Flanigan's Arch Ashdown Gorge

This morning we drove about 7-8 miles east of Cedar City, Utah on Hwy 14 to hike up to Flanigan's Arch from the Ashdown Gorge Trailhead. The "trail" is following Coal Creek upstream until you reach the arch about 1.4 miles from when you reach the old dam site. This "trail" connects up with the north end of Cedar Breaks and many people do it as a shuttle hike starting from the top (10,00 ft) and hiking down to 7,000 ft.

I took lots of photos along this 1.5 mile section of the creek as it was so beautiful.

view looking across the highway above us to the cliffs to the south.

We loved the fall colors.

Beautiful cliffs above us.

As we continued upstream, we entered the gorge.

The creek was very cold this morning, we tried staying on the dirt for as long as we could, frequently having to cross the creek.

Lots of immense rock formations

We found the old truck wreck along the way.

As the creek winds its way down the gorge, the views are constantly changing.

Eventually, we weren't able to. cross the creek safely while keeping our boots dry, so we changed into water shoes for the frequent creek crossings.

small waterfall along Coal Creek

Up high on top the gorge is Flanigan's Arch, one of the largest free-standing arches in Utah.

zoom of Flanigan's Arch

more fall color

And I took lots more photos as we hiked back down the creek to the trailhead.

some of the wildflowers we saw along the creek today: