As we continued walking through a brief wide open area, we noticed that the gorge began narrowing down again up ahead:
This would be the entrance to Bighorn Gorge's 4th Narrows:
Pretty streaks of white coloring the polished rock walls:
Tall canyon walls closing in together in the narrows:
Daria and Steve in the 4th Narrows of Bighorn Gorge:
More fossils began appearing on the walls of the canyon:
The sunlight was casting a glow off of the canyon walls:
A small wash with growing plants cuts between the walls:
The swirling fossils were small and big, some were around 5 inches across:
Smaller fossils all preserved in a group next to each other:
These four fossils show you the variety which is on display here:
What appears to be a Bighorn sheep seems to have met an untimely end in Bighorn Gorge:
The 4th Narrows were the longest and prettiest (with some rivalry from the 3rd Narrows):
A pothole filled with water at the bottom of a polished slide:
Very high canyon walls all around. It is a good thing that there are no impassable dry falls, since a bypass would be impossible:
Fossils once again catching our attention and slowing the hike down as we took photos:
Bighorn Gorge continues ahead through the walls and mountainsides:
This is the dry fall which blocks progress at the beginning of the 4th Narrows (or end, from our perspective):
Steve getting a photo before attempting the slippery climb up:
Once we climbed out of the 4th Narrows, it was only a short walk to reach the 3rd Narrows:
Looking up at some neat pyramid-like rock formations on the hillside:
Ahead is the entrance to the 3rd Narrows of Bighorn Gorge:
The 3rd Narrows have less height but they are one long, tight passage:
The rock inside the 3rd Narrows was even more polished and smooth than what we found in the 4th:
As you can see here, the walls and floor of the canyon are all solid rock:
The beauty of the 3rd Narrows captivated us the entire way through:
Nearing the end of the 3rd Narrows, which are shorter than the 4th but have more concentrated beauty:
Walking through a giant horseshoe-shaped area after exiting the 3rd Narrows:
Notice how the canyon opens up very wide once again during this portion:
It would be interesting to someday look down into Bighorn Gorge from the ridge above as seen in the distance:
Entering the 2nd Narrows, which have a different kind of beauty than the 3rd and 4th Narrows:
The 2nd Narrows feature a tight passage between high walls:
It was a nice change to see such variety in the walls and gorge as we gained elevation:
This small series of dry falls had to be climbed to progress, but they were easy:
Daria standing at the dry fall which has the potential to stop people at the beginning of the 2nd Narrows (which was the end of the 2nd Narrows for us):
We made it up and over that dry fall by helping each other, and soon we were exiting the 2nd Narrows:
The canyon between the 1st and 2nd Narrows did not widen out as much as before:
Up ahead, a giant boulder has rolled into the canyon and gotten wedged between the walls:
Looking back down canyon from the top of the boulder:
Climbing through a steep section of canyon in order to continue:
Magnificent rock walls all around us in Bighorn Gorge:
Rounding a bend and heading into the 1st Narrows:
Reaching the 1st Narrows is something that we were not sure was possible as a day hike when we started:
This shows the junction between the bypass (to the right) and the slot narrows (to the left):
Soon we rounded the bend to the left and reached the end of the line for the 1st Narrows. Looking up from here, the 60 foot dry fall is in the upper portion of the photo:
We walked a little closer and we could see that the 60 foot dry fall was topped by a chockstone. (Not that we would have been foolish enough to try climbing it, anyway):
While the others rested some more, I decided to head up the bypass to get above the dry fall. This photo reveals the slope of boulders I had to scramble up:
I had to be even more careful going up this small portion of the bypass which was a steep rock face with sharp edges:
Looking back down the slope of small boulders which is the bypass:
Looking down into the 1st Narrows from the top of the 60 foot dry fall. I would hike to this same spot about 2 years later coming in from the top of the canyon:
At the top of the dry fall looking up at the height of the walls:
Heading a little farther up canyon and looking back toward the dry fall area:
After making it this far, I couldn't resist going up the gorge even farther towards the head:
This massive peak stood tall over the gorge:
Joshua trees appeared near the head of the gorge:
And finally, this is it... the end of the hike, as I could see out the head of Bighorn Gorge. (Well, not really the end, as we still had the 10 mile hike back to our vehicle on Scotty's Castle Road):
On the way back down, we didn't stop much. But we did take the time to check out some more fossils:
A very large swirling fossil that was extremely impressive to behold:
Steve getting his picture by a wall of fossils back in the 4th Narrows:
And Daria got her picture by this beautifully colored rock, which we found close to the junction with the Main Side Canyon:
We arrived out at the alluvial fan of Bighorn Gorge just as the sun was setting. Flashlights would be needed for the final hour or so of hiking:
