Thenaturalmedic Adventures
Hello there, and thanks so much for joining us here! You are probably wondering what this podcast is all about? In this podcast, we will talk about all sorts of outdoor adventures, but primarily, for now, we will focus on hiking and backpacking. No other outdoor adventure is so accessible to so many people! So please join us as we talk about how to hike/backpack and learn how to hike any length trail from your local neighborhood parks to those long trails such as the Appalachian and others worldwide! Remember... "in every walk with nature; one receives far more than he seeks... - John Muir " See you on the trail!
Thenaturalmedic Adventures
Exploring Utah's Ashdown Gorge: A Rugged Journey with Craig the Natural Medic
Ready to experience the wild beauty of Utah like never before? Picture yourself navigating the rugged Ashdown Gorge Trail in the Dixie National Forest, braving creek crossings, and camping under the stars near Tom's Head. Join me, Craig the Natural Medic, as I share my firsthand journey through this awe-inspiring landscape, filled with vivid descriptions and practical hiking tips. From the constant challenge of wet feet to the majestic sight of Flanagan Arch, you'll feel like you're right there with me, every step of the way.
In this immersive episode, I recount the highs and lows of my trek, offering invaluable advice for anyone looking to tackle this challenging trail. Discover what gear to pack for wet conditions, how to find the perfect campsite, and the serene beauty of the creekside. Hear about the breathtaking waterfalls that mark the end of the trail and the intriguing rock formations that make this area so special. Whether you're an experienced adventurer or a nature enthusiast seeking inspiration, this episode is your ticket to the unforgettable wonders of Ashdown Gorge. Lace up your boots and let's embark on this captivating journey together!
Hello, it's Craig the Natural Medic. I've done a lot of day hiking. I haven't done a particularly large amount of backpacking in the last year due to work and other reasons. Today I'm in Utah southwest Utah to be exact doing the Ashdown Gorge Trail, which is in the Dixie National Forest, and also some of it overlaps onto the Bureau of Land Management lands in this area and it's also on the edge of National Park Service land which is Cedar Brakes National Monument. According to all trails we'll see if that's true actually it's an eight mile trip. That's out and back, two waterfalls toward the end trying to camp up to where the creeks meet, just a little bit to the downstream of the waterfalls and go from there. So if you're interested to see what happens, you'll probably hear all the flowing water which is right here, and make sure to follow me. See you down the trail.
Speaker 1:Nashdown Gorge just had a lovely lunch, some Uncrustables and some other snacks. Pretty much you can see the water behind me. Pretty much you're walking through the creek. You can see the water behind me Pretty much. You're walking through the creek or by the creek, pretty much the entire trip. It's probably a good idea. I don't know if you can see my feet, but it's a good idea to have either napkin socks and or shoes that you don't mind getting wet and staying wet. You're pretty much going to be wet the entire trip. Prepare yourself for that. You'll be walking in the stream, across the stream, through the stream, multiple times.
Speaker 1:Anyway, it's about four miles to the campsite, so we've got about three miles to go. So far, we've only been walking for about an hour and it's early afternoon, so we've got plenty of time. The weather is great. It's about 82 degrees, nice breeze in the air. It was a little bit windy when we started, but I think this is going to be a nice trick. Okay, take a look at this. Take a look at this. Whoa, it's crazy man. It's crazy man. It's crazy man, it's crazy, that's crazy. Wow.
Speaker 1:Now, if you look up here, follow this wall of the gorge, you can see flanagan arch, hopefully at the very top, where those trees are. Hope you can see it. It's about time to go night and found a campsite just behind what they call Tom's Head, which is a big pinnacle of rock that I'll show you tomorrow, on the banks of the creek here and, amazingly, it's like past 9 o'clock and there's still daylight. That's pretty cool, but it was a long, arduous day. Trail is rated as hard and I would not call it hard, but it definitely is on the harder side of moderate let's put it that way due to all the water crossings and having to go through all the water and there's a lot of rocks in the ghost shape, etc. But tent set up over there about to lay down for the night and talk to you in the morning. Bye. Okay, it's about 9 30 on June 30th 2024.
Speaker 1:Broke camp about 15 minutes ago and headed to the waterfall area. But if you look right here you can see Bobby out there. This little pillar right here is called Tom's Head and it looks more like a head. This angle On the other side, it didn't look like it looks more like a head. This angle From the other side, it didn't look like. This is like a pillar, but it kind of looks like it can make out maybe a mouth and a nose face, maybe he's wearing a hat, I don't know. See what you think?
Speaker 1:We're going to hike down to the waterfalls. There's two waterfalls down here on the other side gorge. See you there, down here on the other side gorge. See you there, all right, when you're taking the side trail to the waterfalls. This is what it looks like. You have this huge bluff here, or part of the gorge, and to the left, which is that way, lake Creek Waterfall. To the right, rattlesnake Creek Waterfall. To the right, rattlesnake Creek Waterfall.
Speaker 1:I think we decided we were going to go to Lake Creek Waterfall first, so let's go check that out. Supposedly, the more impressive of the two is Lake Creek Waterfall. I don't have a size on it. I would estimate or, in this case, guesstimate it's probably about 35 to 40 feet tall, flowing nicely, as you can see. Now we're going to go see Rattlesnake Creek Fall, which I've heard is not as impressive. That's okay, it doesn't take much to impress me. Hopefully you can hear me. This is Rattlesnake Creek Falls. It is, I would say, more impressive than Lake Creek. It's a little taller, flowing a little harder. It seems. Wow, super cool. Let's take a look above the top. Just pan up. Wow, the water is pretty deep right there at the bottom. Now it's time to head out and go back to the beginning of the trail. Okay, the big pillar behind me is called Tom's Head. Just came from the two waterfalls and took a little snack break in front of Tom's Head. Not sure who Tom is or why his head's out here, but here we are.
Speaker 1:I'm back in St George and wanted to give you a summary of the trail experience. Number one don't go on this trail expecting not to get wet. You're going to get wet. One don't go on this trail expecting not to get wet. You're going to get wet Probably 75 to 80% of the time. We were walking in the water up the creek that goes through Ashdown Gorge Not sure of its name right now, for sure Probably Ashdown Creek.
Speaker 1:But it was a different experience for me, keeping my lower legs and my feet wet pretty much the entire time that I'm on the quote-unquote trail and, with that in mind, there are some places that you could slip and fall down, lose your balance. I did fall two times, once pretty hard, just stepped on a rock the wrong way and just down. I went on the first day, on Saturday, and then on the second day, down by the waterfalls. I slipped and I actually caught myself with my wrist the wrist I'm holding the first day, on Saturday, and then on the second day, down by the waterfalls. I slipped and I actually caught myself with my wrist. The wrist I'm holding the camera with, or was holding the camera with my left wrist is a little bit tender from catching myself. It's not broken, it's just sore Looking out for slips, trips, falls as you're going through the water. You won't really have an issue with water.
Speaker 1:I think several places rated this trail as hard. I wouldn't say it's hard, but it's on the harder end of moderate or medium level of difficulty. Overall the whole trail, including going to both of the waterfalls, about 10.5 miles round trip. My phone did not record that distance and I didn't have my Garmin watch because I didn't have my charger, so I wasn't able to get an accurate representation of that. But it's around 10.5 miles or so round trip, waterfalls and back, really not a lot of elevation change. But overall I thought it was a good trip and enjoyed it and I would definitely do it again sometime. And if you have any questions, leave those below. And I'm curious how many of you watching this have actually hiked the Ashdown Gorge Trail here in southern Utah? Just wondering. Definitely consider liking this video so it will get out to more people and subscribe to the channel if you like more things like this. Thanks, and until next time. See you on the trail.
