Canyoneering, it's kind of like fun, only different.

So I spent this last weekend in the great Fiery Furnace. This was a bit of a catch up trip as it had fallen through late last year. We had also been skunked on an attempted trip in February due to unseasonably cold temperatures and snowfall.

 

I took some family and friends on a semi-traditional route that involved several loops to the popular attractions, as well as some less frequently visisted ones.  I switched up the order of the loops a bit for some variety, as well as to introduce a few new challenges I have discovered over time.  In short it was a great weekend.  It also gave me the opportunity to try our the Vasque Equalizer shoe I had received earlier in the week.

 

I found the outsole of the Equalizer to be quite grippy as advertised. I also like the blind lacing on the fore foot that protects the laces from abrasion. The assymetrical lacing is also nice, giving a comfortable, technical fit. It did not like the webbing lacing at all at the top. The metal loops through which the lacing passes were always twisting and binding, as well as providing a nice hard spot for abrasion to occur when doing any kind of technical footwork. I do look forward to doing more testing on the shoe in the coming weeks.  

 

Well, I started off the season with a classic that by coincidence was also the last canyon I did last year.  Pandora's.  It was a good trip.  The weather was perfect.  We got a nice early start on the trail at about 7:00.  Because we had a large group, Ryan and I decided to explore a 4th class entrance that bypasses the first 4 rappels.  It worked well and dropped us into the canyon just below the first high mae west section.  We dropped our packs and upclimbed the canyon to the bottom of the 4th rappel and waited for the rest of the group.  On the way back down, I elected to attempt to stay low through the mae west section.  Bo had gone ahead and made it through just fine, and I had almost made it in November.  I shed my harness to give myself every advantage and wormed my way into the slot.  It was easy going, though slow, except for two fairly tight sections that required a little more wriggling.  Bo had to give me a little pull through the last one because I just couldn't move forward, even though I wasn't wedged in stuck.

 

We made it throught the canyon in good time for our group size, and were headed back up the wash by 2:30.  We stuck the shortcut exit without much backtracking and were at the top of the climb out by 3:45.  We decided to try a steep gully we had seen on the way in as a more direct route off the mesa, so we walked over the head and it appeared to be a walkout.  We started down and it went without ropes.  From there it was a quick 10 minute walk back to the pack trail, and then about 2 miles or so to the car.  I got back to the car just after 5:00, with the others not far behind.  All in all it was a great day.  I'm looking forward to our annual spring trip to the Fiery Furnace next weekened.  It should be very fun as this time we are brining some of the next generation.

Well, after several weeks of preparation for our somewhat annual trip to the Fiery Furnace in November we adjusted our plans this weekend.  This was initially disappointing, because I really enjoy the myriad of possibilities in the Fiery Furnace.  In the end, we opted for Pandora's Box.  This is a trip we tradititionally make in the winter months, well, mostly because it is doable in the winter months.  We had full thin wetsuits with us for thermal protection from the rock as well as body armor.  However, conditions were very dry and temperatures up on the mesa were warmer than we had anticipated based on forecast conditions.  So we opted to drop into the canyon without donning wetsuits, reserving the option for later.

 

The first sequence of rappels were in standard conditions.  The anchors were rigged with grey webbing, some of which was from our trip through last year.  The natural anchor on the first rappel was still pretty solid.   The second rappel continues to be delicate, with the anchor extending several inches beyond the overhangining lip to facilitate the pull.  As in the past, everyone but that last ban down went on a meat anchor in the interest of safety and time.  The chained rappel is now split, with a deadman in the pothole (see the album for todays trip).  The deadman was in good condition and very solid when we went, but still best to inspect it before the last man down in case you need to shuttle anchor building materials from above, or worst case, chain the rappel.  Pulling the rope chained is not easy.

 

Sand levels though the slotted portion of the canyon were different than they have been in the past, higher in places, and lower in other places.  As usual, this creates a unique set of challenges for each trip through.  I was almost able to bypass the long mae west section at ground level.  I'm sure that without my harness I could have.  There is one crux tight spot about 15 feet in.  I was still making forward progress, but my pack wasn't pulling through easily.  After the brief attempt, I backed out and we went up and over.  We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves in the very physical remainder of the canyon.  Partner assist of body and packs facilitated moving through the tightest spots.  We downclimbed the small drop that can also be easily bypassed above (though with some exposure) rather than rappelling it.  This saved some time.  We hit the top of the final rappel series at 3:00, pretty much on schedule for where we planned to be.  We pulled the final rope just after 3:30 and after grabbing a quick bite to eat we headed down canyon.

 

We had previously decided to return via the upcanyon exit rather than the long slog out the bottom.  I had good, reliable beta on the exit route but had never seen it before, as on previous trips in the winter the route is unusable (sans ice skills) due to snow and ice on the north facing slabs.  We were worried about being able to find our way in the dark, so were pushed it pretty hard to the bottom of the exit route, arriving at about 4:45.  We worked our way up initially in a west-south westerly direction staying on the nose of the ridge.  When we hit the first series of blocks we started in a joint heading west.  With some luck, we continued traversing the joints and slabs in alternating directions much like an ADA ramp.  In less than 45 minutes we had negotiated our way up the face, amazingly without having to backtrack at all.  We topped out by following a ledge weakness around to the south-east.  Once on the mesa top, we contoured around the head of Pandora's, rather than losing elevation to make a bee line back to the pack trail.  Full darkness hit about 6:00, and we donned headlamps.  We had GPS'd the end of the pack trail and were easily able to locate it in the dark and make the return trip to the cars.  We arrived at the top of the final cliff band just before 7:00, and followed the pack trail through the vertical portion.  Somewhere in the boulders just below, we lost the trail.  Our headlamps were illuminating a small white reflective rectangle to our left, so we assumed those were our licence plates, so we traversed left towards them, and down a small drainage.  In the end, the reflection was a speed limit sign on the highway, and we realized we had overshot the parking area by some 1/4 mile.  We followed a ridge back up to the elevation of the road, and then paralleled the road for about 10 minutes back to the cars.  In the end, it was a beautiful day, in a great canyo.

So I guess my previous post was a bit of a teaser.  I had taken my kids to Ding and Dang on an exploration.  You see, oddly enough, I had never explored that part of the San Rafael.  I had volunteered to take the boys from the local Varsity Scout Team to the area and wanted to find something challenging enough for the older boys, but doable enough for the younger boys (and the leaders....HA).  I figured if my 5 year old could make it, any of the boys should be able to.

 

I was a great trip and after the requisite bacon, egg, and pancake breakfast, we were off.  The drive in and approach were uneventful.  We had several nice discussions along the lines of personal development and building character that I wont expound on here.  This time, my camera worked great and I was able to get some nice photos.  Due to confidentiality of the youth participants, I can't post many of the great shots I got through the chockstone obstacles, but I have enough that I think I can portray the nature of the canyons well enough.

 

Needless to say, the boys were easily able to navigate the canyons.  Amusingly, they overcame the chockstone obstacles with the ambition of youth and indestructible knees...jumping.  Those of us who are older and recognize that knees only have a finite quantity of hard landings climbed down the chockstones with a little more finesse.

 

I had never hung around Goblin Valley late in the afternoon, particularly this late in the season.  But doing so on this trip was a real treat.  The near setting sun was low in the horizon, and nearly perfectly located to provide very nice contrasting shadows, as well as pulling out the nice reds of the goblins.  All in all, it was a very fulfilling weekend.

So two weeks ago I was looking for something to do with my kids.  After a little debating, we settled on Ding and Dang Canyons, with a short visit to Goblin Valley while we were there.  I was a nice trip, and I would love to show you some pictures and give you some teasers.  Unfortunately my camera battery died about 1 shot after the confluence of Ding and Dang.  I had come prepared with an extra battery which I had charged all night long just in case.  Unfortuneately, it wasn't to be.  The battery and the replacement battery both failed me.  As a result, I had a great time with the kids, but didn't get any pictures.

 

I took my 9 year old, 7 year old, and 5 year old.  I am pleased to say that they all hiked the entire way by themselves.  When we got to the pour off in Dang, I harnessed them all up and lowered them directly down the water course.  I think they could have navigated the ledge bypass, but I was a little concerned about the logistics of having all three of them up there on the ledge with me and having one or more of them freak out.  It ended up working well, and I left the harnesses on them to belay them over on the various chockstone obstacles.  There was some water at the very bottom of Dang, but I shuttled them across on my lap.  I have to say that after 5 trips, with 55, 45, and 40 lbs on my lap, my hips and back were sore for a couple of days.