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| Canyoneering | 5.50 Miles |
1,800 AEG |
| | Canyoneering | 5.50 Miles | 9 Hrs | | 0.61 mph |
| 1,800 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | After doing Sunburst canyon 2 weeks ago I just had to go back and see what her sister canyon Voodoo had to offer. I called up Mike and asked if he wanted to make another run up to the area camping out the night before so we didn't have 6 hours of driving in one day again. He was in so Friday evening we made our way up to Flagstaff for dinner and then onto FR231 to head to the top of the canyon to camp out.
As we got to our destination and were about to set up, Mike yelled out some bad words and I thought he had forgotten something important. It turns out he only forgot his tent so I have him my poncho to lay on the grond for him to use as a pad while I set up my nice comfy tent. I guess during the middle of the night something little starting to chew on him a bit so he decided to sleep in my Jeep.
Morning came and we were up at the sunrise and got our stuff ready to go. We found a little bit better route down and almost right at the entrance to Sunburst where we knew now we had to climb the hill and drop down the other side to get into Voodoo. This climb up the hill wasn't bad at all and at the top is a perfect open area with great views which would make for a perfect campspot. We could see the narrow drainage heading down so we stayed out of it to the side as long as we could before the steep drop off towards the bottom. We were in the drainage which was thick with lush shrubs and dead branches as usual for this area. A few minutes in the drainage and we came to the entrance of Voodoo. More brush and some fresh small pools of water were encountered before the canyon started to narrow up.
After a couple easy downclimbs in some sweet rock formations we arrived at the first rappel and the canyon register. This register needs to be improved upon, I opened it up and it was 1/4 full of water with one soaked pencil and piece of paper in it. I drained the water out and put the delicate paper back in but we could not sign it and I even debated on taking it out but left it.
The first rappel puts you into some water and then the canyon turns and drops down with some fantastic views and rock formations in sight. The first big drop had a little water going over the edge after we stirred the pool a bit which made it pretty sweet. Always a jot to rappel down a wall with some water going down it. This canyon was a bit different as once it narrowed up it opened up and then narrowed up again. It really offered a great canyon experience. There was a semi keeper pothole that was full of water which made for getting out easy with another beached whale move I have perfected now. The second big rappel down into a pool and chamber was amazing and I took my time enjoying what it had to offer.
In the middle of this canyon is a log jam galore which I said there should be a name change to this canyon to "dead fall canyon" We made our way through this mess and towards the bottom. A short rappel into a stinky pool made us shake our heads but then towards the bottom of the canyon was a fresh clear small pool we slid into and washed off. We couldn't beleive how clear that water was, fresh rainfall. The canyon provided more lush brush to go through and then it opened up into Sunburst.
We had our lunch at the same spot right before we dropped into Secret Canyon and then made our way out. Again this section of Secret Canyon is just amazing, the water had rised about 6 inches from two weeks ago changing it just a bit for us which we enjoyed. The narrow section through the red supai is just awesome. We came to the dreaded exit climb out through the dead fall drainages. If it was not for this part I would come back to these canyons. 
On the final climb up the hill back to the Jeep the skies began to darken and the flash of light was starting followed by some of the loudest crackling thunder I have ever heard. Five minutes from the Jeep the clouds opened up on us and drenched us with rain. Back at the Jeep the lightning was close and the thunder was blowing our ear drums out. We made a quick clothing change and got in the Jeep to get out of here. The roads were like rivers as they were rushing. The small pools we drove through the day before were almost too deep to go straight through now, but the Jeep did just fine and got a good bath at the same time. Back onto FR 231 and right before we got to the West Fork of Oak Creek crossing it was over. The rain stopped and the skies were blue and offered us a great view on the drive out of the SF Peaks and the surrounding meadows in the area. Another great trek. Thanks for going Mike. |
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