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Hog Canyons - North Wash
Date: 08/22/2021
Three in party. One very experienced, his daughter with good experience and healthy respect for the dangers, and me, only 3rd day on rope. Did shuttle, left one vehicle down at Hog Springs recreation area, drove the other up atop Trachyte and camped for the night right at the end of the 2WD path that forks north off the main dirt road immediately east of the solar panels/water pump station. Began around 0700, walked x-country to the head of Hog #2, then began the descent there. Plenty of pre-set webbing anchors, one sketchy one was using a large rock jammed behind a small pothole lip, other than that the anchors in place were all serviceable. Lots of stemming. At least for me. I was wearing a small Osprey waterbag, and preferred to bring it around to the front and bridge/stem my way along maybe 1000' of slot in total, in 100-300' spurts. No flowing water. Rock temps were very comfortable. The beta we had on the "birth canal" did not prepare us for the challenge. First one (the experienced one) went down w/o belay and actually got stuck at ribcage (for a few puckering minutes) between the opposite walls, in the dark, feet dangling. He was hung up because of some equipment on his harness. Took some squirming to release himself, but the two of us behind were already trying to figure out how to help him - he was around a corner, down about 15' and 15' or so above the pool at the bottom. Once he was safe down and out of the water on a little sandbar, we slid the packs down the rappel rope to him, and only got one snagged for a few min due to the turn. Then his daughter descended, with him on belay, she seemed to do ok, so I went last, and brought the rope tail with me to recover the main line. By then, my adrenaline was all used up, as was the daughter's, and decided that we'd not do another Hog today. % ^) The reeds and poison ivy and scrub were thick, made walking down wash hard, some places there'd been no one and no critter for some time, plenty of spots where the water was ankle/calf deep. Got down to parking area, total elapsed time was about 6 hours. Really beat, scratched up, and worn out. Shuttled back up to where my truck was, then began the drive back to PHX. Got home just a few min after midnight this am. Next time I'd prefer a canyon that doesn't have the thick vegetation to weed-wack through!!!
Three in party. One very experienced, his daughter with good experience and healthy respect for the dangers, and me, only 3rd day on rope. Did shuttle, left one vehicle down at Hog Springs recreation area, drove the other up atop Trachyte and camped for the night right at the end of the 2WD path that forks north off the main dirt road immediately east of the solar panels/water pump station. Began around 0700, walked x-country to the head of Hog #2, then began the descent there. Plenty of pre-set webbing anchors, one sketchy one was using a large rock jammed behind a small pothole lip, other than that the anchors in place were all serviceable. Lots of stemming. At least for me. I was wearing a small Osprey waterbag, and preferred to bring it around to the front and bridge/stem my way along maybe 1000' of slot in total, in 100-300' spurts. No flowing water. Rock temps were very comfortable. The beta we had on the "birth canal" did not prepare us for the challenge. First one (the experienced one) went down w/o belay and actually got stuck at ribcage (for a few puckering minutes) between the opposite walls, in the dark, feet dangling. He was hung up because of some equipment on his harness. Took some squirming to release himself, but the two of us behind were already trying to figure out how to help him - he was around a corner, down about 15' and 15' or so above the pool at the bottom. Once he was safe down and out of the water on a little sandbar, we slid the packs down the rappel rope to him, and only got one snagged for a few min due to the turn. Then his daughter descended, with him on belay, she seemed to do ok, so I went last, and brought the rope tail with me to recover the main line. By then, my adrenaline was all used up, as was the daughter's, and decided that we'd not do another Hog today. % ^) The reeds and poison ivy and scrub were thick, made walking down wash hard, some places there'd been no one and no critter for some time, plenty of spots where the water was ankle/calf deep. Got down to parking area, total elapsed time was about 6 hours. Really beat, scratched up, and worn out. Shuttled back up to where my truck was, then began the drive back to PHX. Got home just a few min after midnight this am. Next time I'd prefer a canyon that doesn't have the thick vegetation to weed-wack through!!!
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