The Black Hole is often touted as one of the best canyon adventures around It has amazing beauty, challenging obstacles and is a lot of fun Be warned, however, flash floods have taken lives here Competent leadership is required for a safe and great adventure Several years ago the canyon flash flooded and filled with immense log jams, making it very difficult to descend After several years, these washed out, and the canyon is back to its former self Beware, though, it is a canyon that can change dramatically Many gr...

Dark Canyon is one of the crown jewels of Southern Utah Starting high in the alpine area of Elk Ridge at about 9000' in elevation, it descends all the way to elevation 3700' where it reaches the Colorado River Lake Powell used to inundate the lower part of the canyon, but it has receded leaving sand banked walls and sun-baked former mud flats in the very lower reaches Visiting Dark Canyon is often done either by visiting the upper, more alpine area, or the lower more desert area A full traverse from the top to the ...

"There is an exquisite charm in our ride to-day down this beautiful canyon It gradually grows deeper with every mile of travel; the walls are symmetrically curved and grandly arched, of a beautiful color, and reflected in the quiet waters in many places so as almost to deceive the eye and suggest to the beholder the thought that he is looking into profound depths" -John Wesley Powell, Canyons of the Colorado I can think of no better introduction to Labyrinth Canyon than the imagery Powell conjures up in his descrip...

Climbing in Arches National Park doesn't get much easier than this! A stone's throw from the much more popular Owl Rock, Bullwinkle Tower is fun, more moderate route that doesn't seem to get the love I think it deserves The climbing is easy, the views excellent, and the outing short What is not to love I recommend Bullwinkle Tower as a good first tower in Arches before tackling the harder/longer Owl Rock nearby

Sad Cow Disease Canyon is the great canyon with the depressing name! Though it does not look particularly long on the topo map, the canyon is surprisingly action packed Expect deep dark slot sections, downclimbs, and an exceptionally scenic day It is a treat! The canyon is excellent, and Little Death Hollow Canyon used for the approach and exit is always lovely This is a solid intermediate level canyon in my mind The downclimbs all seemed quite reasonable but with some exposure and skills needed that might leave a ...

Nine Mile Canyon is known as the world's longest art gallery The canyon is about 40 miles long but became named Nine Mile Canyon when F M Bishop on Powell’s expedition to the area did a nine-mile triangulation drawing he named Nine Mile Creek For rock art enthusiasts, this is an absolute top of the list place to visit The canyon is home to hundreds of rock art panels, as well as granaries, and other Native American sites It is an astonishing place to visit With more than 1,000 cataloged rock art sites, the sheer vo...

On the western side of the Henry Mountains is a remote region called Cave Flat The area had piqued my interest for a long time It is the winter range of the Buffalo herd, and a place I was hoping to do a long hike and find some solitude It turned out to be a gem! This route meanders down Bullfrog Creek that starts as a wash and slowly deepens The creek is often dry About 4 miles from the trailhead, the creek cuts into sandstone, deepens, and becomes much more interesting It is about this point that water begins com...

One of my climber friends once told me that Not Mindbender was one of the best canyons he had done in the Roost I would very much echo his sentiment There are other canyons in the Roost that are more narrow or difficult, but Not Mindbender tops the list for its beauty and charm The exit requires someone with moderate climbing ability 55/10 m, but is worth the effort Don't miss this canyon if you are in the Roost The longer variation described here is recommended for those with two cars, wanting a longer day The sta...

Starting at the same trailhead as the far more popular Notch Peak hike, Hell‘n Moriah Canyon seems like an overlooked gem to me The canyon is wide open at its head, but has a short and dramatic section that cuts through a limestone layer The section that cuts through the limestone is high walled, and very scenic One of the prettiest sections of canyon I have seen in the West Desert so far For hikers, you can visit most of the narrows as an out-and-back hike, which is likely how I would most recommend it Those wanti...

This is a canyon that the few people that I knew to have done it had left me with the impression that it would be a dud; not worth the time or energy So, when I visited, I had fairly low expectations As often happens in life I suppose, having low expectations led me to be very pleasantly surprised! Seager's Window Canyon, though not nearly as narrow as its neighbor Seager's Hole/The Squeeze, has larger and much more ominous keeper potholes The difficult potholes are passable with interesting climbing around the sid...