Day 4: Rest day, Red Hollow hike

May 11, 2022

Today is a rest day in Orderville, Utah. I got up at 11 and ate lunch at the cafe 1 block away. I wandered around town a little bit. There isn't much to see and I was surprised how few historical exhibits and signs are in town. I expected Orderville to be more like Bluff, Utah which heavily promotes its pioneer history.

History archive run by Daughters of Utah Pioneers. The building is a replica of an 1887 public school.

The only church in Orderville. Not the typical LDS church architecture. Looks more like a Baptist church.

Graffiti on cliffs high above Orderville.

At 1:30 PM I pedaled a mile uphill to the unmarked Red Hollow trailhead. The trailhead appears to be on property owned by Pacific Power. Red Hollow is dry. No annual or seasonal water flow. But there is plenty of erosion from intermittent storm runoff.

I walked about a mile on loose sand to get to the entrance to the slot canyon. The canyon gets steadily narrower, then suddenly becomes extremely narrow.

I was able to walk about 500 feet into the slot. Steady uphill, sometimes stepping over big fallen rocks. It's quite an enchanting experience. Hard to believe this awesome slot canyon is only 2 miles from Orderville and has no sign at the trailhead.

This is 2 miles from the middle of Orderville.

I turned around at the point where you have to shimmy between the walls in an extremely narrow section. It's possible to scramble all the way to the top of the slot and beyond, but I wasn't motivated to go any farther. This is a rest day and I don't want to ruin the tour by getting hurt.

My turnaround point. Too narrow for walking.

I spent a lot of time sitting in the slot canyon and admiring the view. No hurry.

The slot canyon has many places where the top overhangs the undercut bottom. Kind of like being in a cave. The temperature was only about 70F but I can imagine how this slot canyon would be a cool refuge on a hot afternoon.

Looking straight up from inside the slot canyon.

Back at the motel room I had chores to do such as hand wash clothes, shave, etc. The wind was blowing so strongly that the windows rattled. For dinner I pedaled to Archies which recently moved from a large but decrepit old building to a pair of fancy new trailers. They have picnic tables with a good view but I carried my dinner back to the motel room. I don't want blowing sand in my dinner.

Dinner was a "Utah Philly" from Archies. They recently moved from a decrepit old building to two fancy new trailers.

Today was a great rest day. I needed the rest to prepare for tomorrow, the biggest climb of the tour. The slot canyon hike was a fun adventure but still easy enough for this to qualify as a rest day.

Distance: 5.5 mi. (8.8 km)
Average Speed: 7 mph (11.2 km/h)
Ascent/Descent: +334/-334 ft. (+102/-102 m)
Hiking: 3 mi. (4.8 km)

Today's ride: 6 miles (10 km)
Total: 125 miles (201 km)

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Scott AndersonWonderful photos from the slot canyon. I’m sure you know, but just in case - keep aware of potential flash flood conditions.
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