Boulder Mail Trail

Dogs Leashed

Features Commonly Backpacked · Historical Significance · River/Creek · Views · Wildflowers

This route provides a beautiful tour of a massive slickrock expanse in the remote Escalante Grand Staircase National Monument.

Trekking poles are very highly recommended. In addition to the rocky steps, you spend a good amount of time running in a knee-deep stream and the poles will greatly decrease your chance of getting soaked, or worse, a broken ankle.

This is quite runnable, though look out for the incredible sun exposure. The only guaranteed water is in Death Hollow Creek, conveniently near the middle of the run.

Starting on the Boulder end, run an easy mile through pinyon and juniper until you get to the edge of the slickrock expanse. Follow cairns across huge bowls of slickrock on surprisingly easy terrain. Cross Sand Creek (you might be able to jump it), and then continue on undulating slickrock.

At around 4 miles, you'll come across the telegraph wire that was installed around 1910 to connect Escalante to Boulder. It's in quite good shape and you'll follow it for most of the rest of the trail.

Hit the rim of Death Hollow and enjoy huge views of the canyon and the rock expanses in all directions. It's worthwhile to explore the rim off trail around here. There are good campsites nearby if you're spending the night, though there are also good ones on the canyon bottom, where better water is easy to find. Death Hollow is so named after a mule fell to his death during one of the mail delivery trips.

Follow cairns down steep rock into the heart of the canyon where you'll hit Death Hollow creek. Turn left and change your footwear. Prepare for cold wading up to mid-thigh depth. For some sections of the next half-mile, you can follow paths on the banks, but most of them are COVERED with poison ivy, and you're better off running in the water.

Keep a sharp eye out for the trail ascending the hill to the right. Other trails continue downstream, so don't miss your turn. It is located on a small beach and is the first possible way to ascend the canyon (it's been sheer cliffs until this point). The path out starts pretty steep but then mellows out and is a pleasant ascent back to the rim.

Descend Mamie canyon. The Mamie Creek Natural Bridge Trail is a highly recommended side trip to a natural bridge. Up out of this canyon, you'll cross Antone Flat which is hot and sandy but not very long.

Climb up a final escarpment, through a saddle, and enjoy huge views of both the Escalante valley and town. Head downhill, and just when you think you're going to run into the farms, take a left turn, cross a creek many times, and head through a beautiful little valley that ends right at the parking lot.

Sagebrush, Juniper, and Pinyon are the dominant species on the rock, though Death Hollow creek is teeming with fish, ferns, mosses, poison ivy, cottonwoods, and pesky bushes that can be a nuisance to run through.

This route was originally established to deliver mail and supplies by horse between the towns of Boulder and Escalante. Around 1910, a telegraph line was run along the trail, and still stands today along most of the route. Ancestral Puebloan people inhabited this region for thousands of years and their descendants still live in the area today - more information can be found at gsenm.org/native-perspectives/ or by visiting the Anasazi State Park Museum in Boulder.