I couldn't believe it. I was going to have two new canyons within one month's time. I was scheduled for Mystery, but when a SAR took out the Hidden Canyon from the Top party, I was ready to fill their shoes. I got the okay from the boss lady and soon Craig was driving Annie, Kelsey, and I to the Cable Mountain Trailhead. None of us had done the route before, so it was going to be a brand new experience. We were all stoked for it as we came armed with a couple of big ropes and a good route description. We wasted a lot of time getting to the drop-in point. It was a hot day out, so that kept us motivated to get into the cool canyon. First we went too far and turned back. Then we found ourselves at the head of a very steep drop off after too much intense bushwhacking. It can't be this hard could it. We just followed the rim until it dropped off steeply to a big fat ponderosa pine with a bunch of webbing.
We knew this must be the start, so we got ourselves ready to go. Kelsey was the first one ready, so she got going. The first drop was not particularly steep, but awkward to start and long. This canyon is only done (legally) about 10 times a year, so we knew we would have our work cut out for us. We all made it down the 100 footer and continued on our way. By this time it was already lunch time so we all dug in to find the only shade we could. It was a hot one, so the shade was much needed. We spent the rest of the day downclimbing and rappelling almost constantly. It seemed like we would walk ten feet and then right in front of us was another, hmm, what should we do about this one. Some of the drops were long, but not particularly scary. We got a good rappel inside of a little narrow slot. We had to go out on a boulder and swing over the edge, then go free until we got to the bottom. All the time doing all of that on only one bolt.
It was questionable, but the amount of time it would take to rig another anchor up could put us far behind. After each drop, first one included, we would constantly see grafiti. Hidden Canyon is a very popular hike to do from the bottom up, so each hiker was leaving their mark saying this was as far as I have gotten. I am not sure how the hikers seem to make it up some of the crazy obstacles or why when this was such an enjoyable trip from the top down. I personally had only been a little ways compared to the length of the entire canyon. Continuing we would vary from flat greenery, to boulder fields, to steep downclimbs, to short rappels. All the time we were pushing the limits of what our bodies could do and our water capacity could hold. It was definitely a sweaty day as there is zero water in this canyon to cool you off. Continuing we came to a big drop and were wondering how to negotiate it.
We followed the left side of the canyon, eventually having to cross a large arch suspended 150 feet above the canyon floor. This was a little nerve racking but eventually Kelsey and Annie stumbled upon a huge ponderosa with some webbing. We knew this would take us once again to the canyon floor. Kelsey was right away the first one down and let me tell you it was great to have her so excited about canyoneering and doing everything. She acted like the leader on this day even though I was technically the trip leader. We got to do a really sweet rappel that was also a long one. It had a little overhang, but mostly it was just an easy ride to the bottom.
This was the last place that I thought I would technically be able to get up from the bottom to because the rest of the way, it was just awkward downclimbs and big boulderfields. We really got good at downclimbing at the end of the day even though we were pretty comfortable at the beginning. This would not be a canyon for someone who does not have good body control when it comes to downclimbs. When we were getting close to being done, we started to get a little worried because the sky was getting very dark above us and we could hear the thunder. Soon the rain started to fall, but it was only sprinkling. We were smart enough to know that Hidden has a small drainage, but that this was not a place to be. We found out later that other places in Zion canyon were getting pounded, but we were doing fine. Soon after that we heard voices, our first of the day. They were high above us and eventually we talked to these folks. They said they were trying to find the secret way out of the canyon. We were finally able to convince them that they had incorrect information and that the best choice of actions was retreat. We were happy to see the familiar parts of the canyon appearing and we popped out a little bit after five. I was hoping to get home on time, but now it seemed we were going to be 30 minutes late. Oh well, it turned out to be a really fun day doing a new canyon and I really liked Hidden from the top. It seems like the perfect canyon to do on an eighty degree day. On this 105 degree day, though, we were all out of agua by the time we picked up the shuttle bus at Weeping Rock. I would love to do that canyon again, though, as it truly was a blast.
I couldn't believe it. I was going to have two new canyons within one month's time. I was scheduled for Mystery, but when a SAR took out the Hidden Canyon from the Top party, I was ready to fill their shoes. I got the okay from the boss lady and soon Craig was driving Annie, Kelsey, and I to the Cable Mountain Trailhead. None of us had done the route before, so it was going to be a brand new experience. We were all stoked for it as we came armed with a couple of big ropes and a good route description. We wasted a lot of time getting to the drop-in point. It was a hot day out, so that kept us motivated to get into the cool canyon. First we went too far and turned back. Then we found ourselves at the head of a very steep drop off after too much intense bushwhacking. It can't be this hard could it. We just followed the rim until it dropped off steeply to a big fat ponderosa pine with a bunch of webbing. 
We knew this must be the start, so we got ourselves ready to go. Kelsey was the first one ready, so she got going. The first drop was not particularly steep, but awkward to start and long. This canyon is only done (legally) about 10 times a year, so we knew we would have our work cut out for us. We all made it down the 100 footer and continued on our way. By this time it was already lunch time so we all dug in to find the only shade we could. It was a hot one, so the shade was much needed. We spent the rest of the day downclimbing and rappelling almost constantly. It seemed like we would walk ten feet and then right in front of us was another, hmm, what should we do about this one. Some of the drops were long, but not particularly scary. We got a good rappel inside of a little narrow slot. We had to go out on a boulder and swing over the edge, then go free until we got to the bottom. All the time doing all of that on only one bolt. 
It was questionable, but the amount of time it would take to rig another anchor up could put us far behind. After each drop, first one included, we would constantly see grafiti. Hidden Canyon is a very popular hike to do from the bottom up, so each hiker was leaving their mark saying this was as far as I have gotten. I am not sure how the hikers seem to make it up some of the crazy obstacles or why when this was such an enjoyable trip from the top down. I personally had only been a little ways compared to the length of the entire canyon. Continuing we would vary from flat greenery, to boulder fields, to steep downclimbs, to short rappels. All the time we were pushing the limits of what our bodies could do and our water capacity could hold. It was definitely a sweaty day as there is zero water in this canyon to cool you off. Continuing we came to a big drop and were wondering how to negotiate it. 
We followed the left side of the canyon, eventually having to cross a large arch suspended 150 feet above the canyon floor. This was a little nerve racking but eventually Kelsey and Annie stumbled upon a huge ponderosa with some webbing. We knew this would take us once again to the canyon floor. Kelsey was right away the first one down and let me tell you it was great to have her so excited about canyoneering and doing everything. She acted like the leader on this day even though I was technically the trip leader. We got to do a really sweet rappel that was also a long one. It had a little overhang, but mostly it was just an easy ride to the bottom. 
This was the last place that I thought I would technically be able to get up from the bottom to because the rest of the way, it was just awkward downclimbs and big boulderfields. We really got good at downclimbing at the end of the day even though we were pretty comfortable at the beginning. This would not be a canyon for someone who does not have good body control when it comes to downclimbs. When we were getting close to being done, we started to get a little worried because the sky was getting very dark above us and we could hear the thunder. Soon the rain started to fall, but it was only sprinkling. We were smart enough to know that Hidden has a small drainage, but that this was not a place to be. We found out later that other places in Zion canyon were getting pounded, but we were doing fine. Soon after that we heard voices, our first of the day. They were high above us and eventually we talked to these folks. They said they were trying to find the secret way out of the canyon. We were finally able to convince them that they had incorrect information and that the best choice of actions was retreat. We were happy to see the familiar parts of the canyon appearing and we popped out a little bit after five. I was hoping to get home on time, but now it seemed we were going to be 30 minutes late. Oh well, it turned out to be a really fun day doing a new canyon and I really liked Hidden from the top. It seems like the perfect canyon to do on an eighty degree day. On this 105 degree day, though, we were all out of agua by the time we picked up the shuttle bus at Weeping Rock. I would love to do that canyon again, though, as it truly was a blast. 
1 comment:
No way?! What a job. You probably know more of Zion than any previous BC ranger. Serious.
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