Fiery Furnace-Dragon Fly-U Turn-Rock of Ages

[moab mark]

Had a great weekend in moab but I have listed a few suggestions from our trip.
Learned something new. The park service limits permits for the furnace at 75. We could not get one on Sat. We had to go back on Sunday. Moab Adventures van was in the parking lot on Sunday morning so they must also be guiding in the furnace now. You can also pick up a permit the day before. So if your headed to the furnace on busy weekends better plan ahead.

A week or so ago Moab Matt posted a short cut out of Dragon Fly. His beta was when hikiing up courthouse wash the first draw you come to on your right hike up it and then follow wash-slick rock back to your car. This makes a huge improvement in Dragon Fly. Thanks Matt. :2thumbs:

If you have done U Turn or plan on it. At the bottom of the third rappel-down climb. Climb-Utah states this in the beta to stay of the crypto. but people need to stay next to the wall until you are back on the slick rock. Do not take off down through the dirt. The crypt. soil is taking a beating. I could not believe the difference in just 3 weeks. It was pretty disappointing.
I have never been one to remove other peoples webbing but there were about 4 or 5 different boulders with webbing on them at the last drop. In hind sight I wish I would of cleaned it up. If you are using one of the boulders to the right. The hikers below have a good view of you and also the webbing that is getting left behind. Lets not screw up this fun little canyon by leaving webbing all over that the hikers from below can see. Look around and use one of the boulders that have already been webbed instead of making another one. Or better yet ghost it. Just a suggestion.

Also on webbing, each time I do lomatium someone is leaving webbing on the arch. I left it but this is a really pristine place and it takes alot of webbing to create the anchor. 40 or 50'. If doing this rappel ghost it or go over and rappel off of the tree where your webbing will not be seen. Just another suggestion.

If doing Rock of Ages, you can rappel through the big arch, instead of climbing down on the south side of the arch, go on the north side of the small slick rock fin. There is a nice big cedar tree for the anchor. This rappel is 185'. Nice Rappel. I'll try to post a few pics later from our trip.
Mark

[DWayne27]

Excellent updates Mark. On that Rock of Ages rappel, does that drop you right in to that nice little hidden chamber on the back side of the arch?

[moab mark]

Yes you come right down that wall. Looking back up at my first post you are not rappeling through the arch but in behind it. You could probably simul the arch but it looked a little sketchy to get on top of it.
Mark

[DWayne27]

Awesome- good find. That would be a sweet rappel down in to the chamber. It is really 185'? If the arch is 90' high, and the level of where you would get off rope behind the arch is higher than it is on the other side, I cant imagine it being 185' - but I will certainly trust you

[moab mark]

I have no idea how they measure the arch. The anchor is right on the edge. We dropped a 200' rope. There was 15' left in the bag. We had to tie to 120's together for the pull cord. It is a big rappel. By far the best one on the route. I'll attach a pic when I get home of the top looking through the arch.

Mark

[moab mark]

Devin,

On a side note used my washer retrievable on that one and the second rappel and on the arch in lomatium. Worked great :2thumbs:

Mark

[jman]

nice updates. This weekend a small group of mine are planning dragonfly, medieval, and u-turn or rock of ages. What would you rather do - U-turn or Rock of Ages? I mean most bang for the buck.

[moab mark]

Jman good to see a fellow canyoneer from Kaysville. I live by cherry hill.

Rock of Ages for sure. U-Turn is a fun little route but Rock has alot more to it. But if doing Dragon Fly you can combine with U-Turn, that is what we did Saturday. We started U Turn about 11 with 8, after U-Turn half went biking the other half hit Dragon Fly. Back to town by about 5. In Dragon Fly we did not swim the potholes. They are full. We Rappeled right down to the anchor for the first rappel. Then rigged it and went again. This way you get two rappels at the start. Make sure to take the short cut hike out. Can not express how much nicer that is. You are back to your car before you would be to the bridge going the old route.

Rock of Ages took us about 5 hours with 8. Adding the rappel at the arch was time consuming. It was several of the people in our groups first rappel.
These Pics are from Rock of Ages.

[jman]

Jman good to see a fellow canyoneer from Kaysville. I live by cherry hill.

Rock of Ages for sure. U-Turn is a fun little route but Rock has alot more to it. But if doing Dragon Fly you can combine with U-Turn, that is what we did Saturday. We started U Turn about 11 with 8, after U-Turn half went biking the other half hit Dragon Fly. Back to town by about 5. In Dragon Fly we did not swim the potholes. They are full. We Rappeled right down to the anchor for the first rappel. Then rigged it and went again. This way you get two rappels at the start. Make sure to take the short cut hike out. Can not express how much nicer that is. You are back to your car before you would be to the bridge going the old route.

Rock of Ages took us about 5 hours with 8. Adding the rappel at the arch was time consuming. It was several of the people in our groups first rappel.
These Pics are from Rock of Ages.

cool. I live just off of HWY 89 and 200 N. Your group looks pretty young - well at least my age. I'm 25.

Thanks for the tips...
Have you ever done Medevial? My plan thus far, as you have suggested to me, is U-Turn and Dragonfly on Saturday. And Sunday would Rock of Ages or Medieval. I've read Medevial's beta, but rappelling (or maybe to the side of it) of Morning Glory Bridge looks fun too.....

[Iceaxe]

Rock of Ages is waaaaaay better than Medieval.

Rock of Ages and Elephant Butte are probably my two favorite Moab routes. We do Elephant Butte at least once a year.

Your mileage may vary....

:popcorn:

[jman]

thanks Shane thats the type of answer i was loooking for.

So where do I find out about this shortcut in dragonfly?

[moab mark]

I'm with Shane,
Medieval is fun but the logistic of the shuttle and the hike out the bottom is not that great. I have only done medieval once and do not ever plan to do it again.
We do the first rappel there alot and show people the arch and then climb back out on the slick rock fin. This works really well if you have a four wheel drive (jeep) and drive right to the start. Due it alot right at dusk. But there is no comparison between medieval and rock of ages for meat.
Add 15 to 20 to your age and that is how old most of that group is. Were old. :moses:
Mark

[moab mark]

thanks Shane thats the type of answer i was loooking for.

So where do I find out about this shortcut in dragonfly?

I do not know how to link them but go look back through the post for one I started about Dragon Fly it is listed there. If you look on google at dragon fly it makes total sense. If you can't figure it out pm me your email address and Ill send you a topo.
Mark

[ratagonia]

thanks Shane thats the type of answer i was loooking for.

So where do I find out about this shortcut in dragonfly?

I do not know how to link them but go look back through the post for one I started about Dragon Fly it is listed there. If you look on google at dragon fly it makes total sense. If you can't figure it out pm me your email address and Ill send you a topo.
Mark

post a quick map here, will ya, Mark?

T :moses:

[jman]

im looking at shane's topo right now. On the topo, what I assume is Dragonfly, is labeled Bounty (?). And I follow it to the end of the canyon and the route takes you to lower courthouse wash. I ASSUME that's the "old route" but if you take the right fork before that - it makes almost a direct line back to courthouse wash trailhead. Is this the shortcut you are referring to?

I found your forum on page 2 or 3, going back that is, and I have never done Dragonfly but I do know where it starts. Moabmatt said that a shorcut that is right after the last rappel? I'll have to look at Google Earth and check it out. How much would a person miss if they took this. Moabmatt says there is a lot to gain but personally I enjoy long desert walks.

[Iceaxe]

Bounty was the name I first knew the canyon as. But Dragonfly is the more popular name so I went with that.

Give me a few minutes and I'll post something on the new route.

[moab mark]

I did not see shanes post prior to sending this, he can probably get you something better.


im looking at shane's topo right now. On the topo, what I assume is Dragonfly, is labeled Bounty (?). And I follow it to the end of the canyon and the route takes you to lower courthouse wash. I ASSUME that's the "old route" but if you take the right fork before that - it makes almost a direct line back to courthouse wash trailhead. Is this the shortcut you are referring to?



I found your forum on page 2 or 3, going back that is, and I have never done Dragonfly but I do know where it starts. Moabmatt said that a shorcut that is right after the last rappel? I'll have to look at Google Earth and check it out. How much would a person miss if they took this. Moabmatt says there is a lot to gain but personally I enjoy long desert walks.

Your miss understanding what Matt said. I ask if anyone knew if you could climb out after the last rappel. He stated that you had to go down to courthouse wash and then climb out. You definitely want to hike the dragon fly canyon down to courthouse, that is very nice. From there to the bridge and then back to your car bites. I have included a pic of the spot to rappel in if you want to hit the anchor right after the potholes. Look for that rock. There is a small piece of black webbing on a horn of rock there. Also here is the topo.

[jman]

okay. Everything is making sense now. Yea I did misunderstand or just forget what you asked. hmm... well, thanks for the topo map. I know what the bridge you are referring to and I just looked at Google Earth. I can see that this "new" way would save some time.

And thanks for the pic of the rappel, i'll print it out and look for it when i go.

[Iceaxe]

I have now updated the Climb-Utah website. It has a corrected map and route description. Look under "Optional Return" for the description. I plan to be in Moab again soon and will update this route, including several items Moab Matt has recommended.

Dragonfly
http://climb-utah.com/Moab/dragonfly.htm

PS: I have deleted the Map Mark posted because its in error. The proper return drainage is one drainage west of what he marked. The canyon Mark noted was actually Dragonfly itself. The return drainage is shallow and doesn't show up very well on the USGS topo.

[moab mark]

Yea Shane is right. Small brain fart. It's pretty easy to find the exit. It is the first place you can climb out. There is a pretty good trail. This is probably the way Matt has done this from day one? We parked where the park service has just redone a new pull out. It is a big one easy to find. But next time I will park even farther down the road, there is a pull off on the other side of the road that seems about right. This would get more of the hike over at the first. The beauty of the new exit is when it is actually warm enough to want to swim the potholes the hike out use to just cook you. But now if you park even farther down the road the exposed to the sun hike to the car is very short.

Mark

[Iceaxe]

Optional Dragonfly Return:
Follow Dragonfly to it's junction with Courthouse Wash. At the junction turn west (right) and follow Courthouse Wash upstream approximately 1/4 mile to where a side drainage enters from the north (right). Follow this side drainage north 1 mile to where it crosses the paved road. This deposits you next to the orginal trailhead.

http://climb-utah.com/Moab/Files/dragonfly3.jpg

[jman]

thanks shane! that is a small, but great addin. This shortcut actually comes in the nick of time, since I won't be having a shuttle system. coolness. :2thumbs:

[moab mark]

Here is a link to our pics. Some good some not. I am to lazy to edit and organize pictures. There are two folders that were combined. So the routes do not stay together.

http://picasaweb.google.com/markimsmith

[Jaxx]

Awesome pictures. Makes me want to go down. Mabey in May!