MonikaC
Well-Known Member
A few of you may remember when I posted some shots of Happy Canyon in 2022. I finally got back there after a failed attempt (the road was closed @5 miles before the old trailhead and adding 10 miles on to the hike was not something I was up for) and I think there were a couple of other times when the weather didn't cooperate. I knew from a friend who had pack rafted the Dirty Devil River earlier in the year that the water level was low; previously it was knee or a little more deep. This time it was ankle deep crossing to Happy and mid-calf coming back out as I wasn't searching for the lowest place to cross. the final road was crowded with 2 or 3 other parties camped along the 5 mile stretch. The road is now closed 1.3 miles before the old trailhead, so with walking up & down the canyon a few times, it was about a 14 mile day.
Previously, I had gotten some nice light at the entrance but not further in. This time it was the opposite. I got there earlier in the day, but about a month later in the year. I'm assuming that the sun was that much higher in the sky, so hit the canyon walls differently. I spoke with a photographer who was on his way out the day before I went in. He mentioned some pools of water & mud..... that I found he had left his tracks in. Unavoidable, really, but I avoided those compositions. The log jams were a good 40-50' off the canyon floor.
Previously, I had gotten some nice light at the entrance but not further in. This time it was the opposite. I got there earlier in the day, but about a month later in the year. I'm assuming that the sun was that much higher in the sky, so hit the canyon walls differently. I spoke with a photographer who was on his way out the day before I went in. He mentioned some pools of water & mud..... that I found he had left his tracks in. Unavoidable, really, but I avoided those compositions. The log jams were a good 40-50' off the canyon floor.
