Udink
03-25-2007, 02:34 PM
This isn't really a "classic" type of scenic hike, but if you're into cowboys & injuns, it's a pretty neat place. Sid's Mountain is in the northern part of the San Rafael Swell. You can see it from the Wedge Overlook, to the southwest across the Little Grand Canyon. It's not really a mountain, but more like a plateau that's surrounded on all sides by huge canyons cut through Carmel, Navajo, Kayenta, and Wingate sandstone. There are only about three or four places where you can gain access to the top of the plateau throughout its roughly 40-mile circumference.
We hiked in near the "horse trail" access point from the northwest. We descended into North Salt Wash, crossed a trickle of water in the bottom, and followed a 1/2-mile long ridgeline up the other side and onto the top of the Sid's Mountain plateau. From the top of the ridgeline, we hiked cross-country for a short distance before meeting up with the well-worn horse trail, and followed that for most of the rest of the hike. On the way back to the trailhead, we followed the horse trail down into North Salt Wash just for a change of scenery. Our round-trip hiking distance was 14.2 miles, and total time on the trail was about 10.5 hours.
There's an old cabin up there on stilts, and the remains of a much older cabin nearby. There are also a lot of petroglyphs, stone chippings, and arrow heads in a few places. Chances are you'll see people on horseback up there on weekends, but probably not any other hikers. Since it's a wilderness study area, and it's so difficult to gain access to the top unless you know the way, it's a pretty quiet place.
Ok, enough with the chatter and on to the pictures.
We hiked in near the "horse trail" access point from the northwest. We descended into North Salt Wash, crossed a trickle of water in the bottom, and followed a 1/2-mile long ridgeline up the other side and onto the top of the Sid's Mountain plateau. From the top of the ridgeline, we hiked cross-country for a short distance before meeting up with the well-worn horse trail, and followed that for most of the rest of the hike. On the way back to the trailhead, we followed the horse trail down into North Salt Wash just for a change of scenery. Our round-trip hiking distance was 14.2 miles, and total time on the trail was about 10.5 hours.
There's an old cabin up there on stilts, and the remains of a much older cabin nearby. There are also a lot of petroglyphs, stone chippings, and arrow heads in a few places. Chances are you'll see people on horseback up there on weekends, but probably not any other hikers. Since it's a wilderness study area, and it's so difficult to gain access to the top unless you know the way, it's a pretty quiet place.
Ok, enough with the chatter and on to the pictures.