The sequel . . .
Last spring (2025) a couple friends (Jerry and Jim) invited me to join them for some hikes in Utah. The highlights of that trip were Angel’s Landing and Buckskin Gulch – both were fun adventures (featured on previous posts). Jim couldn’t make it this year, so it was just Jerry and I. Jerry, who has many years of experience hiking in Utah (I do not), suggested we explore the Bears Ears National Monument – an area in southeast Utah slightly larger than Glacier Park recognized for its cultural, archaeological, and natural significance. The monument features cliff sites, Pueblo dwellings, rock art, and the iconic Bears Ears buttes.

The main event . . .
Our priority was to do a 3-day, 2-night backpacking trip called “The Fish and Owl Canyons Loop”, a 17-mile trek that starts near the head of one canyon and ends at the head of the other. We left Helena on Monday (5/4/26) at 5:30 am, and made the 790-mile drive to Blanding, Utah where we spent the night in a motel. Tuesday morning it was a 45-minute drive to the trailhead – we were on the trail by 9 am. (see link below for directions to trailhead, etc.) Wow – what an amazing landscape! Walking and camping below the stunning 500 foot walls of colorful Cedar Mesa Sandstone for three days was pretty dang cool. Along the way we were treated to a variety of weathered textures, detached towers, dry waterfalls and impressive undercuts – unlike anything I’ve experienced before (see link to photos below).

What’s missing? . . .
Two things we didn’t see much of were water and wildlife – except for lizards! Due to a lack of winter precipitation we were limited to filtering water from stagnant pools near the upper 4-5 miles of the two canyons – not ideal. In fact, there was a stretch of several miles in the middle of the loop that was completely dry. As for wildlife, we saw an occasional songbird, three harmless whipsnakes, and MANY dozens of side-blotched lizards scurrying across the trail.

Recreate, relax, repeat . . .
Although the loop is 17 miles, we took several side-trips, including one 3-4 mile walk to some Pueblo ruins south of the Fish-Owl confluence. With all of our exploring the mileage ended up being 27 miles over the three-day journey. Jerry and I got back to Blanding late Thursday afternoon in time to shower, eat, and relax with a couple Coronas (lime included) as we watched the original True Grit movie and planned our adventures for the next day.

We’re burning daylight . . .
We did two hikes on Friday – the first was a 5-mile hike to the Citadel and the second a 3-mile hike to Moonhouse Ruins. Once again both hikes were incredible, but the 9-mile road from the highway to the Moonhouse trailhead is awful! Jerry’s Ford F-150 made it, but the 9-mile segment that inlcuded several stretches of solid very uneven rock took us 50 minutes. I wouldn’t recommend driving it unless you have a Jeep or something similar. For the final day of Utah Part II we drove west of the Bears Ears Monument and enjoyed a couple hours of wandering through the strange sandstone formations at Goblin State Park. After spending the night in Green River, we drove back to Helena on Sunday. Great trip – I’m already looking forward to a possible part III!

See links below for the photo tours.

Below: This map marks hikes that have been featured on bigskywalker.com so far, including several in Glacier Park – Select full screen to expand, zoom in for more detail, or click on a marker for a link to the post.

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