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| Canyoneering | 6.20 Miles |
1,800 AEG |
| | Canyoneering | 6.20 Miles | | | |
| 1,800 ft AEG | | | | |
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| Partners |
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[ show ]
| partners | | Ken and Scott picked a good one!
After Ken and Jake arrived in the Morning, we set off...It wasn't long before we started the Steep Descent into the Side Drainage that would take us eventually to the Main Event...I can honestly say that it's been awhile since I've done this much extensive Boulder Hopping. 1 1/2 Miles felt like 3 before it was all said, done, and we got to the Main Canyon. There was no easy Slick Rock Walking through here and there was no getting out of the "Creek" either. Solid small, medium and large Boulders the whole way and let's throw in some Logs and Log Jams just for Kicks...I actually had to work pretty hard to get my Leg and Foot back at one point... I slowed the Team down quite a bit as I no longer feel like the Knees can take jumping down onto Rocks like they can, but the guys were more than patient... It didn't help that I forgot the Ibuprofen, but Jake probably really saved me on that one... 
We get to the Main Canyon and down in we go...A couple of us decided on Wetsuits, but it could have gone either way as the Water was really low and infrequent. It was also Sunny and plenty Warm out. Almost immediately, we are at the Keeper and it was definitely in Keeper Mode on this Day. Partner Assist was a Must on this one and everyone did great! We went right from that one into another Semi Keeper. I made Friends with a Frog in that one, but opted not to Kiss him...These Pools were definitely "Stewy".... Ken and Jake were able to muscle out of that Pothole, so we were good there too... 
We continued on down the Canyon, Downclimbing most of it, which was fun. My Skills in that Department are getting better, and I am more comfortable with some of it, but still needed some assistance in a few Spots. Hopefully, I'll keep getting better at it. This was definitely a good Canyon to "practice" in...
We opted to do 3 Rappels. One into the Keeper, another one that we rigged a Handline for, but that I opted to use my Device on and then one using a Dead Man's Anchor that we rebuilt. Just a great Variety of Skills utilized on this Day, it was awesome!
The Canyon was really nice. It had Narrows, then it widened out and then it would Narrow up again. Even with the Potholes, Downclimbing and more Boulder Hopping, I don't think it took nearly as long to do the 1+ Miles of Canyon as it did the Approach...
And then, we were at the Exit. I knew when I started up the Trail, that I was really running out of Gas. It was steep and I was extraordinarily slow. I think the Boulder Hopping took a lot out of my Legs and I was also struggling from the Elevation. I kept insisting to the Guys to go on ahead, but some of them didn't listen very well...Ken knows me well enough to know I'll be fine, but Jake insisted keeping me company to Babe's Hole Spring and then Scott took over from there...  Luckily between the Two Springs, there is some respite before the next and final Uphill. By the Time I hit the TH at the Top, I was pretty done. I had to rest even walking the Road 1/2 Mile back to Camp...  It probably didn't help that halfway up the last Hill my Leg Muscles started Spasming...
But with more than a little help from my Friends, I got it done and it was worth every Mile. I actually recovered quite nicely after Resting in Camp awhile, but I still felt a little Fatigued the next morning. The Soreness didn't really settle in until the Drive Home...
Thanks for the Invite Scott and Ken! Once again, I am grateful to have such good, patient, understanding Friends that are willing to take me to these Places...Without them, these Places would only exist in my Mind through the Photos of others...You. Guys. Rock. Jake, welcome to the Party, you fit right in and were awesome as well!
I would like to do this Canyon again sometime...I would like to do it better. I think this Canyon was great, but I think it would be awesome with some good running Water through it. Until next time....  |
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Wildflowers Observation Isolated
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Little L O Spring Canyon |
Pools to trickle |
Pools to trickle |
| | | No Trickle, just Pools and unless you absolutely had to have it, I would hold off for the Springs rather than Filtering any of those Pools, lol Swimming could be avoided in all of the Pools, but there is Mandatory Wading...The Two Main Potholes were in Keeper and Semi-Keeper Mode in that order. | | _____________________
| Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!" |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
Route 
Thankfully my car was able to take the forrest roads all the way to within a mile of the Kelsey TH. We walked the rode a bit before cutting cross country towards the side canyon of Little LO canyon but this time I made a point to stay on the side of the canyon longer to make for a shorter rock hop down that canyon. I knew that with this dry spell there'd be a slim chance the canyon was flowing so I wasn't surprised to find that upper mini narrows rather dry. 
After some hot & dry rock hopping, we hit the beginning of the narrows and I sent her down first to evaluate the water level. When she said it was good, I splashed some water on the slide and slide in. 
This potential keeper was 1-2ft below the lip but we were able to exit using buddy boasts & pulls. 
The canyon was lightly flowing, the keepers were plenty full so we slid down the chutes, and the tricky down climbs had pools below them to drop into so we ended up not even doing a single rappel. 
