Blog

The Fremont River is just on the other side of this wall,  

The ascent starts immediately.

Lots of switchbacks allow a peek at the Fremont River and the entrance road below.  Looking up, the views become better and better.

We reach a place on the trail where we encounter boulders that appear to be remnants from a lava flow.  Indeed, basalt from volcanic eruptions miles and miles to the north have eroded and tumble down through stream beds and slopes.

We reach the junction for Hickman Bridge.  

Glowing in the morning light is the Wingate Formation,  I've needed to learn names of layers  that at one time may have been deposited above the familiar ones at Grand Canyon.  

Let's look at the small things along the way.

Small holes dug by little bugs known as "and lions",  When a hapless ant tumbles own the slope of the sand pit, the antlion gets a fine lunch.

Primrose.

Sandstone eroded in crazy shapes.

Rugged beauty, the trail is about to drop down into a lovely wash.

Easy to follow with trail in the sand; not so easy when we're up on slick rock.

We turn a corner, follow a faint trail over slick rock, and there it is, Hickman Bridge!  It is somewhat difficult to discern in the harsh morning light, however.

I put some other hikers in this shot to give some scale to the size of the Bridge.

The wash below the bridge is really pretty.  One enterprising cottonwood tree has found a reliable source of water.

And here we are under Hickman Bridge.

The morning is already heating up, so find a shady slab of slick rock and have a snack!

There is a loop at the end of this trail that encircles the Bridge.  Enjoy the rest of the trail, then follow your steps back to the parking lot.