trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
As beautiful a slot canyon as any other on earth.
How could I resist?
That claim made by one of my guidebooks, Afoot and Afield Las Vegas, the best of those I used.
Simple.
Drive to this trailhead. …
An easy 2.5mi out-and-back.
Unfortunately, I didn’t do that.
Instead I parked on the highway, not trusting my low clearance vehicle to make it to the trailhead. This added about 2.5mi to the trip.
En route a couple of hikers told me I was off-route. They could not find the trailhead. (It was there.)
I diverted to the only other possible watercourse, following footprints down a dry creek. It looked feasible.
WRONG.
I circumambulated a minor peak on a scramble soon dubbed the DANGER MINE trail.
There must have been a dozen old mine shafts up there, right to the top of the peak.
Finally I spied hikers far below. On my original, correct route.
Anniversary Narrows are lovely.
Recommended. But another cautionary tale of how easy it is to get lost in the desert. It’s possible to fall into an abandoned mine shaft out there, too.
The crumbling ruins of the mining operation are a historical attraction.
see all my photos from this trip
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