AJ
05-24-2012, 09:08 AM
Hey all,
Took a group through the Dante area canyons last weekend (Upper Ticaboo, Purgatory aka Dave's Not Dead, Inferno, Paradiso and Limbo.)
Overall, anchors were decent, though some may choose to replace some (the final anchor in Limbo comes to mind.) We definitely used a sand trap in Limbo (maybe twice?), and we used potshots in one or two of the canyons as well. Lots of fun partner assists and good downclimbs too. Go prepared.
The most water I can remember is in Upper Ticaboo, where the pothole section held one thigh deep pool and one swimmer. We had wetsuits with us for Upper Ticaboo, but didn't put them on as the weather was in the 90s and the cold pool swim felt good. We didn't carry wetsuits through the other slots, and didn't need them. (It was still hot, and as of right now, the canyons are quite dry.)
The north road/route out to the Dante's definitely has a few spots where HC is needed, and there are a few sandy sections, so at least AWD is recommended. I didn't drive the south/longer route, so can't comment there. The road up to Ticaboo was in decent shape, but HC still recommended. (Subarus made it fine.)
Hope that helps!
A.J.
BTW, I put in Canditions for all the ones that were available on the site:
http://candition.com/canyons
(as well as I asked to add the missing ones along with a suggestion to recategorize some canyons from North Wash to Lake Powell, or maybe Dante's; so folks don't need to search through so many canyons classified as North Wash...)
Took a group through the Dante area canyons last weekend (Upper Ticaboo, Purgatory aka Dave's Not Dead, Inferno, Paradiso and Limbo.)
Overall, anchors were decent, though some may choose to replace some (the final anchor in Limbo comes to mind.) We definitely used a sand trap in Limbo (maybe twice?), and we used potshots in one or two of the canyons as well. Lots of fun partner assists and good downclimbs too. Go prepared.
The most water I can remember is in Upper Ticaboo, where the pothole section held one thigh deep pool and one swimmer. We had wetsuits with us for Upper Ticaboo, but didn't put them on as the weather was in the 90s and the cold pool swim felt good. We didn't carry wetsuits through the other slots, and didn't need them. (It was still hot, and as of right now, the canyons are quite dry.)
The north road/route out to the Dante's definitely has a few spots where HC is needed, and there are a few sandy sections, so at least AWD is recommended. I didn't drive the south/longer route, so can't comment there. The road up to Ticaboo was in decent shape, but HC still recommended. (Subarus made it fine.)
Hope that helps!
A.J.
BTW, I put in Canditions for all the ones that were available on the site:
http://candition.com/canyons
(as well as I asked to add the missing ones along with a suggestion to recategorize some canyons from North Wash to Lake Powell, or maybe Dante's; so folks don't need to search through so many canyons classified as North Wash...)