Tag Archives: Canyoneering

“Escalante Canyoneering” Airs Tonight on Live Well Network!

Posted on October 17, 2011 by

In May, Tom Jones and I led a three-day Escalante Canyoneering trip for Motion TV. Along with host Greg Aiello and two guest hikers, Anna and Futch, we hiked in from the Escalante’s Egypt Trailhead, set camp along the Escalante River, and explored Ringtail Canyon and Neon Canyon. We enjoyed a spectacular backcountry experience, opening wide doors to new sights and skills for the entire Motion team, and enjoying some fantastic laughter and stories to boot. Great weather, amazing canyon light, and a top-notch film crew made the event a success, and now that editing is finished, you can experience our trip from your favorite arm chair. Live Well Network airs Motion’s Escalante River Canyoneering tonight, between 7 & 9 PM, depending on your area. Check the Live Well homepage to see the viewing schedule in your city… Or just watch the embedded video above! If YOU would like to join us for this trip in 2012, pencil the below dates into your calendar and rally some friends together to start planning soon: April 20-22 May 4-6, 12-14 June 1-3 Sept. 7-9, 21-23 Oct. 6-8 For complete trip details, see our Escalante Canyoneering page.

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ZAC Canyon Courses: Becoming a Critical Adventurer

Posted on July 25, 2011 by

When people register for a canyoneering course they expect to learn how to become proficient canyoneers. In their minds, they may imagine a list of knots, equipment, and technical skills. As an instructor, my motives are slightly different… My last Three-Day Basic canyon course was a great success, but not because everyone learned how to tie knots, set up anchors, and rig a variety of rappels. While technical skills are important, they are only a small part of my course goals. We attacked the prescribed technical curriculum early on, and it served as a foundation for the true art of canyoneering. By the second day of our course last week, people had reached at important threshold. There is a point where learning new material complicates the decision making process. It is also challenging to help people feel confident in what they know and to continue introducing rope skills. To simply move through a canyon, doing the same thing at each rappel, seems practical and safe, and can build great confidence, but it is also a pitfall. The breakthrough moment is when people recognize each decision is complicated, but they have many tools they can apply to myriad situations. Canyoneering is … Continue reading →

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Now Hiring Multi-Sport Lead Guides for 2011 – 2012 Seasons

Posted on June 28, 2011 by

Celebrating our 15th anniversary has been non-stop this year. From our private celebrations on February 14th (ZAC’s birthday) to extraordinary responses from our much-loved clients each day. Thanks to everyone who has celebrated with us so far, and all of you who plan to visit us soon. One of the great gifts we have enjoyed over the years has been perennial and sustainable growth. This year in particular, we have seen some extraordinary leaps and bounds in guided trip requests and bookings. Canyoneering, climbing, and biking have all been over the top, and it has been both challenging and incredibly fun to help so many have so much fun here in Zion. We have always taken great pride in being Zion National Park’s premiere (i.e. first) guide service and outfitting source. As in our infancy, we still lead the way today, with an incredibly deep commitment to learning and growing. And when we talk about “learning and growing,” we mean we’re working on EVERY aspect of our business, doggedly improving our products, techniques, staff lifestyles and earnings, customer experiences, vehicles, buildings and grounds, website, and more. We are innovators who follow our senses, which has lead us to a very … Continue reading →

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Birch Hollow and Buckwater Draw in the News

Posted on August 22, 2010 by

Noticed two recent newspaper stories on canyon descents, one on the Hiking Utah section of the Salt Lake Tribune and another in the Vernal Express. Erin Alberty wrote a short blog piece for the Tribune on her descent of Birch Hollow. Birch is just outside Zion’s eastern boundary, a pretty 3AI canyon draining into Orderville Hollow. Erin hooked up with a couple kind guys from the Wasatch Mountaineering Club to show her the ropes in Birch, which I’m sure she appreciated. Gary Lee Parker reported on his descent of Buckwater Draw in the Vernal Express. I’m not quite sure where Buckwater lies, but from the article it looks like it’s near Vernal, in the central/eastern part of Utah. Always fun to see canyons in the news, especially when they include pictures (both these articles do).

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Free Rappelling

Posted on August 16, 2010 by

Read enough canyon descriptions and you will eventually come across the term “free rappel”. Read enough discussion in the canyoneering forums, and you will run into all sorts of recommendations for doing “free rappels”. So what, exactly, IS a free rappel? And what do they charge for all the other rappels? (I know, not funny…) A free rappel is one where the rappeller is unable to touch the wall at some point during the descent. Some rappels have short sections of this, while other rappels are completely free, from the anchor all the way to the ground. The last rappel in Pine Creek is a well-known example of a free rappel, going from a perched ledge 85′ or so to the rubble pile below. Free rappels can be really cool or extremely painful, depending on how you approach them. Here, Three-Day Basic student Jeff Swanlund has extended his rappel device to just above his head and has hung his pack below him to reduce the forces yanking on his back and stomach muscles during his descent. Not only do these moves make the rappel a lot more comfortable, but I think they make for better pictures, too. When free rapples … Continue reading →

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Canyoneering in Cave Creek

Posted on August 13, 2010 by

One of the our favorite summertime treats is the chance to get up on the high plateau and descend the gorgeous, deeply plunging, wet and wild canyons there. Cave Creek is a seldom visited but much-loved canyon, our typical descent for an Extreme Adventure Day. Cave Creek is a world of myriad waterfalls: short, tall, chaotic, elegant, simple, and complex. Behind and alongside the taller falls, beautiful green moss grows, dressing the canyon in fabulous emerald green. The sandstone ranges from light browns to deep reds, studded in places with curtains of huecos, small arches, and “drippings” of rock iron-stained rock. In this raw and raucous landscape, it’s always a treat to find a piece of improbable subtlety: a delicate fern or a lone red flower clinging to a sandstone crevice. Adding to the visual beauty, the sound of rushing, pounding, flowing water constantly accompanies us in Cave Creek. The noise raises everyone’s adrenaline a notch, making it very evident we are in a living, breathing, changing canyon. Sometimes you have to yell to the person next to you, just to be heard. If you’re more than 20 feet from them, it’s usually best to use hand signals or a … Continue reading →

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