Upper Red Butte
Categories: Zion
There are a couple of places around here that fall into the category of gifts that keep on giving. Red Butte Wilderness is one of them. I’ve explored it numerous times in the past. It’s also a fun place to do some Arch Hunting. Below are some pictures from yet another trip, this time exploring the upper plateau of the area. I had intended on making a loop all along the upper shelf but when I got to the end I could not see the route down that I had been looking at from below, without doing some difficult brushy downclimbing. So, I walked all the way back, but that was fine, as the light was a lot better in the areas I started from earlier in the day. Enjoy the pictures.
Red Butte Peak
Exploring on the second floor.
Another arch I’ve never seen before. If you look through this one you can see yet another arch or tunnel behind it. That was too intriguing to ignore so i made a major detour trying to get a view from the other side.
Just an informational shot, this was the best view I could get of the other side of that second hole, without falling off the edge. In the back of the alcove you can see the wall is broken through. There was no way to get down without ropes and no way to get up from below.
A pretty unusual, multi layered stack of rocks.Â
Delicate complexities holding up the top layer of that hoodoo.
Burnt Mountain as seen from the north side of the wilderness.
Some interesting buried rocks on the north side of Red Butte. I saw a lot of mountain lion tracks on the north end.
There is a bit of a maze near the base of the peak as you have to find your way over several high walls. You can burn some calories in this area climbing up and down steep slopes and ledges that lead to dead ends.
Very nice views.
Looking back at that mazey area. There was a spring back there somewhere.
Some strange little spots. The one on the left is a deep pit with steep slopes. Reminded me of a Sarlacc Pit. Just a few dozen feet beyond this is a huge cliff, so I assume it is somehow connected, but I could not see any light down there.
The South face has a nice pine grove at its base.
This is as close a view as i’ve had of the arch below the summit
A very spring green Smith Mesa. I’ve never seen it so green.
A few more strange little places.
Not being able to get down the way I wanted really ate up a lot of time. A barely got off the mesa before sunset.
A very cool rock tower with an almost honeycomb base.
It’s not a big space but I still haven’t been over to that area.
