SILENCE OF THE CANYON

All American Man, a pictograph created some 700 years ago, with a shield design incorporating red, white, and blue (or black) pigments, and made by an Ancestral Puebloan or Fremont artist, Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Salt Creek Canyon, located in Utah’s Canyonlands National Park, is where my wife and I chose to backpack in October of 2017. Our last backpack in Canyonlands occurred in October of 1976: 41 years ago! It was wonderful to return to this land of red slickrock, golden cottonwoods, and starry, starry nights. This time, we were enchanted by the evidence of the Ancestral Puebloan People of the region. Their houses, granaries, potsherds, and pictographs provided a spiritual presence and brought the canyon alive in our imagination. 

There are trail guidebooks and blogs that provide detailed descriptions of the hike, so I decided instead to simply provide a visual look at the canyon through my photography and to use a few word impressions to give a sense of the experience.

Karen Rentz climbing a route through a sandstone fin within Salt Creek Canyon

10,000 years ago, a Raven chuckles to its mate and young as they play in the air currents along the canyon walls. A Camel glances upward at the sound, then resumes munching a mouthful of Sagebrush, vaguely wondering why it hasn’t seen any other Camels for years. Wind quietly flutters the Cottonwood leaves as a Coyote howls in the distance.

800 years ago, Ancestral Puebloan women chatter and giggle along the creek while filling clay pots with water. Children play hide-and-seek among the sagebrush and rocks, shouting suddenly upon spotting a companion. Turkeys gobble at the irritation of being packed together in the village’s pen. Men chip arrowheads from chunks of chalcedony, creating sharp percussive sounds. Then a sudden shout to ascend to the cliff fortress, as strangers are spotted creeping along Salt Creek!

700 years on, the sound of cattle lowing and spurs-a-jangling occasionally brings the canyon alive, as ranchers run cows in the sagebrush. Picture the clouds of dust during the roundup as cowboys herd the cattle along ancient trails. Listen to the crackle of pinyon logs in the evening campfire while cowboys scrape their tin plates; a Great Horned Owl hoots in the distance.

60 years ago, a jeep engine roars as a uranium prospecter shifts into low gear while descending steep red slickrock. He gets out and tests the sandstone with his rock pick, then tosses the rocks aside with a clatter. He camps tonight near the stream, the soft gurgling reassuring him. Then a wildcat screams from the cliffs above.

In October of 2017, we set up camp as the last warm sun glows on the cliffs. I use a rock to pound the tentstakes into clay, while the gas stove hisses as water starts to boil for our evening meal. After dinner, all is quiet as we snuggle in a warm sleeping bag. Two Coyotes howl back and forth in the canyon. There are no human sounds in the distance under the vast panorama of stars.

Dead tree among the colorful sandstone formations within Salt Creek Canyon

Here is a selection of other photographs from the trip. Double Click on one to see them larger and with captions.

Hand Print at Big Ruin, an Ancestral Pueblo village site within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Scrapers made of chalcedony or a related quartz rock left by the Ancestral Puebloan people living at Big Ruin within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Salt Creek, a perennial stream that is laden with fine sediment and bordered with algae, but is drinkable, within Upper Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Sandstone Formations near Big Ruin, an Ancestral Puebloan village site within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Wedding Ring Arch within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Desert varnish runs down the cliff above Big Ruin, an Ancestral Pueblo village site within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Dry corncobs that are some 700 years old at Big Ruin, an Ancestral Pueblo village site within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Karen Rentz with tall Rubber Rabbitbrush, Ericameria nauseoa, along the trail within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Blue Gramma, Bouteloua gracilis, seed heads of a native grass growing within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Fragile cryptobiotic soil crust within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Shedded rattlesnake skin with potsherds left by the Ancestral Puebloan people living at Big Ruin within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Sediment in water near campsites SC1 and SC2 within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Mule Deer antlers used as a trophy decoration in Kirk’s Cabin in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Yucca, Yucca spp., growing with sagebrush and cottonwoods along the trail through Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Ruins of a group of masonry structures made by the Ancestral Puebloan people some 700 years ago within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Claretcup, Echinocereus triglochidiatus, forming a large mound of prickly cactus stems in Canyonlands National Park’s Salt Creek Canyon, Utah, USA

Mano and metate used for grinding corn some 700 years ago at Big Ruin, an Ancestral Pueblo village site within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Potsherds in black-on-white style left by the Ancestral Puebloan people living at Big Ruin within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Moonlight illuminating the rock formations, with the Milky Way in the sky, viewed from campsite within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Ancestral Puebloan House with a Mule Deer, Odocoileus hemionus, antler within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

16°F morning at campsite within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Trail winding through Prickly Pear Cactus within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Sunset glow on sandstone formations, viewed from Camp SC3 within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Ruins of masonry building created by Ancestral Puebloan people within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Mule Deer, Odocoileus hemionus, antler dropped under Gambel Oak trees in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Autumn Gambel Oak, Quercus gambelii, leaves and shadows within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Starry, starry, night camping within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Ancient pictographs created by the Ancestral Puebloan people within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Fremont’s Cottonwood, Populus fremontii, turning gold in autumn, with the cooler tones of sagebrush and rabbitbrush, Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Kirk’s Cabin, built as a seasonal shelter by a rancher, with adzed logs and a fireplace, in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Sunset glow on sandstone formations, viewed from Camp SC3 within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Dead tree and night sky in campsite SC 1 in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Dramatic Rock Formations in Salt Creek Canyon within The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Squash plant that has persisted through reseeding for some 800 years, with a masonry granary once used by Ancestral Puebloan people within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Prickly Pear Cactus, Opuntia sp., thriving in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Handprints made over 800 years ago by Ancestral Puebloan people on the sandstone wallls of Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Old wood wagon wheel used for bringing in supplies to Kirk’s Cabin, an early ranching outpost, in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Slickrock Landscape in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Old wood wagon wheel used for bringing in supplies to Kirk’s Cabin, an early ranching outpost, in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Backpackers resting under a rock overhang within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Slickrock Landscape in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Kirk’s Cabin, built as a seasonal shelter by a rancher, with adzed logs and a sandstone chimney, in Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Stylized pictograph, one of a group known as The Four Faces, created by an Ancestral Puebloan or Fremont artist, within Salt Creek Canyon in The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Utah, USA

Canyonlands National Park’s Salt Creek Canyon was a quiet place during our four day backpacking trip. In fact, we didn’t see anyone for 2 1/2 days during the hike, making it the perfect wilderness experience.  It is a place suffused with remnants of the past, as well as spectacular slickrock formations and evidence of wildlife.

When we visited in October, we started out at the Cathedral Butte Trailhead and hiked in about as far as there was potable water. It is named Salt Creek for a reason: there are alkali salts suspended in the water that quickly clogged our filter, so we had to depend upon iodine tablets and boiling water in order to get drinkable water. No problem if you are prepared.

October was colder than we expected, with the three clear nights reaching down to 16°F, 13°F, and the last night at 11°F. Our down sleeping bags were perfect; don’t expect to be warm with summer-weight bags. The Milky Way and moonlight were wonderful in the canyon, and it was great to climb into the fluffy sleeping bag after our stargazing sessions.

Black Bears are frequently sighted in the canyon, so the National Park Service now requires that hikers carry bearproof canisters. What would the wilderness be without a few predators to make us wary?

Salt Creek Canyon is filled with evidence of prior inhabitants. Please, leave everything untouched so that our descendents can enjoy the magic of this spiritual place.

The National Park Service requires backpacking permits for Salt Creek Canyon, and there are four campsites that are assigned when hikers get their permits. Go to the Canyonlands National Park website for more information about the park and backpacking permits.

For more information about my photography go to Lee Rentz Photography.