"Utah's National Parks" by Ron Adkinson and published by Wilderness Press

Trip 12 - Alcove Spring Trail to Taylor Canyon  

Distance:                 10.8 miles round trip

Elevation Change:    42850/5700 feet

Suited For:               Moderate

Difficulty:                Moderate

Hazards:                  Steep Drop-offs; no water; little shade

Introduction:    This route is a good choice for backpackers in the island district.  The descent into trail canyon is slightly more gradual than the descent on most other trails, and once in the depths of Trail Canyon hikers are free explore its broad basin and lonely canyons, where there are innumerable potential camping areas, although most are exposed. 

June 17, 2003

"the descent...is slightly more gradual??"  Gee, I can't wait to see the steep ones!!  1500' in the first 10th of a mile is OK on the way down, but murder on the way up after a 10 mile hike.  I just kept my head down and tried to muscle my way up when I missed a trail marker and strayed from the path.  I only climbed for a couple of minutes until I stopped short within 20 feet of a mountain sheep who was staring at me curiously.  I had visions of the last time I came this close to some mountain animals in Banff where I was too exhausted to move and we just stared at each other for hours waiting for the other to make a move.  I didn't want to get head-butted to the bottom, so I bid a hasty retreat back to the trail and didn't see him again.  Otherwise the trail is very boring until the end as you can see in the pictures then  another boring 5 miles back.

Here's the pics (Click on the picture to see full size):

These are low res pictures.  I can send you higher quality pictures if you want them