April 2017 Cape Solitude

April 18 and 19 (2017) I completed a Grand Canyon hike to Cape Solitude, a unique viewpoint of the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers.

Selected photos

Cape Solitude is listed as a Primitive Management Zone with at-large camping. The designation as a Primitive Management Zone means non-reliable water, trail is not maintained, hiker needs to be skilled at route finding and not recommended during the summer. The hike is divided into four parts—

1. A 2.7 mile approach trail to the Cape Solitude trailhead. The approach is labeled Difficult on the Sky Terrain Trail Map used for this hike. I believe it is rated Difficult because of a series of downhill switchbacks leading to the trailhead.
2. A sign stating “Road Closed to All Vehicles. Foot Travel Only” marks the trailhead. There are few cairns and no signs to mark the way from this point. From the trailhead to a fork in the trail (marked by cleared terrain and a pile of rocks) is 2.0 miles. The left fork leads to Comanche Point and the right fork is to Cape Solitude. This section is labeled Easy. There is an abundance of shade trees along the 2 mile stretch.

   

3. The third section is 3.3 miles long, the southern half is labeled Easy and the northern half is labeled Moderate. This section is hilly with some shade trees along the way. This third section ends at a fence that serves as a border between the Grand Canyon and the Navajo Nation. The trail then crosses the fence and enters the Nation. It curls around after a few hundred yards and crosses the fence again back to the Grand Canyon. When I returned from Cape Solitude I simply followed the fence line instead of entering the Nation.
4. The final section of the trail is 6.2 miles to Cape Solitude. This entire section is on top of the plateau and exposed to sun and wind. This part of the trail is labeled Easy.

I hiked this trail with my Australian Cattle Dog, Colter. I have always wanted to hike in the Grand Canyon with Colter but dogs are never allowed below the rim. I felt this would be the perfect hike for us as we would not be descending into the canyon. On paper the hike doesn’t look too bad. The problem though is water. There is absolutely no water to be found on the 15 miles to Cape Solitude. None. So, right from the start we were managing water. While most of the trail is marked Easy with little change in elevation it is still a Grand Canyon Hike. It would be a mistake to go on this hike thinking it will be a “walk in the park”.

Upon entering the Desert View parking lot near the East Entrance look for the gas station. Follow the road (downhill) from the gas station to the local residences. My wife, Hedy,  parked near some apartments (number 1 on map) and we proceeded on foot down a gravel road that quickly turned into a dirt road. We hiked to the midpoint of the switchbacks (number 2 on map about a mile from the trailhead) and Hedy left us with a gallon of water to cache later in the day. She returned to the car and Colter and I continued to the trailhead. At the 2.7 mile mark (number 3 on map) is a sign warning “Road Closed to All Vehicles. Foot Travel Only” and that marks the trailhead for Cape Solitude.

The first 2 miles were hilly with plenty of shade. We reached the fork to Comanche Point (number 4 on map) and headed east to the Navajo Nation. The hills continued but the shade trees began to thin. About a mile from the Navajo Nation we were in open mesa for the remainder to Cape Solitude. We could see the flat expanse of the mesa before us. Near the Navajo nation (number 5 on map) I cached the gallon of water and marked the spot with my GPS. Colter and I continued along the final section across the mesa and along the rim to Cape Solitude. At different points the double track (4 wheel drive) trail would disappear and I had to rely on the GPS to keep us on track. About the 10 mile mark Colter and I blithely were following a clear pathway when I realized it wasn’t a double track. I checked the GPS and sure enough, we had missed a turnoff and had to retrace our steps for a half mile. The double track, at times, is very easy to see while at other times it is not visible. The tracks have become overgrown in many places along the exposed plateau. Originally the trail to Cape Solitude was for 4 wheel drive vehicles but it has been closed to them for a number of years.  We arrived at Cape Solitude in the early evening and I was able to take some photos of the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers. Magnificent.

Cape Solitude is fully exposed. There are plenty of places to set up a tent but they are all exposed to wind which I believe to be something one can count on when visiting here. The winds gust up from the canyon and blow all night. Colter and I got very little sleep. The next morning, after taking more pictures, we set out for the Navajo Nation water cache. We started at 6:00 am sharp and arrived at the cache at 10:00. We arrived with just a bit of Powerade (I had to share my Powerade with Colter-our water was all gone). At the cache our gallon of water was only half full. I have no explanation why. I did not see any other hiker out on the plateau and I did not see any leak in the plastic jug. We still had about 5.3 miles to the trailhead and 8 miles to the parking lot. I texted Hedy and let her know we were low on water. She texted back that she would bring a gallon to the trailhead. Colter and I continued back but were slowed by the sun and lack of water. Fortunately we had a cool breeze and by now could find shade. Colter would run ahead and stand under a shade tree and wait for me. We stopped at a few of these and finally reached the trailhead around 5:00. Thankfully Hedy was there and we were able to rehydrate and continue the walk to the parking area, still 2.7 miles away and all uphill.