We weren't sure if going to some place called Death Hollow in 2020 was the wisest decision, but we managed to not open any portals to hell and had a fantastic time. We did this as a one way hike, starting at the Boulder Mail trailhead and hiking across slickrock to Slickrock Saddle Bench at the rim of Death Hollow (around 5 miles). We descended 700 feet into Death Hollow (under a mile), hiked to the confluence with the Escalante River (8 miles), and hiked out the Escalante to the Escalante River Trailhead (~8 miles). Mileage is around 22 miles and although we gave ourselves three days, we ended up doing it in two and never felt rushed.

Luckily the temperatures weren't too hot (which prevented us from going a previous weekend), however a forecast of thunderstorms put us on alert and we changed our schedule by a day so we wouldn't be camping in the canyon when the storms hit. We drove up Friday evening, stashed a bike at the Escalante River trailhead, and found a place to camp not far from the Boulder Mail Trailhead off Hell's Backbone Road. It did rain some throughout the night but everything was dry when we woke up, broke camp, and drove to the trailhead. We knew there was a chance of a thunderstorm until noon, so kept an eye on the sky as we started off on our hike through the juniper and pinion forest. About an hour from the trailhead the skies started to look really gnarly and we took cover under our rain fly to wait out the 20 minute hailstorm. When we emerged we found piles of hail (and would still see large piles of hail the next day in shady parts of the canyon), a lot of dry washes now running with water, and blue skies. We were thankful we weren't in the canyon when the storm hit, but still decided to play it by ear depending upon the conditions.

We continued across the slickrock and it wasn't long before we were at Sand Creek (about 2.5 miles from the trailhead). It was unavoidable to get our feet wet and boy, was the water running and cold. We warmed up quickly though with the 400-500 ft climb and 2.5+ miles from Sand Creek to Slickrock Saddle Bench above Death Hollow. The Boulder Mail Trail was the main route between Escalante and Boulder in the early 1900's and supposedly Death Hollow got its name when one of the mules delivering mail fell to its death. A telegraph line was in use along this trail between 1902 and 1924 and we saw the old telegraph line along this section of the hike.

Steve did the planning for this trip and I didn't know the fine details, so was not aware of what we would find at Slickrock Saddle Bench. Around five miles we left a sandy track through the trees and walked a final expanse of slickrock to the edge, the views slowly revealing themselves until we stood at the edge and marveled at the sights before us. I had no idea we would see a view this awesome and was properly wowed. It was a perfect spot for lunch so we took a break before starting the 700 foot descent into Death Hollow. It looks intimidating standing at the rim, but we had no problems following the trail (some of which is carved into the rock face) and didn't think it was too bad (we thought it was easier than the descent into Fish Canyon we had done last month).

The conditions in Death Hollow seemed okay and we decided to continue knowing the forecast was clear and we had time for the water to go down before going through the narrows the next day. The biggest issue was the normally clear water was now muddy and it made it impossible to see where we were stepping in the stream (further compounded by the water being deeper from the storm). Hikers usually spend most of their time in the stream in this portion of the canyon to avoid the poison ivy on the banks, but it was difficult to do that with the water conditions. We were careful, but we still found out who in the family is the most sensitive to poison ivy (spoiler: it's me!).

We met two groups that had decided to turn around and hike out, at least one of these groups had been in the canyon during the storms and we think they found the narrows section too difficult and turned around. We got some beta on the conditions and campsites and decided to press on. There are campsites along the way in the upper part of the canyon and they aren't so frequent in the lower section. I think we were maybe halfway through Death Hollow (about four miles) when we found a good spot and decided to stop for the day. As it turns out, this was maybe 15 minutes above what is marked as the cascades in Kelsey's book. From this point on we didn't notice too many campsites.

It was chilly in the morning, the high canyon walls blocking the sun. Norah and I were reluctant to get wet again, but finally we decided to get on with it. The water had gone down over night and even better, had cleared some so it was easier to hike in the water. Also, this portion of the lower canyon was much easier hiking anyway - none to minimal poison ivy and in many places, large expanses of rock to hike on with shallow water (these were our favorite sections for hiking - so much better). From our campsite to a small waterfall on the right side of the canyon was our favorite section of the hike. There were many beautiful sections with the soaring Navajo sandstone walls (as high as 500 feet in places) and pretty reflected light on the walls.

The crux of the hike is a spot called the narrows. We knew there was a small ledge at the water's edge you could scoot along through this section. It was not dangerous; the biggest risk was slipping into one of the potholes or deep channels and getting gear wet. We weren't sure what we would find and were happy to see that ledge was still visible, although we were sure it was submerged the day before. We put everything in our packs (and extra ziplocs for electronics) and Steve shuttled our packs through this section. We successfully shuffled along and avoided taking a swim. This spot was really cool and our favorite of the hike.

After the narrows it was smooth sailing. We had a few more really cool sections before the canyon mellowed out before hitting the confluence with the Escalante River. A mile or so above the confluence we started to see people who had camped at the confluence and dayhiked in Death Hollow. This would make a really nice trip too - you would avoid the poison ivy in the upper canyon and get to see all the best parts in the lower canyon. One drawback though is missing the cool hike in on the Boulder Mail Trail and the amazing views at Slickrock Saddle Bench (although this could be done as a separate day hike). Once we hit the Escalante River, the water became muddy again and overall was shallower. We didn't walk that much in the water though; the route in this part is primarily a trail on land with multiple river crossings. This part of the hike is nice too; especially the contrast between the red walls and the green of the flora. It didn't have the same impact as the narrower, more dramatic Death Hollow, but was still a nice hike out. About five to five and half miles from the confluence there is a thin unnamed arch on the right hand side (and below that an ancient cliff dwelling we did not see, we did not detour for a better look). And just beyond that is Escalante Natural Bridge. Again, we did not make the side trip for a close up look (and didn't even take a picture because the light wasn't very good), but from the trail it looked pretty substantial.

What a fantastic hike! Although Steve wasn't done yet - he had to bike back to the truck and come pick us up. Scenery for the ride was A+, wind gusts D-. We stopped for gas and cold drinks in Escalante, then found a prime campsite on Spencer Flat Road for the night before driving home the next day. Great weekend - we really loved Death Hollow!