Oops, wrong canyon

A few weeks ago, I had followed a wash downstream into a very scenic canyon in Bulldog Canyon. I have been planning to hike up that canyon from the other end. Yesterday, I made my first attempt.

There are still a few puddles out there.

I wanted Sweetums to go with me, and to stay with the Ranger while I hiked. I promised her that the Ranger would be parked in shade, but she was still worried about being hot. It was in the low 70's in town, which felt good to me, but most people are hot when I'm comfortable. She relented and went with me.

The view at the start.

I should have checked a map before I set out. I thought I knew which side canyon I wanted, but I was wrong. I knew I was wrong as soon as I started up it because it was way too narrow. It looked scenic, though, so I kept going.

Looking up the wrong canyon.

I also thought that maybe I could get to the canyon I wanted from this canyon. Silly me. The canyon I was in was narrow and had lots of very large (car size and bigger) boulders. The further I went, the more difficult is became to climb over them. It only took about half an hour to get to a spot that looked too risky to climb over.

Large boulders litter the canyon floor.

A scenic view.

A couple of hawks were flying around above me. I think maybe they were celebrating Valentine's Day.

I didn't want to climb over these boulders. Too risky for a solitary hiker in a narrow canyon (my SPOT may not have been able to get a signal out).

A hollow under the boulders that stopped me.

A spring-fed puddle in the hollow.

A skylight in the hollow.

There were footprints in the sand of that canyon. There must be something interesting further up there. I may have to try it from another angle some day.

When I got back to the Ranger, Sweetums admitted that she was actually cold. She hadn't gotten cold enough to move into the sunshine, though. Click below to see all of the pictures.

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