The Escalante to Escalante Hike

It was a weird winter. And a weird spring so far. Thus I guess it only seems appropriate that the plan for my Spring 2023 Hike is a bit weird as well.

After what seems like six months of constant rain and dreary weather, I’m finally headed back out for another big hike in southern Utah. I’ve meticulously planned out a nearly 400-mile route that I’m very anxious to hike. BUT… I also anticipate many things NOT going to plan this year and thus this might be my most improvised hike ever!

The record-high snowpack has led to a spring thaw that’s already causing problems in some areas and has yet to peak in others. I might have to make major route decisions as I go based on flows and new obstacles (but it should be nice to have much more water than I did last year!) Partly due to this uncertainty of conditions, I’ll be doing a big loop hike this year instead of my preferred itinerary of a point-to-point hike. I’ll be heading out from Escalante in a few days and depending on how things go I’ll return to Escalante three to five weeks later (sooner if it’s bad and I cut corners, longer if I love it and want to do everything!) The planned route will once again include several new-to-me segments as well as some old favorites. Even though I’m not sure where I’ll end up, I look forward to figuring it out as I go and as always… having as much fun as possible.

For those who wish to “follow along” in quasi real time I will once again have my inReach on this trip, so feel free to look for updates via:

https://share.garmin.com/AcrossUtah

(you may need to set date/time to ALL in order to see new content)

I might also post updates as I go via my Instagram account when I have a connection — so follow along there if you’d like. Otherwise look for some new content here later this summer. Until then… Cheers! 🌞✌