Tag Archives: zion canyon conditions

Current Conditions for Echo, Keyhole, and Pine Creek Canyons

Posted on September 17, 2011 by

September has brought us some big rains, especially over the last week. Which means one fantastic thing: full, wet, fresh canyons! As tenured canyoneers know well, good rains flush out the canyons, which can become a bit stagnant over dry summer months. With “monsoon” season giving us much less rain than usual this year, it’s great to have some flood conditions this month to clean things up in the slots. Here’s a few conditions reports from yesterday from clients who descended these slots: Echo Canyon: Cold (as usual), with several swims. Folks said wetsuits are REQUIRED. Keyhole Canyon: Cold-ish, with many swims. Most folks said, “You’ll want a wetsuit!” While some tough guys said that maybe they could’ve been okay without cold protection, other tough guys said “No way.” Consider how tough you are, and respond accordingly. Pine Creek: Cold, with many LONG swims (40 yards or so). Folks were saying, “It’s the wettest I’ve ever seen in there,” and commented that wetsuits are REQUIRED. ALL tough guys said you’ll want a wetsuit.

Posted in Autumn, Canyoneering, Safety, Seasonal, Trip Reports, Weather & Climate, Zion, Zion National Park | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Recent Conditions for Boundary Canyon and Heaps Canyon

Posted on June 27, 2011 by

Descended Boundary Canyon and Heaps Canyons this past week (June 23rd and 25th respectively). Both are in OUTSTANDING conditions. Boundary Canyon – Flowing about 5 CFS – enough to be intimidating and a little pushy, but not enough to be dangerous to canyoneers with Class C experience. Wonderful waterflow. Amazing canyon in near-solstice light.  Be careful setting anchors to avoid sticking a rope, and bring an extra rope or two just in case.  The walk-out down Kolob was an hour slower than usual because of the 15 cfs flow in Kolob – slow going, but not difficult.  The MIA trail is a little spotty in places (more than usual) after a big, wet winter. Heaps Canyon – Filled to the brim and cold. Lots of water, but also plenty of sand washed in over the winter, eliminating at least one long swim near the end. Still very physical and demanding. Excellent solstice light made it brighter and prettier than usual.  For the first time in 10 trips, I encountered another party in Heaps at the final raps, which delayed us 1-1/2 hours.  We hiked from West Rim Trailhead starting at 5 am – this was at least one hour too … Continue reading →

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