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mtnsam's Trip Reports

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North Wash

Benign Canyon - Dirty Devil

Tick List

Bloodhound Canyon - Dirty Devil

Date: 04/20/2024
We hiked to Bloodhound Canyon 3A, a straightforward approach down the wash. There were many dry potholes, and it was easy to walk around them. We built a new deadman anchor at rap 1, about 40 feet down a slab. The beta suggested it could be downclimbed, but it would be difficult not to slide and get injured. Further on, we downclimbed into a shallow pool of water about ankle deep. We provided a meat anchor handline for the group and then spotted the last person as they downclimbed. The next obstacle was a large keeper pothole that appeared deep enough to be a swimmer. We hiked up DCR, rigged an anchor off some large boulders, and rappeled about 60 feet down a slab, avoiding the pothole. The final rappel was about 40 feet and required a sandtrap. We rigged the sandtrap about 50 feet from the rappel, and it was an easy pull. One note: this canyon could be rated 3B because it holds water and potentially 3/4B because it requires advanced rigging with a sandtrap.

Bingo Canyon - Dirty Devil

Date: 04/20/2024
Bingo Canyon 3/4A, passes through beautiful and unique rock formations and begins at the same trailhead as Sawtooth Canyon. There were several fun downclimbs. We bypassed the large keeper pothole by hiking DCL. There were some tight narrows, and we had to rappel about 23 feet in this confined space. We found a choke stone anchor before two large downclimbs. There was about 150+ feet of tan and purple webbing attached to this anchor, and we were surprised to find that it descended the canyon to the final rappel. We used it for the final rappel, although rigging a sandtrap was also possible.

Shillelagh Canyon - North Wash

Date: 11/17/2023
Right fork at night with Tom, Tyler and Marco. We had ourselves a fun nighttime adventure without incident or issue. Total time was 1 hour and 17 minutes. The weather was pleasant and warmer than expected.

Merry Piglet - North Wash

Date: 11/17/2023
We drove to the North Wash and canyoneered Merry Piglet 3A/B – a surprisingly fun small canyon. There were several downclimbs and rappels up to 50 feet. It was a fun start to the North Wash November weekend. 🤩 The anchors were in good condition, and we had no issues descending the canyon. There was a small pool of easily avoidable water. However, it rained a lot this past Sunday, and there’s likely more water in the canyon now. Two or three of the rappels were in tight elevators that could also have been potentially downclimbed. With a group of four, Merry Piglet took one hour and 45 minutes from car to car. If you have extra time after your main outing, this is a fun canyon to explore later in the day.

Shillelagh Canyon - North Wash

Date: 10/15/2023
Right fork with Chris and Ethan. One hour and 45 minutes total. One pool of avoidable water. Fun canyon with some beautiful narrows. Anchors were all in good condition.

Hogwarts Canyon - North Wash

Date: 10/15/2023
Sunny day with perfect blue skies and temperatures. Took Ethan, Lisa, Chris, and Dave through Hogwarts. Anchors were all in good condition. We navigated the canyon easily and had a fun afternoon. We encountered a few other groups in the canyon which slowed down our progress. Took us 2 hours and 45 minutes car to car. Probably would have been 30 minutes faster if we hadn’t encountered other groups and had to wait.

Constrychnine Canyon - Poison Spring

Date: 10/14/2023
The approach hike was about 45 minutes and the canyon was stunning with gorgeous rock features and tall sandstone walls. Some deep and dark sections. Three amazing rappels and fun down climbing. We had a lot of fun in the canyon!

Slideanide Canyon - Poison Spring

Date: 10/14/2023
Short approach hike – maybe 25 minutes. DCR downclimb to bypass the first rappel. Once you’re in the canyon all rappels are can be down climbed. Lots of fun down climbs and beautiful rock formations. No technical gear required. Obvious exit up the slick rock DCL. Would be easy to lap the canyon or do Constrychnine.

Yellow Brick Road and Tik-Tok Bridge - Trachyte - Land of Oz

Date: 10/13/2023
45 minute approach hike. Beautiful narrows and pothole sections. Lots of hiking in-between. Two hour exit hike was arduous.

Hogwarts Canyon - North Wash

Date: 05/21/2023
Fun day in Hogwarts. There were some shallow pools of water. Anchors were in good condition.

Shillelagh Canyon - North Wash

Date: 05/20/2023
Right fork with Steve and Ethan. Two hours round trip. We had fun afternoon. Anchors were in good condition.

Monkey Business - West - West Butler

Date: 05/19/2023
It was short approach to Monkey Business from the truck. Maybe 15-20 minutes. Canyon features a lot of down climbing, most of it was easy, but some was a little spicier. The rappels are towards the end of the canyon. First rappel (90 feet) in two stages, rope pull looked problematic, but ultimately was okay. Next rappel (27 feet) was into a pothole with ankle deep water. I climbed out of the pothole and rigged a Tyrollean traverse or zip line for the group and we shuttled the bags across before Steve, Ethan, and Marybeth zipped down. Everyone was thrilled, but especially Ethan. The final rappel (90 stages) in two stages. It took almost two hours to hike out and return to the truck. Lots of scrambling and some low fifth class climbing.

Shillelagh Canyon - North Wash

Date: 11/06/2022
Left fork. Back-to-back rappels of 27 and 66 feet, respectively. Not as scenic as the right fork. Fun short canyon.

Shillelagh Canyon - North Wash

Date: 11/05/2022
Fantastic 100-foot rappel. Several sections of beautiful narrows and fun down climbing.

Lost Angel Canyon - Angel Point

Date: 11/04/2022
Fallen Angel with Marybeth Jones We had a fantastic Friday descending Fallen Angel Canyon outside Hanksville, Utah! The morning was cold, but the weather was pleasant once the sun was up. The canyon scenery was beautiful, and we enjoyed several long rappels; the most significant was about 120 feet in two stages. The canyon appeared to have flashed recently, and we rebuilt one anchor and built two new anchors. The canyon finishes near the Dirty Devil, and we saw a cool petroglyph panel as we hiked out along the river. Here’s a brief update to the available Fallen Angel Canyon beta: The approach hike was only about 30 minutes, and the payoff was immediate, with fun rappels and downclimbing. There was water and mud throughout the canyon from the recent rainfall, but it was easily avoided. Rappel 1 - Cairn anchor with red webbing, little sun faded, but in good condition (75 feet). Rappel 2 - New anchor built around a large boulder makes the rappel about 20 feet longer than the beta (50 feet). Rappel 3 - Cairn anchor on the upper right side with blue webbing and a new quick link. Two-stage rappel was 120+ feet. Rappel 4 - Cairn anchor with blue and black webbing on canyon left was filthy from a recent flash flood. Rebuilt the anchor and added a new quick link to replace the existing link, which was extremely rusted. Two-stage rappel, the first stage was about 50 feet onto a wide ledge, then another 50 feet, followed by a downclimb/slide. You could rappel the downclimb/slide with a sufficiently long rope. Rappel 5 - There was no existing anchor. Built a new anchor on the canyon right with black webbing and a new quick link around a large boulder. Two-stage rappel, 35 feet, and 40 feet. Rappel 6 - Again, no existing anchor. We used a 40-foot rope someone left in the canyon, wrapped it around two sandstone columns on the canyon right, and built an anchor with a new quick link. The final rappel in Fallen Angel was excellent and about 80 feet.

Death Canyon - North Wash

Date: 11/04/2022
Short approach hike. Nothing noteworthy to report regarding this slot canyon. It's probably worth doing once. Last rappel was into a small pool of water and the canyon walls were muddy from recent rainfall.