Category: slot canyons

Posted on

Louse Canyon, Owyhee wilderness

By Tim Neville / New York Times News Service:

Louse Canyon is among the most inaccessible places in the West

… It was day three of a four-day, nearly 50-mile exploratory hike through Louse Canyon in the Upper West Little Owyhee Wilderness Study Area of southeastern Oregon, and there was no doubt we were getting spanked. …

About 350 air miles southeast of Portland, the West Little Owyhee River, a rarely visited tributary of the better-known Owyhee River, has cut a squiggle of a gorge through sandy expanses of sage and rye. The canyon is surely among the most inaccessible places in the West.

At its loneliest, the nearest human living under a proper roof is about 24 hours away by four-wheel drive, then horseback and foot. This cool crack in what is known as ION country, where Idaho, Oregon and Nevada collide, is so deep in the back of beyond that it sits in a different time zone from the rest of the Pacific Northwest. …

read the trip report on Bend Bulletin – Exploring Owyhee’s untouched wilderness

Very cool.

(via Meanderthals, again)

Posted on

best hikes in Arizona

ArizonaHiking.org Weekend Warriors has a good, personalized list:

Best Easy Hikes
Best Medium difficulty hikes
Best Hard hikes
Best Fall leaf watching hikes
Best hikes for solitude
Best hikes for spectacular views
Best water hikes
etc.

See the full FULL LIST of hikes

Bright Angel Trail

See more interesting photos tagged “Arizona Hike” on flickr.

Posted on

Ringbolt hot springs, Vegas

trip report by besthike editor Rick McCharles

WOW. You can hike slickrock slot canyons. And be rewarded with natural hot springs only a few miles from the Hoover Dam.

I started late in the afternoon, running most of the 3mi to the river. As a result, I didn’t capture any decent photos.

But here’s the goal, a steel ladder leading you up to a series of clear hot springs, each hotter than the last.

Happily, Bird and Hike has detailed information & photos on hiking options … and an excellent map.

I took the regular route, in and out via White Rock Canyon.

… 3.25-mile hike (one way) to hot springs near the Colorado River. The route runs down a deep, narrow, geologically interesting canyon for 2.75 miles to the Colorado River, turns to run downstream for 0.5 miles to the next major canyon, then ascends that canyon for about 5 minutes to a 20-ft waterfall and a ladder.

… This hot spring sometimes is called Ringbolt Hot Springs, a reference to Ringbolt Rapids that lie just upstream from Hot Spring Canyon.

But the better option would be to loop in Hot Spring Canyon and out White Rock. Check Bird and Hike – Hot Spring Canyon Route

This hike is all good. It’s in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, but no Park pass is required as trailhead parking is just outside the boundary.

Note: It can be difficult to find the hot springs. I was directed there by kids who had arrived by river, camping on a school trip.

Posted on

Crack-in-the-Mountain, Havasu, AZ

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

Crack in the Mountain is the name of a terrific hike on the city limits of Lake Havasu, Arizona.

6mi
3hrs

A fantastic slot canyon featuring a 7ft slide. Driving past, I’d have never guessed it was there. But a savvy Ranger at the Havasu BLM office recommended it.

… “The Crack,” this slot canyon is formed by a drainage that has carved its way through mountains then snaked around ridges, emptying into Lake Havasu.

… a geologic profusion of textures, colors, strata, crumbling mountain slopes, and shallow canyon walls mortared with rubble-filled conglomerate. The trail will take you through The Crack, up a ridgeline, and down to Lake Havasu. The eclectic geological brew along the trail creates some stunning scenery and fine Desert Bighorn Sheep habitat. …

read more on Desert USA

Instead of taking the slide, I used rope assistance. (Not easy with a camera in the other hand.)

I made a lollypop loop taking the Yellow trail through the canyon, returning most of the way on the higher Blue. Signage is fairly good on this day hike.

Special Activities and Recreation Area (SARA) Park is a county leased recreation area that is truly a sports lovers paradise. … 1,100 acre park offers a variety of recreational opportunities including softball and baseball fields, a raceway, hiking trails, a BMX track, an area to fly model airplanes, and a shooting range.

Balance Rock Cove.

more photos

Posted on

Canyon Hiking Guide to the Colorado Plateau

Buzz recommends this guidebook, though it’s not been revised since 1999. The author’s been called controversial.

This is a canyon hiking guide to the Colorado Plateau, which covers the southeastern half of Utah, the northern half of Arizona, the western 1/5 of Colorado, and a small part of NW New Mexico. …

Amazon

Michael R. Kelsey

… on June 9, 1970 he put a pack on his back and started traveling. Since then he has seen 223 countries, republics, islands, or island groups. When not traveling the world he is seeking out and exploring the canyon countries of the Southwest’s Colorado Plateau. All his wanderings have resulted in a very successful series of 16 self-published books. …

Michael R. Kelsey

Posted on

7 day Grand Canyon hike

Scott Cundy from The Wildand Trekking Company recommends this guided adventure for experienced hikers:

The Kanab Creek Backpacking Tour is a 7-day, 6-night North Rim hike that takes us nearly 25 miles into the Grand Canyon before we turn around and hike out.

It features spring-fed creeks, ancient pictographs, slot canyon hiking, fantastic camps, and a chance to see the Colorado River at one of its most remote points.

The trip begins with a day of hiking through the Kanab Creek Wilderness and an amazing camp with pictographs and fantastic spring water. The next day we traverse Jump Up Canyon, a 4-mile slot canyon that narrows to just 15 feet wide while towering hundreds of feet above us, and enter the Kanab Creek drainage.

The next two days we’ll continue down the Kanab Creek Drainage toward the Colorado River, passing Showerbath Spring, Whisper Falls, and other amazing desert water features along the way. After a hike to the Colorado River on day 4, we turn around and begin hiking out, soaking up the views of the famous Red Wall and the North Rim the whole way!

A final night at our first night’s camp is an opportunity to reminisce about the trip and plan our next adventure in to the world’s most famous canyon.

Details – Kanab Creek Adventure ($1495)

Posted on

Wild Backpacker – Featured Trails

Western North America:


Kalalau Trail
Buckskin Gulch
Havasupai
Coyote Gulch
Zion Narrows
Coyote Gulch

And more in California, Colorado, Utah and Arizona.

… details

Here’s a sample Guide page for Escalante, Utah:

Length: 12 miles
Difficulty: 5/10; 1B VI
Season: Spring and Fall
Type: Point-to-point

Coyote Gulch is one of the most beautiful and popular hikes in the area. Though located in the remote Glen Canyon National Recreation Area of Southern Utah, Coyote Gulch is worth the time and effort required to visit, and worthy of its famed status.

Although those who enjoy the feeling of seclusion might resent the evidence of past grazing, for most the beauty of the high Navajo Sandstone canyon walls, the sparkling streams, and the three main attractions – two arches and a natural bridge – will make this hike a favorite.

The best seasons for the hike are spring (March to mid-June) and fall (September to October).

… read more

Posted on

crowd free hiking USA … and Canada

Backpacker is recommending these destinations:

Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA | Pigsah National Forest, NC | Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, MT | Dome Land Wilderness, CA | Mahoosuc Mountains, ME | Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario | Owyhee Uplands, ID/OR

I know Lassen and the ‘Bob’, but not much about the rest.

Dome Land, with 94,695 acres at the southern tail of the Sierra Nevada, is markedly drier than Yosemite. This, plus the lower elevations (3,000 to 9,400 feet), makes it a good choice for spring and fall, when snow still clings to high-mountain locales. …

details

This high-desert region’s obscurity is a big selling point. Spilling out of southwest Idaho into Nevada and Oregon, the Owyhee Uplands comprise one of the least developed areas in the Lower 48. Juniper-covered plateaus set atop sagebrush tablelands create a sense of limitless open space.

Snowy mountains line the horizon, and the many-tentacled Owyhee and Bruneau Rivers groove the underlying basalt and rhyolite. “The Owyhee is as good as any desert landscape in the U.S.,” says Sheldon Bluestein, author of Exploring Idaho’s High Desert. “It’s national-park-worthy.” …

details

Bruneau River, Owyhee Uplands by Glenn Merritt
Posted on

Arizona – Paria Canyon guided hike

42 miles (67km) plus side trips – 5 days

Our favourite hike in the S.W. United States is Paria Canyon.

Logistics are a problem, however. Only 20 permits are issued each day, one of the most difficult to acquire anywhere.

… Also, it’s a 2hr drive between the trailheads.

… Also, there’s a slight chance of flash flood !!

You can do Paria independently, … but it’s far easier to sign on with a guiding company like Just Roughin It:

On the first morning, we will pick you up from your hotel in Phoenix or Flagstaff and drive to the trail head at White House Ruins. Once at the trail head, the group loads up and hikes along the Paria River from there.

Our goal on the first t day is to reach the Paria Narrows and eventually camp at the confluence of Buckskin Gulch and Paria River. The hike is 7.5 miles long with very little change in elevation and usually take about 5 hours to complete.

The next day we will set aside time for a 3 mile side hike up the narrow Buckskin Gulch, one of the most famous, and longest, slot canyons in the world. From here we will move further down river to one of several campsites to choose from.

From here, the itinerary is open except for the being at Lee’s Ferry on the 5th day. Along the way to Lee’s Ferry, time permitting, there are opportunities to explore other slot canyons and sites in the area – including petroglyphs, historical sites and Wrather Arch which is one of the largest spans in the world. …

The price for this trip is $1,225 per person from Flagstaff and $1,275 per person from Phoenix.

official website – Just Roughin It Adventure Company.

Posted on

Lower Muley Twist Canyon, Utah

trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

My best hike so far on this Southwest U.S.A. road trip was a little visited slot canyon in Capitol Reef National Park.

It’s now high on our list of the best hikes in North America.

Over a 24hr period I saw no hikers, nor did I see any motor vehicles while tenting at nearby Cedar Mesa campground. The trailhead register showed one or two hiking groups a day, on average.

… a deep, narrow, twisting canyon with large alcoves. The canyon offers many opportunities for side trips and exploring.

From 1881 to 1884, the canyon served as a wagon route for Mormon pioneers traveling south toward San Juan County. The canyon was thought to be narrow enough to “twist a mule” hence the name Muley Twist. The Post cutoff trail is marked with rock cairns and signs, but carrying a topographic map is recommended. It is extremely hot in summer and water sources are unreliable; carry adequate water. Use caution in narrow canyons particularly during flash flood season (typically July-September). …

Best season for hike: Spring and Fall

NPS

The first decision to make is trailhead. I chose the Post parking area. That makes for a perfect “loop” hike of about 15mi.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

The trail into the wilderness is well marked.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

Looking back one last time at my vehicle. Would I be lost in the canyons, never to return?

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

Actually, I did not get lost. (much)

Stone cairns led me to the signed intersection with the main canyon trail. If confused, you could always ask one of the locals.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

Wildflowers are a good reason to hike the desert in the Spring. They were fantastic when I was there.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

But the main attraction of Muley are the massive rock alcoves, as impressive as any I’ve seen anywhere.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

You can’t help but wonder how this tiny stream could have carved them.

There is enough water to support some BIG trees.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

Here’s where the canyon finally narrows enough to “twist a mule”.

Exiting the “narrows”, you should immediately scramble left out of the canyon. I missed it, wandering further.

Checking my Lonely Planet Hiking USA guidebook, I had to backtrack to continue the loop back to my vehicle.

The final section out in the open is much different, but still interesting …

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

… and colourful.

hiking Lower Muley Twist Canyon

Next time … Upper Muley Twist Canyon. Or, perhaps a thru hike connecting the two.

See all my photos of Lower Muley Twist Canyon on Flickr.

All in all, I’d call this a perfect hike. Highly recommended, especially if you don’t like crowds.

The Notom to Bullfrog access road is scenic and (normally) quite safe, even for low clearance vehicles. Don’t let access dissuade you from going.