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Hanging Loose by fricknaley This is a short interpretive trail recently created by the park service that leads to a small, lush riparian oasis parked under the shoulder of a row of buttes overlooking Lake Powell. The route is short and easy to follow. The scenery and colors along the way are fantastic, and the gardens are a neat little place to chill for a while. Cross over the cable lines and follow the cairns out to an old jeep track. Follow this flat section for a short while. It leads out to the formation straight ahead, which you will climb. Jackrabbits go running all over and lizrds scurry about here. There are a couple of trail markers. Soon you will break off to the right away from the track, look for cairns to your right. You now head to and climb up the butte ahead. Follow the cairns up the formation, which greets you with fantastic views out into canyon country. A short scramble across the butte is easy navigated by following an easy cairn network. Green vegetation also starts to follow you along the way. Finally you peak out on the summit of the small butte and wonderful panoramic views over Glen Canyon, the dam, Lake Powell and north/east into canyon country great you. There is a trail sign here. Look down the formation to your right and spot some smaller cairns. Follow them down to the Hanging Gardens, which are tucked up under the shoulder of the ridgeline. An impossibly green oasis sits here, with ferns growing from the undersurface of the ledge. There are small sundunes here and rabbits scrurrying about. A very peaceful place to hang out for a while. Two points of note here: First, you can go exploring all over the place from the gardens, making as long of a trip as you'd like. I went exploring for a while before the sun went down and it was great...HIGHLY recommended. Second, taking this walk near sunset is the best. It brings out some of the most striking colors I have ever seen. The sandstone and sky play off each other amazingly. Check out the Official Route and Triplogs. Leave No Trace and +Add a Triplog after your hike to support this local community.
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WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.
Most recent Triplog Review
Hanging Gardens - Page
The first leg of my wife and I's trip to Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (GSENM), was a stop in Page to check out the Hanging Gardens. The trail starts at parking, so a roundtrip will be about .3 miles longer round trip, with a round trip distance closer to two miles than one. Not a big deal to most of us, but fair warning to the elderly or those who, like my wife, have bad feet. It was very warm, and incredibly windy, but she was a trooper. (My comment to her was that Page is a giant sand dune being slowly blown into Utah.) Truth be told, I was kind of disappointed by the "gardens", as it was only a small section of unflowering green, and hardly moist at all. Oh well, it was a good way to stretch the legs after the long drive from Phoenix. (Btw, 89T is a pretty darn nice road; hope they make it permanent.)
Unfortunately, no pictures, for reasons which will be explained in a future triplog.
I do remember seeing a smiley face etched in some rock, not too far from the trailhead. My comment was "The ancient Hohokam were a happy people." Do me a favor, and laugh at the caption for my deceased photo ...
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p.s. Total trip time unknown due to Garmin stripping time data from saved tracks. (Say what!?)
Unfortunately, no pictures, for reasons which will be explained in a future triplog.
I do remember seeing a smiley face etched in some rock, not too far from the trailhead. My comment was "The ancient Hohokam were a happy people." Do me a favor, and laugh at the caption for my deceased photo ...
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p.s. Total trip time unknown due to Garmin stripping time data from saved tracks. (Say what!?)
2013-09-26 kingsnake
