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| | | Starlight Arch and Calico No-Go, UT | | | |
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Starlight Arch and Calico No-Go, UT
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| Hiking | 14.66 Miles |
2,827 AEG |
| | Hiking | 14.66 Miles | 6 Hrs 11 Mns | | 2.59 mph |
| 2,827 ft AEG | 31 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | The plan for the day was to hike up to Starlight Arch and at least check out the route to Calico Peak nearby. I didn't have much detail on either one--there were a few triplogs for Starlight Arch, but no one had actually completed the hike up to the arch, and HAZ didn't have anything on Calico Peak, but I found a route on another site. I wasn't sure how far I'd get on either--a big chunk of the hike is through a wash that stays muddy after rain, and with the amount of water at The Wave a few days ago, I figured it might be impassably wet.
I got a later start than usual, and a group of two had signed in at the trailhead register earlier that morning headed for Starlight. I hiked west a short distance on the dirt roads and immediately got a boot covered in mud a few inches deep...not a good sign. I entered the wash as it zig-zags to the northwest and saw fresh footprints, presumably from the pair headed for Starlight. I did some slipping and sliding in the mud and had to stop occasionally to scrape off my boots, but it wasn't too bad, and I took it as a good sign that the prints continued.
There were a couple of forks in the narrow canyon that could be confusing without a GPS route, but it was generally easy to follow, and as the walls opened up a little more, the formation with the arch came into view. Just as I saw the big cairn marking exit from the wash to start up the ridge, I saw the two people who'd been ahead of me and passed them on the way up.
It was a steep, loose climb, then leveled off a little as I hiked north toward the steepest part of the route, heading up to a ridge east of the arch and gaining ~1,000' over a mile--rocky and very steep, but not too brushy. On top, I passed the unremarkable Peak 6216, then headed south of the arch first. Views on that side weren't great, so I went around to the north, where they were much better, and it reminded me of Secret Canyon arch in Sedona [ photo ] . There are a few rock outcroppings on that side with nice views of the arch, plus more unobstructed views of the beautiful surroundings. [ youtube video ]
As I headed down, I crossed paths with the couple I'd seen earlier, and we chatted briefly. They were from Seattle and were surprised, like I was, that anyone else was hiking to the arch today. I went down the same way, and about a mile from the trailhead turned north into another drainage/canyon going N/NW toward Calico. Very similar approach to Starlight--a narrow, muddy canyon with twists and turns and a few forks, then a very steep climb on loose, unstable ground up to a ridge. From there, more rocky terrain as I approached the south side of the mountain, which had bands of multi-colored layers down low, red cliffs, and some lighter rock near the summit.
I ended up turning around ~1/2 a mile and ~400 vertical feet short of the peak. There were afternoon storm chances in the forecast, the wind was picking up, and darker clouds were starting to gather. I didn't know how long that last half mile would take--the toughest part was still ahead--and I didn't want to end up hiking out through a slot canyon in a storm, so I called it there. The route I was following curved around the west side of the mountain to climb up to the ridgeline, then traversed to the peak on the east side...it had some Battleship Mountain vibes. Disappointing, but with the late start and the forecast, I knew reaching the peak might be a long shot.
I returned the same way and saw two other people along the road on my back to the rainbow mountains near the trailhead. Fun day...the AEG was nothing extreme, but there's not a lot of in-between with this hike--it's either completely flat and easy or steep, loose, rocky off-trail. The arch was cool and Calico Peak is one I'd gladly come back to finish. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
to wind our way thru the steep-banked drainage/arroyo and into areas where the overhanging walls rose up next to you. The occasional gypsum lined banks in both white and turquoise were marvelous as was a lot of the rockery and flora we would see along the way. At times, the dirt route would be muddy (we'd have to employ the Keet Seel quicksand-like walk) and a couple times we hit either a little water or crusted snow.
, we should have gone left (and the drainage was just slightly lower here - per the instructions that say to stay in the lower drainage) but went right as the instructions says the landscape opens up at this point. Well it does on both sides as Sirena and Sarah found out when we came to that point again on the way back and they followed the other (left/west) drainage.
before heading back. The rocks here were stunning. We would discover quite a bit of petrified wood along this slope and the slope to the east of us with the HUGE white rocks. Wendy found the most beautiful piece that had that dark lavender color running through it. I will post a pic of it in my rock collage. On the way back we took a couple short-cuts up and over rather than staying in the drainage. It was steep in some sections but that's what made it FUN! We came across this one little berm that was covered in the fine pale sea foam-colored dirt so we had to stop and get some pics.
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