Horseshoe Canyon (Canyonlands)

We left the greatest campsite ever this morning and headed for the north end of Lake Powell (Hite Marina).  We were going to put in the canoe and paddle up into the Colorado River, but the winds were coming up and the waves were too high.  We drove across the bridge to the other side, but the winds just kept getting stronger.  We decided to forget the lake for today and drive on up to the last area of Canyonlands that we wanted to see--Horseshoe Canyon on the west side.  This area is where the Great Gallery of Indian rock art is located--walls of life-sized paintings, some that are supposed to resemble alien-like creatures.

Well, to get to Horseshoe Canyon, you have to take 32 miles of dirt road.  This would be an adventure on a normal day, but add in the major wind (45-mph gusts) and blowing sand from the dunes along the way, and it was more work than enjoyment getting here.  The ranger on duty when we arrived, said that it was 750 feet of vertical and went "straight down over the side" of the canyon.  Because of the high winds, I chickened out on taking the hike because we only had about 3-1/2 hours of daylight left for the 7-mile round-trip hike (the ranger had also said to allow 4-6 hours for the hike).

So, we decided to hole up in the van to stay out of the blowing sand and eat some dinner.  After we ate, we decided to just go check out the first part of the trail so that we would get at least a little bit of exercise for the day.  We walked about 50 minutes (no, the wind didn't let up) and then got back in the van for the night.  The winds did start to let up as the sun went down, so maybe we will have a calm day to enjoy the hike tomorrow.  Keep your fingers crossed!