Sheiks Canyon
A quieter Grand Gulch tributary holding the Green Mask pictograph panel and the Yellow House ruin, the latter close enough to the trailhead to be a half hour errand.
County Road 250 off Highway 261 gets any vehicle to the trailhead in good weather, but the road turns impassable just past it, so park and walk. Yellow House sits below a dryfall about five minutes down the social trail from the end of the old road and is impossible to miss. Green Mask is at the Grand Gulch junction, roughly a 7 mile out and back, or you can link it with Bullet Canyon for a long loop closer to 10 miles. Road Trip Ryan reports the social trail is much improved since 2014 but still strenuous and cairn dependent; if you lose the line the day gets much harder. Small springs run until the Grand Gulch junction, where there is a reliable one. Day use pass for a day hike, reserved backpacking permit if you carry on into Grand Gulch overnight.
Logistics
| Manager | BLM Monticello Field Office, Bears Ears National Monument |
|---|---|
| Permit | Grand Gulch tributary within the Cedar Mesa day-use permit area: 5 dollars per person per day, 10 dollars per person per week, or 40 dollars per vehicle per year, self-pay at trailhead or Kane Gulch Ranger Station. |
| Technical | longest 0 ft |
| Season | Fall;Winter;Spring |
| Coordinates | 37.4491, -109.9833 |
Sources
- permit: https://www.blm.gov/programs/recreation/permits-and-passes/lotteries-and-permit-systems/utah/cedarmesa
- manager: https://www.blm.gov/office/monticello-field-office
- desc: https://climb-utah.com/CM/sheiks.htm
- notes: https://www.roadtripryan.com/go/t/utah/cedar-mesa/sheiks-canyon
- coordinates: ropewiki CSV export, Coords column
- heroPhoto: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Green_Mask_Ruins_Pictographs_-_panoramio.jpg