Up The Rocky Staircase
By Blaze on 5/25/2013
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Distance: 4.20 Miles Duration: 2 hours, 2 minutes
The Devil's Hall Trail is a fairly popular trail that is a relatively short "up and back" of 4.2 miles roundtrip distance.
The trail is fairly flat, but part of the trail takes you through a canyon wash with a lot of rocks and boulders. Footing is tricky, so exercise caution as it would be easy to twist an ankle or knee. At times, the trail seems hard to follow, but as long as you follow the wash you'll be OK.
One nice feature about this trail is it has a lot of shaded areas to keep you cool. There is no water, however, so be sure to take enough. You'll drink more than you expect to, especially in the hotter months.
Many people stop at a shaded bowl area around 2 miles down the trail, just shy of the hidden Devil's Hall, but the trail doesn't end there! If you look carefully, you will see a natural, rocky staircase that you can climb. Take that to get to Devil's Hall, a long, narrow hallway surrounded by walls of rock. You will know you reach the end of the trail because there is a sign prominently placed letting you know you've reached the end.
One final note: On your way to Devil's Hall, be sure to look for the little known "Gorilla's Head". It is a natural rock formation up on one of the ridges. If you use your imagination, you will see the side profile of what looks like a reclined ape's head, much like King Kong. It's not listed on the map, so many people don't know about this little secret find. ;-)