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Exploring the Escalante
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On these three pages, you'll find an in-depth spread of pictures and a cool interactive satellite-photo track-map covering our Phipps Arch hike. If you liked what you saw of the hike to Phipps Arch in the main narrative, then spend a few minutes looking at all of the extra images contained here. Extra images of Phipps Arch (and the hike leading to it) that were not in the main narrative are indicated by a color surrounding the image thumbnail.

Please note: this page isn't part of the main trip report. If you are interested in the full narrative of our hike to Phipps Arch, then you should go to this page in the main story narrative. Once you've finished with the narrative, you may then wish to come to this section to look at all of the extra pictures (and the maps) of our Phipps Arch hike that I couldn't fit into the main narrative.

Phipps Route Start
Our parking spot off of the Old Scheffield Road. This was the starting point for our Phipps Arch hike. [enlarge]
Winter's brushstroke on the desert
Even though the snow was unwelcome, it did create some very pretty and unique views. [enlarge]
Winter's brushstroke on the desert
Even though the snow was unwelcome, it did create some very pretty and unique views. [enlarge]
courtesy PChen
Pu and the flats
A Pu Portrait near Little Spencer Flat in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. [enlarge]
courtesy PChen
Snowy Bush
A lone desert bush endures a dusting of snow at Little Spencer Flat, Grand Staircase National Monument. [enlarge]
Our destination
A view from near the start of the route, looking straight down to our destination. Phipps Arch can be seen in this photo as a dark cave-like semicircle in the bright red rocks in the distance. [enlarge]
Pu surveys the land
Pu checking out our route before the start of our hike to Phipps Arch. [enlarge]
Off we go
Up here at 6000 feet, there is about 2 inches of fresh white snow. [enlarge]
View northwest
A view northwest near the start of our route to Phipps Arch. [enlarge]
Snow-covered slickrock
Large expanses of bare slickrock are covered in an inch or two of snow. Slippery! [enlarge]
46er in Utah
Andrew hikes down a pleasant side-wash leading down into Phipps Wash. [enlarge]
Utah Juniper
Utah Juniper trees abound in the upper reaches of the wash. [enlarge]
courtesy PChen
Jenn awaits
Jenn takes a break. [enlarge]
Our topo map
Our trusty topographic map pouch - today it is filled with a detailed map of the terrain around Phipps Arch. [enlarge]
Jenn takes a break
A brief rest stop in a sub-wash of Phipps Wash. [enlarge]
Wash walking
The bottoms of the various washes make pleasant walking paths. [enlarge]
Snowy Yucca
A yucca plant endures the late season snow. [enlarge]
courtesy PChen
Explaining Cryptobiotic Crust
Andrew explains about Cryptobiotic crust and how we should try and avoid walking on it. [enlarge]
The Ground
Much of the terrain is nice, clean bare sandstone.. [enlarge]
Beautiful Cross-bedding
A view of beautifully cross-bedded navaho sandstone on our way down into Phipps Wash [enlarge]
Microclimates!
This shot is a good example of microclimates. On the right is a north facing slope, and you can see how the snow on it has barely melted. On the left is a south facing slope, and the snow has completely melted and the rock has completely dried. Very neat! [enlarge]
courtesy RHanel
Desert Bush and Slickrock
[enlarge]
Bottom of slope
Looking back up at the slickrock slope we just came down. Again note the snow on the north-facing side, and the dry and bare slickrock on the south-facing side. [enlarge]
Swaths of Texture
A neat view of snow, transitioning to sand, transitioning to bedrock. [enlarge]
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[ Exploring the Escalante home page | The main trip report | Phipps Arch | Bighorn Loop | Lower Calf Creek Falls | Coyote Gulch | Egypt 3 | Roland's Trees | Pu's Clouds | Jenn's Dad | Desert Textures | Where did we drive? | Full Picture Index | Full Video Index | GPS Data ]

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