I recently had to hike in this magnificent canyon. Our group hiked from the west trailhead. We hiked through the river for most of the hike into the canyon. The cold water felt great on my feet! We explored Hell's Half Acre side canyon but not for long since there were some giant boulders early on in that canyon. We continued on to either Horse Camp side canyon or the nameless side canyon just to its west--we couldn't make up our mind which one we had actually entered. Whatever side canyon it was, it made for a wonderful lunch spot, complete with a spring-fed, clear pool in which to swim. On the way back, we stuck to the "trails" more, and it was quite a bit faster. We were escorted out of the canyon by a Great Blue Heron who would meet us at one point, fly west several hundred yards, wait for us, then fly west several hundred yards, over and over again until we were out. Once in a while some of his friends would fly overhead to keep an eye on us. These Herons certainly have a beautiful place to call home.