Sep 26, 2016 — The Syncline Loop is a fairly easy trail to follow, despite being advertised as "primitive". There are cairns marking the slightly diffiuclt sections, but we never got lost. The trail starts at the trailhead for a very popular overlook into Upheaval Dome. We made the silly decision not to just walk up and look into the dome, hoping we'd just get to see it during our hike. However, we were running out of daylight and didn't venture into the center of the geologic formation to see Upheaval Dome up close. I recommend you go check it out, especially if you're a geology buff. Anyway, we started east (clockwise) along the syncline loop and worked our way down some switchbacks into a canyon. The trail continued around Upheaval Dome, and then returned around the north side of it via some Class 2 scrambling up the cliffside. The scramble led us into another canyon where we encountered some gorgeous greenery as the canyon walls slowly shrunk on either side. The trail became slightly more difficult to follow because it didn't quite follow any washes or drainages and we were happy we weren't doing it in the dark.
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