Sundance Canyon - Canyoning Arizona Slot Canyon

Sundance Canyon is a neat slot canyon outside Camp Verde, Arizona in the Coconino National Forest. Sundance Canyon is know for its 180 foot rappel at the end, which is the best climax to a canyon that I have done.

Entering Sundance Canyon is a steep hike down into the canyon where we found cow bones. The cows were not able to find a way out though we were hoping to be luckier.

Sundance Canyon has an interesting narrows section that has consistent scrambling, down climbing, swimming through pools, and rappelling. There are 4-5 short rappels into freezing cold pools. Wetsuits are required in all of the conditions.

One the best treats in the canyon was a short jump into a freezing cold pool. If you were awake yet you were now. There is nothing like completely under water that is ice cold to get the senses moving.

The highlight of Sundance Canyon is the 180 ft drop into West Clear Creek Canyon. What makes the drop even more impressive is the keeper pot hole you have to maneuver just to get to the edge. It is amazing to be in a narrow slot canyon and freezing cold pools of water with a 180ft drop just over the other side.

The final 180 ft rappel is awesome. The final 130 ft are a free hang where the ground just looks so far away. I don't recommend this rappel for anyone who has a heart condition as I promise your heart will be beating a little faster as you drop into the gorge.

To get back to the truck is a short hike in West Clear Creek Canyon which is a 25 mile canyon hike that I would like to do as some point.

Canyoneering Sundance Canyon - Rappelling Swimming - Cold Pools - 180ft Rappel

Start 25 min. Canyon Swim - First Water Canyon

Swimming Freezing Pool - Fish Creek Canyon

Goldmine Mountain - San Tan Mountains

Got out of the house for a little workout today in the San Tan Mountains. Started on the Goldmine trail as I made my way up to the top of Goldmine Mountains. High winds while I hiked which helped with the heat.

Starting with the Goldmine trail is a great place to get a workout as you get steep hills to build hiking strength. On the other side of Goldmine Mountain is a series of trails over many more hills.

As the San Tan Mountains are as far south east as you can get and still be part of the Phoenix metro area. These trails have people on them everyday though they don't get any where close to the amount of traffic you find at Piestewa Peak or South Mountain.

Piestewa/Squaw Peak Circumference Trail

I joined a local hiking group. Well before I could officially be a member I had to do a test hike with one of the group coordinators. The goal of the group was to have fit hikers and canyoneers, and I had to be approved. It was an interesting drive to the hike knowing I had never had to be approved to hike before, though I don't need approval to hike just to hike with the group.

To keep the little or no expense to an end I did make the cut. Basically if you can keep up with the group then you are in. If you couldn't hike with the group then I don't think it would be much fun to go with them anyway. I am excited to find a group of people who are fit and like to go canyoneering.

Our hike was the Piestewa/Squaw Peak Circumference Trail which was a 4.5 mile hike in and around Piestewa Peak which used to be called Squaw Peak. Piestewa Peak is in the heart of Phoenix which makes it a popular hike for tons of people. The trail we took is a longer trail than the summitt hike and we had most of the trail to ourselves. The great part of this hike is that most of it was in a shade, which was a great supprise since it was 90 degrees while we were hiking.

I look forward to joining the group on one of their next canyoneering trips.

Canyoneering Backpacking Buckskin Gulch Paria River Longest Slot Canyon

Buckskin Gulch Canyon Photos

Buckskin Gulch - Paria River Canyoneering Backpacking

I just spent the last weekend swishing and splashing my way through Buckskin Gulch. Buckskin Gulch is the longest slot canyon in the United States outside Page, Arizona. Buckskin Gulch is part of the Paria Canyon/Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness Area which is gives new meeting to middle of no where. I have two thoughts before I describe our trip; Buckskin Gulch is absolutely amazing and a must see, and at the same time is a true test of true endurance.

Our trip is to take Wire Pass trail to Buckskin Gulch, and then exit through the Paria River the following day. The total trip is 21 miles.

Our trip started Friday in a wind storm. The wind had gusts up to 50 miles an hour from Phoenix all the way to where we were heading outside Page. It is something driving for 6 hrs on your way for a weekend trip with horizontal rain and snow blowing and pushing your truck off the road. The wind was blowing so hard it broke our windshield wiper, which was fun to fix in the pleasant weather. We made the guy wearing his shell jacket in the truck go outside. He was the only guy wearing a jacket.

We did make it just in time for the all you could eat the Paria Outpost, which was a good thing since I didn't see a single thing open in Page when we drove by. Paria Outpost is quarter of a mile from the White House campground where we camped and we used them as a shuttle.

Saturday morning we take our shuttle to the Wire Pass trail head which is shorter route to getting into Buckskin then starting at the Buckskin trail head. I always go into canyons in nice weather as getting wet when you are cold is no fun, so this was some start at 40 degrees and wind blowing as we leave for the trail.

Wire Pass is a short hike to reach the entrace to Buckskin Gulch. Wire Pass in itself has some cool narrow slots of its own which make for a good start to the day. Where Wire Pass and Buckskin Gulch meet gives me visions of entering a Indiana Jones movie. A couple hundred foot sheer walls welcome you into their depths.

Bucksin Gulch consists of mile after mile of narrow slots and lots of getting your feet wet in muddy and cold pools. The best piece of gear you can own is a pair of neoprene socks. They help out a ton. Most canyons have short sections of narrows. Buckskin has miles of them.

You do get a break every once and awhile and get pieces of sun with huge openings with walls towering over your head. You will spend most of your day and what can best be described as a dungeon deep in the canyon and with limited light. It may be noon though Buckskin doesn't care how much light you think should be there.

There is no way to describe the experience of being deep in a canyon with mile after mile of narrow slots that get just a couple feet wide. It is something you have to experience for yourself.

What I will say is that fitness does help. It tooks 9.5 hrs to get from the start to our campsite. You may think you can do it fast though a backpacking group did it 1 hour faster and they didn't stop to take the video you did. So if you are a consistent backpacker than plan on 8.5 hrs if you don't stop much. Either way you have to be prepared to spend a long time hiking, scrambling, wading, and more. One thing to keep in mind also it is easier to make good time on a groomed trail then it is in sand, mud, more mud, water, rocks, and boulders. They take a little longer and little more toll on your body. Just ask one of the people in our group who lets say gained new understanding on his personal ability to keep going. One more note on time because this is an overnight your pack is full of extra gear like tent, sleeping bag, food, and so on.

You camp in sand benches that nature has provided. It is 14 miles the first day. There is no way to miss them and they come shortly after a rock jam that you have to climb down and a huge boudler stuck in the slot over your head. Our backdrop for our campsite was a small stream heading for the Paria River and 200ft or more canyon walls that made your neck hurt just to look that straight up.

The next day starts with a short hike to the Paria River which leads to the Colorado River at Lee's Fairy. We headed north instead of South to the Colorado for our exit. The Paria River is very slity and doesn't make good water to filter. Though the Paria River's canyon walls are farther apart the river takes up a lot of it as your wind your way. Be prepared for more in and out of water and just to make you feel better the Paria River water is colder than the water in Buckskin. The Paria River gives a whole new experience of sheer canyon walls hundreds of feet above your head as your follow a river as it has carved its way millions of years ago.

The best part of the Paria River exit is the sun came out and we spent extra time relaxing in the sand watching the river and burning my nose. You forget after a day in the dark that you need suncreen on the way out.

We exited the Paria River at White House campground where we left our truck with totaly exhausted and elated minds and bodies.

Buckskin Gulch is one of the coolest canyoneering experiences that gave dramtic sceanry, experiences, and complete effort to complete.

Agua Fria River Canyon - Canyoneering Photos

Canyoning Aguq Fria River Canyon Video

Agua Fria River Canyon - Canyoneering North of Phoenix

So we went down the Agua Fria River Canyon today. Overall a fun canyon for a February where the goal was to do no swimming. A little wading would be find and just wanted to get outside and enjoy a nice Arizona canyon.

One thing to keep in mind is that I thought this canyon would take 4.5-5.5 hrs to complete. Nine hours later we got back to the truck. A slight miss understanding to the time it takes to get through the canyon. This is the most off by time to complete I have been in a canyon. I will tell you later what took so long.

The canyoning trip starts with an easy hike down the Badger Spring Wash which leads to the Agua Fria River. The river had good water flow though the canyon was wide and made for scrambling and bouldering to stay out of the water. Though the temperature eventually hit 75 degrees outside the water was still freezing and swimming or constant wading through the water would have been hypothermia.

The Agua Fria River Canyon is full of boulder mazes which you can find your way through. There are plenty of small water falls which keeps the scenery going. The canyon changes quite a few times from different types of rock. I enjoyed scrambling over some cool blue boulders for a good stretch of the canyon.

There were a few instances where we did get wet up to our waist though most of the canyon was scrambling and just some ankle deep wading. Though with any good canyon trip we did find a way to make one short freezing swim. This could have been avoided though the path we took through a water fall left us no other choice. The hot sun made it easy to warm back up.

So what took so long? The Agua Fria River Canyon itself took a little longer than I anticipated though nothing much. Most of the extra was spent find routes to stay out of the freezing water which would be faster in the summer when we would have gone right down the middle of the canyon. The extra time was spent in a side canyon we were taking out. The canyon takes you close to interstate 17 at mile marker 252 which we were going to take a cow trail back to the truck. The side canyon was a mile and I didn't think it would take very long. Over 3 hours later I was mistaken.

The side canyon was overgrown with vegetation which made travel almost impossible at times. The scrambling around these areas was full of cacti which wasn't much of a better idea. After two hours of going no where I decided we could climb out and just find the trail we wanted. As we got higher we saw there was a primitive trail on the other side of the canyon. After finding the climb more of a problem then we thought we had to find our way back down and to the trail.

Standing in our way of the trail was 10ft high stalk plants of some kind that we as thick as naturally possible. We had to fight our way which was one of the most ere experiences stuck in the middle of these plants and using all my might just to move an inch.

We did make it through and found the trail which made for a tired though fairly easy walk out of the canyon where we found our trail and back to the truck. It never sises to amaze me how exiting a canyon can be more of any adventure than the canyon itself.

Peters Canyon Canyoneering Photo Gallery

Canyoneering Peters Canyon Near Tortilla Flat, Arizona

With the winter I hadn't been scrambling around any canyons lately. Last night around 9 o'clock I just decided I am going down a canyon the following morning. I wanted to find a fun bouldering and scrambling canyon where I wasn't going to have to swim since the water is still freezing.

I picked Peters Canyon which is off highway 88 or Apache Trail Rd in the Superstition Mountains of Arizona. Peters Canyon is easy to get to as you park at Tortilla Flat a little restaurant and ice cream parlor next to Canyon Lake.

Right at Tortilla Flat is Tortilla Flat Creek which was flooding the road when I got there. Always an interesting way to start a canyon trip when the creek you are entering is flooded. The lack of narrows makes the canyon a low risk for flash floods. You scramble along the back for about a quarter mile and you reach the conflux with Peters Canyon.

Peters Canyon consists of a boulder maze of scrambling, bouldering, wading through no more than shin deep water, and hiking through some sand. The canyon was full of water and had a good stream going which created a fun challenge of figuring out how to get past. Many spots had the stream split into three or four separate streams with their own small waterfall. The neat thing about this canyon as is does provide a fun experience without having to get completely wet when you want to go out on an Arizona winter canyoning adventure.

Two and half hours into Peters Canyon is a 10ft waterfall which takes a little climbing to the left on some boulders to get on top of. This is pretty much the end of anything fun in the canyon. The canyon widens and flatens out past the waterfall. On top of the waterfall is a great place to take a break and have a snack. This canyon is an out and back.

The thing I really liked about this canyon as there were so many different options on how to get through the canyon that the way back was a completely new experience of the canyon for me. I found myself plenty of times in different parts of the stream where I spent more time wading on the way back. This made coming back down the same canyon more fun than I have had on any out and back canyon.

I highley recommend this canyon to anyone who wants to get out during nice winter days in Arizona. Once the heat comes though I would find a canyon where you get more wet and can cool off.

San Tan Mountain Adventure - South of Gilbert, AZ

Well it isn't quite a canyoneering trip nor did it have much adventure, then again it might depend on who you ask. I haven't a made it out to any new canyon routes lately. I had a trip planned though we went golfing instead. Hard to pass up a free round at a golf course that costs $250 for 18 holes. I did take my son out for his first hike. His neck is finally strong enough and take the bouncing up and down of hiking a trail.

He seemed to love his new adventure as he jabbered in my ear the entire time. The hike can get a little strenuous depending on what path you take in the San Tan mountain range. They are not very high though some climbs are pretty steep.

Just south of Gilbert, AZ is the San Tan mountains which have numerous trails and is a great place for a quick hike and get outside. I have used this trail system for trail running and mountain bike workouts in the past, though now it makes a great time for me and Lleyton.