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| Backpack | 14.00 Miles |
3,500 AEG |
| | Backpack | 14.00 Miles | 2 Days | | |
| 3,500 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | Spent the weekend with a great group on a wild ride down the South Canyon Route! We departed Phoenix on Friday afternoon and picked up Larry in Flag and made our way to the trailhead. We enjoyed a nice campfire and turned in for the night.
We woke Saturday morning and took our time getting breakfast and packing up our gear. Shortly afterward we started making our descent. Right from the get go you start making the scramble-down climb. The going is very steep and our pace was slow & cautious. The route is well marked and there were obvious signs of recent foot traffic. We continued down and reached the creek bottom in roughly 40 minutes. From there we made our way down canyon. Some sections are slow as you scramble over and around boulders while other sections make for fast travel where the canyon is wide open. We stopped for a break at roughly the half way point and then proceeded down. There are a few minor down climbs along the way that slow progress but nothing is overwhelming. The last obstacle is right above the river through a break in the Redwall. You have to down climb and the loaded packs made it a little more difficult. After that we found ourselves on the beach and began setting up camp.
The rest of Saturday was spent relaxing and exploring. We made our way to Stanton’s Cave and Vasey’s Paradise. VP was very cool and I brought home a souvenir in the form of Poison Ivy! Besides that some rafters stopped for a bit and kindly gave us a handful of beer. They departed soon after and we had the area to ourselves the rest of the night. Later that evening Larry discovered Black Widows along the wall and we then spent some time looking for them. I would guess we found at least twenty in a little over ten minutes. They are beautiful and nasty looking at the same time. We spent the evening enjoying some cold beverages (The Colorado did an excellent job keeping the beer cold). We also did some star gazing in which we saw several shooting stars. Life was good!
Sunday arrived and we had breakfast and spent some time pumping water directly from the Colorado. The water was flowing clear and had minimal silt in it. After that we packed up and then made the ascent back to the rim. We spaced out a bit on the hike out but always regrouped for a quick break. The final climb back to the rim was a grind but went by quick. From there we loaded up our gear and made our way back to Phoenix. The real highlight of the trip was stopping for wings at NiMarco’s. Those golden bbq are something special!
This was another amazing trip! South Canyon is a dream and a must do for anyone looking for a challenge. The going can be slow and painful but it was worth it! Put this on your list if you love scrambling and down climbing and camping with Black Widows! |
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