Here at 7,400 feet, 800foot cliffs embrace The Box, and ahead the canyon begins to open up and assume a different character. Although a few spruce trees persist, their groves have been supplanted by Douglasfirs and ponderosa pines. Tall narrowleaf cottonwoods, and occasional aspens, are the primary riparian trees. Bold broken sandstone cliffs, studded with gnarled conifers, begin to dominate the landscape after the 2mile point, and the canyon rims now rise 1,200 feet above. After 2.5 miles, at 7,200 feet, the canyon undergoes another transformation.
Benches appear on either side of the creek, and the gradient of the canyon slackens.
Parklike stands of ponderosa pines, along with scattered groves of Gambel oak and box elder, decorate the benches, which offer a continuum of fine camping areas throughout the remaining 5.5 miles of The Box. At 2.5 miles, you cross the creek and mount the westside bench and follow it, without crossing the stream, for 0.9 mile. This is perhaps the most inviting part of The Box. The canyon is wider and more open here than elsewhere, with soaring walls of corrugated Navajo Sandstone rising on either side. Two final stream crossings, the first of which you may have to wade across, lead you to Deep Creek after 3.7 miles, a reasonable destination for a rewarding day hike through the upper Box. .