursday morning. I was starting at Lower Muley Twist Canyon at the top of the Burr Switchbacks where I'd ended the last time. It was a beautiful day and was going to be quite warm in the upper 70s or even 80s. Muley Twist Canyon is a winding canyon with many swirling cliff walls as you wind your way along. Yeti came in for 3 miles and then turned back. The hiking was fairly easy with not much elevation changes. You are walking in a wash, so sandy soil but good going. I did see some water along the way, some of which was not on the map. It's been a dry season, so I was happy to see some pools. My plan was to meet Yeti the next morning at the Halls Creek Overlook and take the rest of the day off.

I had hoped to get to the Muley Tanks (a reliable water source) and cook a meal there, but it was further than I thought and I just got too hungry. I stopped in some shade by a small tree and cooked a meal. It was very warm and probably did reach the 80s. After lunch, finally got to Muley Tanks and they had good water. I took 2 liters. At that point the canyon widens out a lot. The hiking is mostly in a dry creek bed and is a bit rocky. My GPS was reading more miles than the map miles, and I walked 17 mles per the GPS. I should have reached the trail junction for my route to Halls Ck. Overlook per the map, but when I looked on my map program on my phone, I could see I still had almost 2 miles to go. I was bushed and it was 6pm, so I stopped. I was too tired to set up my tent and cowboy camped on a sandy spot. It was a starry night with a full moon.

Next morning, I got up and got an early start. Again, following a rocky creek bed. Followed my gps tracks to veer off to find the trail up what looks like an imposing cliff. You wonder how the heck can I get up this rock? But, there is a good trail, steep but easy to follow. I met a hiker coming down who already had met Yeti up at the top. I had to stop to get my breath many times and was slow. I certainly lost respiratory fitness by getting that cold just before the trip. Yeti was there and reported a few issues. We didn't pack an extension cord and he couldn't see that we'd packed the portable solar panel that we use in campgrounds if needed. This was a big problem. Had to make some key decisions. I already knew that I would not do the entire section, but had planned to go back into the canyon so I could walk through the Halls Creek Narrows. Then, I planned to come out on an alternate route. Yeti had talked to 2 guys who had just done the narrows and it turns out there would be two pools that I'd have to swim - I'd worried about this. Also, the spot where I planned to come out was a bit dubious, including the road in for Yeti. So, we decided to head back to Boulder to see if we could buy an extension cord. We did find one at the small store. Both of us are very tired. We had lunch at a food truck near the Anasazi Museum - Navajo Tacos on fry bread! And, got our motel room back. Not sure what I'll do next. My next section was to start after a break in Escalante. I'd be happy to do a day hike as Capitol Reef has so many good hikes. We'll see. We are both getting some rest. Yeti is struggling a bit with the exertion in this heat. I'm a bit worried about him. Other than feeling very tired, I'm feeling okay.