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| Canyoneering | 5.85 Miles |
1,320 AEG |
| | Canyoneering | 5.85 Miles | 6 Hrs 45 Mns | | 0.87 mph |
| 1,320 ft AEG | | | | |
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| | Canyon Hiking - Non-technical; no rope; easy scrambling; occasional hand use | | A - Dry or little water; shallow or avoidable water; no wet/dry suit | | II - Normally requires a half day |
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| partners | | With the opportunity to hike with Kelli on short notice we decided on Tonto Narrows. It's been over eight years since I originally visited and recorded this hike. With the recent access closure I was interested in finding a legal way to make this trip work. Dana deserves all the kudos as he tried two routes already. One down the majority of Houston Creek which works but is a long haul. Another attempt on the tail end of Gibson Creek had the right distance variable and is doable too if you enjoy catclaw and some scrambling.
So I put one and two together and used what I learned from Sid Hayes. In asking Sid the best way to tackle the Ridgeline via Old West Boulder Canyon about five years ago Sid said "when presented with a ridge I'd take that option over a canyon first". Viola getting old is paying off, these tiny little things I've learned along the way are proving useful for once!
With a loaded GPS Route, we went over the game plan and headed out. I wore shoes & pants in August none-the-less due to being Chris-tened in the past coming home to blood sausage legs. Along with an even larger tube to shake the wiggles of the dollar tubes.
To our surprise this route proved to be pretty nice for the most part. No major bushwhacking and several use-trails along the way. The key is staying on the ridge. With fast diving mountain lines all around and a slight roller coaster on your own I was glad to have the GPS loaded and used it often. When you get to the point where you're overlooking Houston Creek 400 feet straight down you know somebody's gotta pay the piper... and it's you. It looks more intimidating for the most part. The final hundred feet is ridiculously steep with unsure footing passing a buffet of cacti along the way.
Once in Houston Creek it's a hop, skip and a jump down to the narrows. To keep this one legal keep an eye out to the east for a reverse slanting exit out of the creek up onto what can only be described as the cow-deck.
We headed up creek in the water and through the narrows. They sure don't last very long. Then we continued on to the waterfall about 0.75mi up creek floating, paddling and swimming. We pondered going further then made a wise choice to turn around. Wise as I sit here typing and my arms are about to fall off from over a mile of paddling. In addition, regardless of a thick SPF 50 lathering my arms are a glowing red furnace of pain.
Coming in we got a glimpse of some rock-art on one of the peaked ridge sections. On the return I realized the whole area was Rob-Randalized!
I highly recommend more than two hours of sleep for this jaunt or perhaps ten to fifteen degrees cooler, it's starting to sting. I believe I've had my Tonto Narrows fix for another eight to ten years. Thanks Kelli for a great little adventure. 
Note: The access via FR208 may be considered 4x4 by some. I got in with 2WD and no issues. |
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