This weekend I could only squeeze in a day hike this Sunday. Not for any terrible reasons, but a project I’m working on is almost at the end. And I have a deadline on Monday. 🙂 But I needed to get in a hike.
So I went hiking in Lower Courthouse Wash. An out and back of about 11 miles or so. One of the few narrower canyons in Arches, this canyon has no official trail. But a well-worn use path connects the wash from the heart of Arches to Moab Canyon off state HWY 191.
A lush canyon esp . in this year of 150%+ snowpack. The spring wildflowers are blooming, streams are flowing, I saw some turkeys, and even spotted a blue heron.
The day out proved to be a perfect hike during a hectic time.
Try hiking upper Seven Mile Canyon below the pour off near Hwy 191 in the Bar M area. There is an old cattle route into the canyon on the right side looking down canyon. From there you can walk down canyon past where Courthouse wash comes in on the left and then to the park road. Great hiking in the fall when the cottonwoods turn gold!
Oh, one of my trip reports from the late Fall may or may not have obliquely hinted at that area. 😉
That drainage is interesting because it is speculated that it may have been part of a migration route from the Maze to the La Sals in spring and back again in the fall. Part of an Anasazi highway system. There are Barrier style panels along the way, too. Oh, snap, what a great idea for a thru hike!