Our original plan was to join Jim Brown here to explore areas of Grand Staircase-Escalante and Vermilion Cliffs as a team. Now that Storm and I are on our own, we are not sure which trails to try. With two Jeeps on a ride we have a backup if something goes horribly wrong. Alone, we search for trails where we might see other Jeeps crawling about. Unfortunately the area is so vast and the riders so limited right now, we are more likely to see no one on the trails. We pack an overnight kit each time we head out.
A Sandy Ride to see Peekaboo
Wandering aimlessly on Hwy 89 north of Kanab, we spot an arrow pointing to the Peekaboo Trailhead. We google it at lunch and learn it is a slot canyon about 4 miles down a sandy trail. We arrive at the trailhead where I find a kiosk with a map posted. Signs all around the trail entrance warn to air down tires and use 4WD not AWD.
I snap a couple of pictures of the map just in case and we start airing down our tires. Once on the trail, we first tow out a Jeep Patriot. The young man driving did not believe me when I told him that fully aired stock street tires would not handle deep sand. Guess I don’t have enough off road creds to be convincing. Once we drag him free of the sinking sand yards from the trailhead, we once again head toward the canyon. Because the trail markings are very vague, I am extremely glad I have my photo of the trail map.
Forest Road 1025 to House Rock Road
The next day we strike out on Forest Road 1025, a dirt road to loop down toward Hwy 89A and the Kaibab National Forest. Judging from the ruts on this road (see picture above), we will not travel off road in the rain. We check out the Condor Release site, but no Condor’s are up today. Strong winds may have grounded their flight ops.
This reminds of our visit to Peekaboo Canyon in Oct 2018. After airing down our Jeep, we started down the slightly damp sandy road where we discovered a Swedish couple who were stuck in the sand in a borrowed truck. We struggled for a while attempting to pull him out before learning that it really wasn’t in 4 wheel drive!! As they headed back to town, we decided to wait for another opportunity to visit Peekaboo with an additional jeep. Four miles of sand and no cell service was more than we wanted to deal with.
Enjoyed your pictures! Beautiful spot.
Hi Jane! I sure wish you and Leyman had been with us! Luckily Peekaboo is a pretty popular trail and we saw enough folks go in that we felt OK trying it. I was really glad I took a picture of the map though – there were no real trail indications once we got in there. I can see it would be easy to get lost. If the guy we helped had 4-wheel drive on that car, he was not using it (or did not know how to use it) – only one tire spun helplessly in the sand as he tried to reverse out 🙂
Thanks for commenting!!
Absolutely BEAUTIFUL from the little that I saw in this note. Reminds me of a “Peak a GONE Boo” I was hoping you would film the narrow walkway that was visible, but if you did you probably would have never made it back:>) Sure glad you made it in and out OK and I would be a little worried too without a back up. Did you spend the night in the jeep or get a room before starting the trail? Rock formations are really pretty, thanks for sharing. GOD BLESS
JD
Jim
No, this trail turned out to be very popular. Only 4 miles in and much faster in sand than rock crawling. We walked the entire slot canyon, but forgot to film it, sorry – a very short hike and we made it back out in time for dinner!