This trip ended up being four teachers suffering from severe pandemic burnout, and a serious lack of vitamin D. Bullet Canyon is one of the more popular hikes coming off Cedar Mesa in S.E. Utah, and for good reason. There are several well preserved cliff dwellings including Jailhouse Ruin and the Perfect Kiva, along with numerous granaries and lots of petroglyphs and pictographs. The hike itself is interesting and strenuous enough even without all the archaeology. We decided to spend the night in the canyon near Jailhouse Ruin so we carried big backpacks. We also saw a lot of day hikers. You can definitely cover more mileage with only a daypack, but this is a strenuous hike either way. Give yourself plenty of time for side trips. This is the advantage of backpacking in over day hiking - more time to explore. However, this is a very fragile environment so practice minimum impact camping and travelling. It is easy to observe the damage that has been done by too many people using too many different trails.
Even though the southwest is currently in a severe drought, we still encountered a few pools of water in the bottom of the canyon. In early May the daytime temperatures hovered around 80 degrees. That feels pretty hot when you're hiking up hill and there is no shade in sight. By June the temps will be hitting in the 90s and possibly hotter. Still possible to get out early and late in the day, but the midday sun will be brutal! Don't count on finding water down in the canyon (like I did). Carry a little more than you think you'll need for the whole hike.
We started hiking on Saturday around 10:30 in the morning, and took our sweet time. Teaching via Zoom calls doesn't do wonders for your fitness level. Needless to say none of us was in a big hurry. Plus, it was nice to have some actual conversations not mediated by some form of technology. Found a nice little campsite underneath some juniper trees a short distance from Jailhouse Ruin. This made for a fine evening of exploring, looking for rock art, shootin' the breeze and even a little tequila thanks to our good friend Russ. When you go hiking with Chris, you have to get him to give a little lesson on the bow drill method of fire starting. Not an easy skill to master but definitely worthwhile. Finally, I'd like to thank Phil who we can always count on to get us organized and out into the wild.
Thanks for a great trip guys!
Even though the southwest is currently in a severe drought, we still encountered a few pools of water in the bottom of the canyon. In early May the daytime temperatures hovered around 80 degrees. That feels pretty hot when you're hiking up hill and there is no shade in sight. By June the temps will be hitting in the 90s and possibly hotter. Still possible to get out early and late in the day, but the midday sun will be brutal! Don't count on finding water down in the canyon (like I did). Carry a little more than you think you'll need for the whole hike.
We started hiking on Saturday around 10:30 in the morning, and took our sweet time. Teaching via Zoom calls doesn't do wonders for your fitness level. Needless to say none of us was in a big hurry. Plus, it was nice to have some actual conversations not mediated by some form of technology. Found a nice little campsite underneath some juniper trees a short distance from Jailhouse Ruin. This made for a fine evening of exploring, looking for rock art, shootin' the breeze and even a little tequila thanks to our good friend Russ. When you go hiking with Chris, you have to get him to give a little lesson on the bow drill method of fire starting. Not an easy skill to master but definitely worthwhile. Finally, I'd like to thank Phil who we can always count on to get us organized and out into the wild.
Thanks for a great trip guys!
Checking out Jailhouse Ruin.
The first drop-off descending into Bullet Canyon.
Jailhouse Ruin:
Symbols painted above Jailhouse (there is an upper level to this ruin). Could these white circles have been some sort of sign? We saw some others further up canyon, also up high and very visible.
This is a cool little ruin with a small spring dripping down from an alcove above.
I was very pleased to find this water. I remembered this spot from another trip we made about 5 years ago. After passing through a filter, it tasted sooo good!
Chris honing his wilderness skills . . .