The San Rafael Swell is a seemingly endless expanse of slickrock, reefs, rivers, narrow canyons, mesas, towers, and pinnacles. It is the wilderness home of coyotes, eagles, mountain lions, and bighorn sheep. Steve Allen's Canyoneering: The San Rafael Swell has long been the standard for exploring this remarkable area. With the input of fellow guidebook author Joe Mitchell, Canyoneering the Northern San Rafael Swell replaces part of the previous volume with a completely rewritten and updated text containing more detail, greater accuracy, and a tighter focus on the northern half of the Swell. This is the most current and comprehensive guide to the region. Designed for wilderness enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels, this guide provides detailed information on 25 hikes, including trip length, difficulty, elevation gain, and water sources. Side trips, points of interest, and historical information are noted throughout the text. This guidebook includes for the first time a wealth of topographic maps for all routes and roads, elevation profiles, and GPS coordinates. A second volume covering the southern portion of the San Rafael Swell is in preparation.
Steve Allen started hiking the San Rafael Swell in 1972. He has guided many trips for the Telluride Guide and Mountaineering School, Colorado State University Mountaineering Club, and the Sierra Club. He is also the author of Canyoneering 2: Technical Loop Hikes in Southern Utah (The University of Utah Press, 1995) and Canyoneering 3: Loop Hikes in Utah's Escalante (The University of Utah Press, 1997). Joe Mitchell has been exploring wild places on foot since childhood. A fly fishing guide by trade, he is passionate about introducing others to the meaningful experiences that only the wilderness can provide. He is also the coauthor of The Hayduke Trail: A Guide to the Backcountry Hiking Trail on the Colorado Plateau (The University of Utah Press, 2005).
Foreword by Steve Allen Acknowledgments Introduction Access and Information Protecting the San Rafael Swell Low Impact Camping Techniques The Geology of the San Rafael Swell The Strata Man in the San Rafael Swell The Old Spanish Trail How to Use the Guide 1. Cedar Mountain and the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry Cedar Mountain and Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry Road Section Hike #1: Humbug Canyon Hike #2: Bull Hollow 2. The Northern Reef and Mexican Mountain Buckmaster Draw Road Section Tidwell Draw-South Road Section Hike #3: Acer's Arch and Horse Thief Trail Canyon Hike #4: Sheep Cave and Archtower Canyons Tidwell Draw-North Road Section Hike #5: Pinnacle Canyon Hike #6: Cottonwood Wash Hike #7: Grotto Canyon Green River Cutoff Road Section Buckhorn Wash Road Section Hike #8: Little Holes Canyon Hike #9: Calf, Cow, and Pine Canyons Mexican Mountain Road Section Hike #10: Red Canyon-West Fork to East Fork Hike #11: Upper Black Box Hike #12: Mexican Mountain Ascent Hike #13: Mexican Bend and Acers Arch Hike #14: Spring Canyon to Sulphur Canyon Cottonwood Wash Road Section Sinkhole Flat/Jackass Bench Road Section Hike #15: Drowned Hole Draw Hike #16: Lower Black Box Black Dragon Wash Road Section Hike #17: Box Spring and Double Arch Canyons Hike #18: Black Dragon Wash and the San Rafael River 3. Sids Mountain Hike #19: San Rafael River and Cane Wash Hike #20: Virgin Springs Canyon Oil Well Flat/Saddle Horse Canyon Road Section Hike #21: Pinnacle #1 Ascent Dutch Flat road Section Hike #22: Sids Mountain and Saddle Horse Canyon Hike #23: San Rafael River, Virgin Springs Canyon, Sids Mountain, North Salt Wash Moore Cutoff Road Section Hike #24: Rochester Petroglyphs Hike #25: Eagle Canyon-North-and Forgotten Canyon Bibliography
"Canyoneering is probably the best source for an introduction to canyoneering and the San Rafael area."--Wilderness and Environmental Medicine "It is the definitive hiking guide for the San Rafael Swell. Although the stated purpose is to guide hikers, this book is also useful for auto touring and mountain biking, as it lists many of the important scenic overlooks and wonders that can be viewed by car or a short hike from the roads which criss-cross the Swell."--Utah Archaeology "Steve Allen knows the San Rafael Swell better than anyone else."--Deseret News
