Tuesday, May 15, 2018

A Hike Through Hunter Canyon

Gopher Flats
Moab, Ut
May 10, 2018

Hunter Canyon is one of those special places Joe and I love this time of year.  This amazing 3 mile out and back trail offers a bit of everything...a twisting canyon, towering sandstone cliffs, burbling water, gnarly cottonwood trees, and lots of wildflowers in May.  It is mostly flat with lots of creek crossings and a little rock scrambling over fallen boulders.  Cottonwood trees and towering canyon walls provide lots of shade. 


This day we were on trail at 8:00am just as the sun was filtering into the canyon.  


Hunter Canyon Arch is barely visible... 
 ...look for it about 1/2 mile into the canyon.
Water in the desert is a real treat making this one of our favorite hikes.  

Springtime in the desert offers an abundance of colors.
Fairy Trumpet Flowers
Prickly Pear Cactus
Yellow Salsify 
Desert Mallow 
Tamarisk


Aster
And we saw our first Sego Lily for the year.  It is Utah's state flower.
I hope if you are ever in Moab, you add Hunter Canyon to your list of things to do. 


Female Cottonwood trees produce tiny red blooms that are followed by masses of seeds with a cottony covering. 




A lot of the Cottonwood trees in the canyon are very old, knotty, and gnarly.  Do you see the lizard ?
Some of the cliff walls had seeping water and gardens.  The trail hugged the walls for awhile. 


















 Well, until next time, take care and...





















































































































HAPPY TRAILS !

13 comments:

  1. What a lovely hike! All those flowers and the water too...icing on the cake!

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  2. A wonderful looking hike and excellent pictures as well. What a fun day.

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  3. I don't recall ever being in the West in the spring to experience green and blooms.

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    1. It’s wonderful Larry...you should definitely give it a try!

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  4. This is always an enjoyable hike. I love that there is water at various spots along the trail. How sweet that you had so many flowers blooming!

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    1. There were sooooo many flowers Pam, I couldn’t post them all!

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  5. Great to see that Spring has come to your desert!

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    1. It’s so pretty here Jeff! May in Moab is awesome!

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  6. Beautiful blooms on a perfect trail. Every photo is a treat! Love the Desert Mallow over the cactus. Good eye catching that little lizard. The hotter it gets here in Arizona, the fewer we see.

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