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Gale and I have been venturing into the world of Canyoneering lately. This trip report covers one of three spectacular technical slot canyons that we hiked a couple weeks ago. They are not very long hikes, but they can be challenging and do take some time. One of Gale's trusted climbing partners, Dave, and his family joined us on this adventure.
I'll start with the technical specs and then move on to the photos:
Pine Creek Canyon is rated 3B II using the Canyon Rating System. Zion back country permits are necessary to enter Pine Creek Canyon. Complete technical gear including one 60 meter rope (or two 50-meter ropes) are needed, but no bolt kit is necessary as there are plenty of natural, easy to spot anchors at every rappel. We brought 50 feet of extra webbing, several slings and a couple of rappel rings. Navigating this canyon is as straight forward as it gets...getting lost is virtually impossible. There is a serious flash flood danger within this canyon, so
checking weather reports before setting out is
paramount.
Pine Creek is a narrow and very dramatic technical slot canyon within Zion National Park in Southern Utah. The entrance to the canyon is just off of the main highway that runs through Zion. In fact, the entire canyon runs parallel to the long tunnel that the Zion highway runs through. Towards the end of the slot area you can see one of 4 or 5 windows that are cut into the mountain that the tunnel runs through. The hike out, after the slot area, is rugged and involves a lot of boulder hopping, scrambling and wading while following the creek about a mile or so to where it meets back up with the switchbacks of the Zion highway.
There are five rappels, the highest of which is about 100 ft, a number of rocky technical descents, several cold swims through fairly deep pools and about one mile of wading through more shallow pools of water. This canyon gets very deep and narrow in places and without much light finding its way to the bottom, the water can be very cold. We opted to wear wet suits and were still a bit chilly. Note: the outside temp in full sun that day was 101º F...that's the desert for ya...hot as hell in some places, cold as hell in others!!!
The most notable rappels are the 3rd and 5th rappel. The 3rd is about 45 feet high and deposits you in a large cavern known as the "Cathedral". The water was moderately high when we visited, so this rappel was straight into a very cold deep pool (couldn't touch the bottom). The Cathedral is one of the more incredible places to be found in any slot canyon and is very photogenic. Unfortunately it takes a much better camera than I have to really capture the grandeur of this area. My photos were not so good...but I shall post them anyway.
The Cathedral is followed by a very deep dark section of narrows. The remainder of the narrows are an enjoyable mix of down climbing, scrambling, wading and swimming.
The 6th and final rappel is gorgeous!! The drop is about 100-foot free hanging rappel, which is a little scary but so very worth it to hang amongst so much beauty. At the bottom of the rappel, a trickling spring seeps out of the massive rock face and creates the creek that you end up following to finish the hike out.
The lighting all throughout the canyon creates a mystical and sometimes eerie setting in the bowels of the canyon. Like so many other slot canyons, you can't help feel like a bit of a trespasser. Or at the very least, very lucky to have been "allowed passage" through an area that most people never see. It's grand!!!
Now that I have surely rambled on for far too long, here are some pics...they aren't great, but hopefully they communicate a wee bit of beauty.
- Dropping down into the canyon from just off the Zion Highway
- Looking back towards the entrance
- Ready for some fun!!!
- First rappel is a 2 stage rappel - only the first stage is visible here
- Gale at the bottom of the second stage of the first rappel - on fireman's belay
- A very large tree that had fallen into the canyon
- Gale on fireman's belay again, near the "Cathedral".
- Looking up through the Cathedral
- The next rappel...#3 I think
- A small area where the canyon opens up a little
- Gale boulder hopping
- Looking up towards the sky...house size boulders that have fallen from the cliff face above and gotten stuck in the narrow slot opening of the canyon
A little more than halfway through, the canyon opens up quite a bit and gets much warmer. This was a great spot to change out of our wetsuits and have some lunch. Just two rappels left...
- Here is where you can see a window in the cliff...inside that window is the Zion highway tunnel
- Looking down from the top of the 4th rappel
- Gale coming down the 4th rappel
- Gale & Dave setting up the last and tallest rappel while I am enjoying the amazing views across Zion
- Looking up through the last rappel. Gorgeous!!!
- Dave's youngest daughter (age 12) half way down the last rappel.
- Looking back the way we came towards the same window in the cliff
- End of the walk out
- From the parking lot, Weeping Rock. The hike out follows the creek at the bottom of this arch.
And that's all for this one, folks!