Some Questions and Answers
If I don't answer your question in this document or in any of the others, or you can't find the answer, please feel free to email me at cwillett03@gmail.com.
- Where did you go? We started our trip at the Lower Hackberry Trailhead and hiked north up Hackberry Canyon. We scrambled out of Round Valley Draw and hiked west on jeep and 2WD roads to the Paria River. From there we hiked south down the Paria river, through the Box, to where it meets the Hackberry. We then hiked north back to the truck.
- How far did you hike? Hard to tell, but both Mags and I thought the distance was around 60 miles.
- Are there any trails? Nope. However, there are some common routes and these are sometimes cairned. If you don't know what a cairn is, you should go elsewhere to hike.
- Did you see anyone? Nope. At the end we spotted some hikers out at the trailhead for the Box, but they were barely visible.
- Who is this Mags character? See his website for more details.
- What guidebooks are there? Kelsey's guidebook, Hiking and Exploring the Paria River is pretty standard. I think it is close to worthless for trip planning, though after you've done the trip it makes a lot more sense. There are other guides out there as well, but I haven't used them. I'd get a hold of the USGS quads for the area and use those as your primary planning tool.
- How do you get to the trailhead?Drive east on US89 for about 50 miles. Just past the road for the Whitehouse campground and BLM visitor center, make a left and drive north on Cottonwood Wash Road. The road would have been torture for a low clearance vehicle, but Mags' 2WD truck managed no problem. Drive about 16 miles to the trailhead, which is marked.
How's the water? Awful, but more or less plentiful. Don't even bother filtering it. The Hackberry and Paria are both very silty, though you don't notice it too much when you're drinking it. There is water for about 10 miles in Hackberry, and then the next water you'll encounter is in the Pariah, about 20-25 miles or so away. The Paria flows year round.
- Are there better route options? Definitely. With a bit more time you could hike the length of Round Valley Draw, which is supposed to be spectacular, rather than scrambling out near its start. With another few days you could explore multiple side canyons. Our route between Hackberry and Paria canyons could have been better as well. At the least, we should have dropped down Little Dry Valley. But I was carrying the maps and didn't think to try it.
- What is the season for hiking? Spring and fall. Or be like a touron and go in July when it will be near 100 degrees.
- What kind of camera did you use? A Nikon D60 with a Nikkor 18-70 lens.
- What kind of permits do I need? None. There is a form to fill out at the trailhead.
- Why do you write so much? I don't have anything better to do.
- Why don't you like GoLite? I don't like the way they do business and there are lots of good, independent gear makers out there. Why buy from Wal-mart when you can get something better at a lower cost from another hiker? GoLite started out right, then decided that they wanted to grow. Quality and innovation suffered as a result.
- Who is this Abbey person? I made him up hoping that someone would ask.
- Who is this Abbey person? I made him up hoping that someone would ask.