Canyon Tales

been working on this website for awhile and, while there is still
much in the works, it's at a good point to share what's been prepared.

it's a compilation of selected stories and essays primarily (though not
exclusively) on the canyon country of the colorado plateau.

currently there are 75 articles/tales to enjoy and there are quite a
number still in the works.

i have asked dave pimental to collaborate with me on it, and we are
looking forward to continue adding to it over the long-term. at this time,
we'd also like to invite others to submit compelling stories, trip reports,
essays, or suggestions on pieces (e.g. old posts) to add to this compilation.

email:
dave (davewyo AT hotmail DOT com)
stefan (sfolias AT math DOT utah DOT edu)


as far as the stories go, the language in each story has been left
unchanged, although each article has been edited for spelling,
punctuation, and paragraph breaks in order to improve reading and consistency
across stories. also, on occasion, quoted prelude pieces have been
added to augment the text and provide more context for the story.

as far as the site goes, i write the xhtml, css, & php codes from
scratch, and it's all kept very simple for quick loading and ease of
use. the text is in a large font for ease of reading and ease on the
eyes (hopefully). it should also load fairly quickly on mobile
phones too (though the fonts may be large).


______________________________________


WINDOWS XP\2000 USERS: i implore you PLEASE turn *font smoothing*
on. the text will look much better and it'll ease your eyes while
reading. this can be done for XP (2000 is roughly the same) using the
easy and quick instructions at this link:
INSTRUCTIONAL LINK

______________________________________



just wanted to say ...

thanks to everyone who shares--in words--their experience, knowledge,
and adventures into the wildlands of the colorado plateau



please enjoy ... CANYON TALES
www.canyontales.com


cheers,

stefan

Very cool! Nice work, this will keep me busy for a while. :2thumbs:

i like it... :2thumbs:

:kickit:

Cool :2thumbs:

Thanks Stefan, that it sweet. :2thumbs: There goes my evening.

thanks for the kind words, guys :thumb:

Haven't browsed the site yet, but muchas props to you for the "clear type" link. That is so much easier on the eyes.

Nice job, good looking site. :2thumbs:

nice! :2thumbs:

Canyon Tales ad. 2


hi all,

it's spring time and the canyons are beckoning! and we are delighted
to bring 11 new pieces to the Canyon Tales Compilation edition 2 or,
perhaps more appropriately, addition 2.

the timing of the release is two-fold. first it's to coincide with the
the first tale on the list, "It's a Dirty Devil" by Harvey Halpern --
a story about his 17-day trip down the dirty devil river that
occurred exactly 20 years ago this month.

finally, in memoriam of Wallace Stegner's passing 15 years ago this
month on April 13, 1993, we include his "Introduction" to the book
Wilderness at the Edge. while famous for his western fiction, he
also pushed strongly for the protection of our beloved wildlands,
penning cogent and coherent words towards that end.



also, since articles will be added continually to this compilation,
we'd like to introduce a "NEW" webpage which orders the tales
chronologically according to new "additions." so, on this page, the
new tales will be grouped and listed at the top, whereas they will be
intermingled on the Table of Contents page.

also wherever you see the "new" link it takes you to the new page, and
wherever you see the "tales" link it takes you to the Table of
Contents (or Index, if you prefer the back of a book).

Link to New Canyon Tales

we hope you enjoy these new tales, and that you are inspired to write
as you wander out into the canyons in the coming months.

cheers


____________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by stefan

we'd like to introduce a "NEW" webpage which orders the tales chronologically according to new "additions." so, on this page, the new tales will be grouped and listed at the top, whereas they will be intermingled on the Table of Contents page.

---

I think this is one of the best options a website that is constantly adding content can have.

Nice.

:2thumbs:

Good website. I'm really enjoying reading the stories.

CP

Excellent Stefan!

Awesome :2thumbs:

Canyon Tales ad. 3

hi all,

i'd like to share a project i've been working on for a while now, a database of names given to the plethora of unnamed canyons on the colorado plateau, specifically those in southern utah. the intention is to preserve the origins of the canyon names, in particular, who named them and why did they name them so. in some cases there is a short set of notes, in others a link to an account or story. i do enjoy the character of the canyon that these names reflect or confer. this is a work in progress so names will continually be added to the database. if there are names that have been missed (and should be included) please pm me about them or post them here or, better yet in THIS THREAD.

it has been a wonderful project to work on, and my sincere thanks goes out to all who contributed to it.

Canyon Name Database



also, it's a great honor and pleasure to introduce a new article on a selection of the descents of Dennis Turville, Mike Bogart, and partners, most of which occurred in 1977-1982. the history of these descents is quite interesting and also establishes precisely when the first bolts were placed in some of those superlative canyons in zion and the escalante.

Descents - by Dennis Turville



please enjoy the latest addition of Canyon Tales.


______________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

hello all,

sorry for the delay in updating the Canyon Name Database. i had hoped
to update it sooner with kelsey's new names and cross-references
with canyons already listed in the database. there are a few
other names i have added to the database as well.

the new names don't have any different appearance to identify them,
however, i generally reference all of kelsey's names with a reference
symbol. for example, the tiny "1" refers to canyons which first
appeared in the 1st ed. tech guide, the tiny "2" refers to the 2nd ed.
tech guide. see the very bottom for the meaning of the other symbols.

also, i am starting to archive the database at times when i update it
to keep track of how it changes and evolves. links to archive pages
will be collected at the bottom for viewing.


again, i would like to thank all who have kindly provided information
for the database, and it's my hope that this website continues to be a
useful and interesting resource for the canyon community.



Canyon Name Database (update)



more to come ...

stefan

Looks good. Looks like some interesting reading.

Great to know the OTHER names for some of the canyons. I'll hopefully be doing some of the Poison Spring canyons with AJ's group in a couple of weekends. :2thumbs: I've book marked your site for future reference. THANKS!

just a quick note to let you know that most urls (web addresses/links) have changed ever so slightly on Canyon Tales and will result in broken links.

since these changes will affect links directly to specific tales that have been bookmarked or links that have been passed on via email, i have temporarily provided a redirect for the links to most (but not all) tales. this redirect will be only temporary and will be removed down the road.

note: the changes will NOT affect links to the main (table of contents) page nor the canyon name database page.


sorry for any inconvenience this might cause. these changes *should* remain permanent for the foreseeable future.


Canyon Tales may always be accessed at the easy-to-remember
www.canyontales.com

thanks to everyone for reading the tales,

stefan

hi all,

normally i just quietly add names to the database, save the drove of
additions from MK, but i thought this new entry was certainly worth a
special announcement.

the addition is Archway Canyon or Arches Canyon, which is an earlier
name for Leprechaun Canyon, as Steve Allen explains in the entry notes
(see the following link)

LINK

please note the additional link to photos in the entry which were
kindly provided by Dave Pimental. the photos are of the old H. Pace
inscription in the canyon dating to 1872 that unfortunately no longer
exists.


stefan

Canyon Tales ad. 4


hi all,

almost one year ago we had the pleasure of sharing the first addition of Canyon Tales with you all. now that it's the middle of winter, it's a natural time for another addition of articles.

new in this addition is an early canyons group post/trip report from brian cabe on a very interesting and rare descent in zion. also we're adding a set of light-weight and fine-tasting backcountry asian recipes which have been designed and perfected by the master chef harvey halpern to nourish his backcountry companions on 10-30 day trips in canyon country. a new collection of articles is being included chronicling the immense and selfless project conducted and spearheaded by gcnra ranger bill wolverton with much progress being contributed by various organizations. included in this collection are various articles on the progress of the project written by bill wolverton and archived here. moreover, it's our pleasure to reprint two articles from the salt lake tribune which discuss bill's efforts as well as the larger invasive species issues in utah. in conjunction with bill's articles, these tribune article and ethan gilsdorf's article on bill which was part of the first canyon tales collection constitute a core collection of articles for an archive of the on-going progress of this amazing project. a map is also included which conveys the impressive progress that is being made thus far.

as usual, a number of wonderful canyon tales are included and we hope you enjoy reading though these winter months.


the newest additions are found on the 'new' page at the following link

New Canyon Tales


thanks again to all who have contributed and to all who read Canyon Tales,

stefan & dave

_______________________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

I was reading through your names of the Leprechaun Canyons and have a small disagreement....

The East Fork is also known as the Main Fork as it is the main drainage to the Leprechaun system. I have never heard the Middle Fork referred to as the Main Fork until I read your database...

Anyhoo.... here is how the people I canyoneeer with know the forks.

East Fork - Right Fork - Upper Leprechaun - Main Fork..... are all the same fork.
It should be noted that this is the main canyon and largest drainage of the system, everything else is a tributary.

Middle Fork - Shimrock.... are the same fork

West Fork - Left Fork - Shamrock...... are the same fork

Anyhoo.... that's my two cents. YMMV

:cool2:

shane,

i have place 2 sets of names corresponding to yours & hank's as well as those of tom jones.

if you notice on your section, i've used your names and on tom's i've used his names. he refers to shimrock as 'main leprechaun' both on his map as well as in his beta.

http://canyoneeringusa.com/utah/north/leptech.php
http://canyoneeringusa.com/utah/north/northview.jpg

i've limited the names mainly to both sets of beta. i suppose in the notes i could add main fork on the east fork as well, but on your beta you only use the term 'main' in one location.

if there is something i'm missing please let me know.

thanks for taking a look, i certainly want it to be as accurate as possible.

I figure you got the info from somewhere.... I hadn't looked at Tom's stuff. Looks like we will just be stuck with two Main Forks.

FWIW: When I published these routes it was my first try at naming routes for public use and I'm not happy with how things eventually turned out.....

If I could go back and do it all over again the system would be Leprechaun and the drainages would be known as West Fork, Middle Fork and East Fork.

The early bird gets the worm...but the second mouse gets the cheese.

:popcorn:

Canyon Tales ad. 5

hi all,

we are happy to announce the 5th addition of canyon tales for your reading pleasure into the late summer and fall.

we begin with a beautiful piece of writing, 'Like Water Falling through the Air' by lori curry on a recent trip down deer creek, one of the many gems of the grand canyon.

lisa jennings' 'Benign Canyon Exploration' describes her first experience exploring a minislot canyon, and dave pimental tells a wonderful tale about a lost dog he and dan ransom found on the way to explore another minislot nearby 'Bloodhound Canyon' is a wonderful tale of modern western americana.

margie mccloy, writer of the well-known and captivating canyon tale, 'The River Trip' has contributed another great tale she calls 'S & M' which was the name she and steve barbee gave to what is now known as alcatraz canyon. their exploration of the canyon occurred one year prior to that of scott patterson and mike kelsey's, though the earliest known descent of the canyon was by mike bogart and anne winter during 1988. their name for the canyon was 'flashlight canyon' for reasons known to anyone who's been through the canyon.

dave black, who has written 4 books now, including an excellent instruction book on canyoneering, contributes a fantastic and humorous essay titled 'On Writing Books,' describing his experiences over the past decade. this one's not to be missed!

also included are 4 wonderful and varied tales by ram, including 'Cheese on Ice,' 'Reflections in Many Pools,' 'The New Frosted Flakes,' and 'Arrogance,' which is an excellent rework of his first story he posted on the Canyons Group forum back in early 2002. ram's collection of 27 tales can be found on the main canyon tales page and we also include a direct link here Tales of an Incompetent Adventurer


scott patterson's 'Lost in the Darkness' recounts the retrieval of a radio collar for the DWR and NPS from a remote and difficult area in dinosaur nat'l mon. that he's been exploring, and he stresses the importance of bringing an emergency kit to survive the night out, especially in the colder months.

also included are 3 tales regarding difficult high-stemming canyons in the escalante. one hopes with the right knowledge, one can assess whether a canyon is within one's abilities.

mark rosen's tale, 'Snakes and Ladders in Big Tony' is a two-part story. one part serious, the other seriously funny. the first part illustrates how some, even after hearing a vivid description of the challenges and risks involved in high-stemming canyons, still can find themselves in over their head in such canyons. the second part recounts a humorous encounter in the darkest slot one can imagine. enjoy ...

given that stemming canyons come in various flavors of difficulties and challenges, it can be difficult for many to imagine what one may confront in such places and whether they are actually prepared to descend such canyons. Egypt 4, a particularly difficult canyon in the escalante which carries a solid X slot rating for its high-stemming, is also adjacent to the very popular and benign Egypt 3. there is concern that someone is eventually going to get very hurt or die in these types of canyons where rescue may be difficult or impossible.

in the very well-written and potent piece, 'Fear & Loathing in Egypt 4,' ken huls recounts his epic, unforgettable experience descending the canyon with his girlfriend and love of his life. we've asked him to try to convey the experience as vividly and realistically as possible to help those interested gain a better understanding of the reality of what they may confront when attempting to descend this canyon or others at a similar level.

we also include PINTAC, nat smale's account of his descent of the canyon with Jeff Webb in 2005. this canyon was named and descended by steve allen and partners during 1996-1997. theirs is the first known descent.

a new angle on canyon tales comes in the form of a unique and quite intriguing photograph as well as the story behind it. 'The Bird Goddess of Lake Powell' was taken by Stan Wagon during a trip nearly 2 decades ago that lead to a passion for the escalante. this photograph will certainly capture your imagination.

a while back, we added a page with the photographs of the H. Pace 1872 Inscription that Dave Pimental had taken in Leprechaun Canyon before they were eliminated, and it was tucked away in the name database under the Archway Canyon entry. however, we are now adding it as its own article entry and including 2 very interesting short essays on inscriptions by dave pimental and jim knipmeyer. as you will read, it's a real shame to lose such history in the name of good intentions.

finally, a new page chronicling the additions of names to the Canyon Name Database has been added to both the main canyon tales page as well as the 'new' page. since canyon names are added to the database sporadically, they will be collected in shorter lists on this 'new additions' page to make it convenient to identify what is new. convenient links on both the database and new additions page have been provided to link directly to the part of the database for a particular region of utah. clicking the region name takes you to the beginning of the section of names corresponding to that region.


NEW CANYON TALES


we would sincerely like to thank all who have contributed to canyon tales and, as always, we invite the submissions of compelling stories and essays for the canyon tales compilation.

we hope you enjoy this new addition!
thanks for reading the tales.

cheers,

stefan & dave
_______________________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

Canyon Tales ad. 6


hi all,

this comes a month belated

on May 21, 2000, the Canyon e-Group (on yahoo) was founded by Rich Carlson, and, over the past decade, has been a place where folks of diverse backgrounds have discussed canyons and canyoneering on the Colorado Plateau as well as regions beyond. the group has brought people together, whether it be in the canyons or away from them or each other. discussions and debates---especially regarding techniques, ethics, and safety--- have been lively and thought-provoking over the years, but it is the wonderful stories and trip reports, which so many have written and generously shared, that delightfully convey the experiences of others to the folks on the group. and it was spending a fair bit of time rifling and delving through the archives of the Canyons Group that originally inspired the Canyon Tales site.

so, to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Canyons e-Group, we have added a collection of 28 articles to Canyon Tales composed from Canyons Group posts that span the full decade of its lively existence.

10-year Anniversary of the Canyons e-Group Addition (Canyon Tales)

we sincerely thank all who have contributed to the Canyon Tales site, and,
as always, we welcome submission of stories, essays, and suggestions.

we hope you enjoy this anniversary addition.
thanks for reading

stefan & dave
_______________________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

Canyon Tales ad. 7

hi all,

a new addition of canyon tales is out featuring 12 of ram's stories adding to his 'tales of an incompetent adventurer'

new canyon tales

another batch of canyon tales will come sometime into the new year.

thanks for reading and enjoy the canyons!

_______________________________
Canyon Tales
www.canyontales.com

Canyon Tales: Helping prevent the yeti from working since 2009.

A new addition to Canyon Tales has been long overdue. This is the first in a two-part addition with the second part to be added late this fall. Today’s addition to Canyon Tales is in honor and celebration of the 35th anniversary of the descent of Poe Canyon by Mike Bogart and Jenny West (AKA Hall) on August 23, 1981.


Eight years ago, I read Jason Pease’s trip report on descending this canyon immediately after he posted it online. I was intrigued. At the same time I had been corresponding with Dennis Turville about canyon descents and I asked him about the canyon. A few days later, Jason’s descent partner in this canyon, Mark Fleck, inquired about information on who descended this canyon and others nearby as bolts had been found during their descents. I shared the descent information that Turville had shared with me as a link to the Canyon Name Database as well as a translation for Jason’s names. It was incredibly fascinating to think about Mike Bogart and Jenny Hall (West) exploring and descending this special canyon in such a wild place nearly 3 decades earlier--an area I had explored a number of times since I first became enthralled with it in March 2000. I thought they were so visionary and ahead of their time.


An incredible twist to this story is what happened next when a link to a website with a remarkable video of the canyon, made by none other than Dan Ransom, found its way into Jenny West’s email inbox. Jenny tells this wonderful story in a revised version of her tale ‘Of Pits and Pendulums’ which is one of my very favorites and is included in this addition. To further celebrate their descent, it’s a true honor and pleasure to include Mike Bogart’s outstanding essay ‘Old Ramblings’ which is a universe unto itself.


There are many wonderful tales to explore in this addition so I’ll keep it short and let the tales speak for themselves. However, I would like to say that one tale 'Sandthrax Upclimb' is also in memory of Ben Hebb who died climbing the Diamond on Longs Peak on August 27, 2010.


There are some new updates to the website as well. First, the Table of Contents/Index page now has a small menu that allows the articles in Canyon Tales to be sorted by topic, author, title & date (year of addition). Second, each webpage now should list the article title in one’s browser history, bookmarks, etc. (previously it would be labeled only as Canyon Tales).


New Canyon Tales:
http://www.math.utah.edu/~sfolias/canyontales/new/


Many thanks to all who have contributed to Canyon Tales.


And thanks for reading the tales,


Stefan (& Dave)

as we descend into winter, it’s time for another addition of canyon tales. the motivation for canyon tales came from two sources. one was delving through the early discussions in the archives of the canyons group. another was the profound effect people’s trip reports, tales, accident accounts, and explorations had on me. i found reading these accounts to be a compelling source of experience, ideas, wisdom, perspective, and humor that captivated my imagination at the possibilities, helped me to learn, and kept my head more in the game when i was away from the canyons ... and, i thought, others would find something for themselves in all of this.

so in this spirit comes another addition of canyon tales … there are many tales in winter, including an outstanding short film by Dan Ransom. although i will let the tales speak for themselves, i would like to mention that numerous tales of Ram’s have been added in this addition. in the beginning, he was the first person to graciously give me permission to include his tales on the site. i would like to acknowledge and deeply thank Ram for sharing his experiences and experience as prolifically as he does--whether it be in text or with folks in the canyons. many thanks!

i would also like to thank Dave Pimental for his help on this project these past 10 years.

thanks to all for writing about their experiences,

enjoy reading the tales …

http://www.math.utah.edu/~sfolias/canyontales/new/


stefan

Thank you Stefan for compiling the stories, reports and data. Thouroghly informative, entertaining and much appreciated. :2thumbs:

i would like to mention that i have added two additional tales to the latest addition of canyon tales. i had originally intended to include these engaging tales in the latest addition but for various reasons and in haste to avoid the holidays i didn't ... but i am thrilled to add them retroactively

please enjoy the newly added tales ...

Sandthrax Solo - Scott Card & Steven Jackson
A Christmas Heaps - Tom Jones

which can be found on the 'new' tales page
http://www.math.utah.edu/~sfolias/canyontales/new/

Quote:

---

Opportunity (mars rover) did not answer NASA’s final call, and it’s now lost to us

Opportunity landed on Mars more than 15 Earth years ago, on January 25, 2004. So much time has passed since then. Facebook would not be created until a month later. YouTube would not get its first video upload for more than a year. George W. Bush was still in his first presidential term.

And yet from that moment on, Opportunity and its sister rover Spirit began plugging along the surface of Mars.

Originally designed for 90-day lifetimes, the rovers persisted. Spirit lasted until 2010, when its batteries were unable to keep the spacecraft's critical components from freezing.

But Opportunity kept on keeping on amidst the harsh terrain. It roved a staggering 45.16 kilometers across the Red Planet, a distance unmatched by any rover on the Moon or Mars. In 2016, as it climbed a hill, Opportunity's tilt reached 32 degrees, the steepest ever for any rover on Mars.

The rover's primary task on Mars was to help better understand the planet's geology and understand the history of water there. It succeeded. In one discovery, for example , it found evidence of ancient hydrothermal vents that would have existed beneath a warm, shallow lake.

When the dust storm originally engulfed Opportunity last year, mission scientists were hopeful that they might yet recover the rover. Sure, it had to steer with just two instead of four wheels, and the rover was showing its age. But even then, its batteries had retained 85 percent of their original capacity. Now, though, NASA scientists know it will never emerge from Perseverance Valley, a feature carved into the rim of Endeavor Crater by flowing water in a distant age.

The scientists waited to hear some response from their long-silent rover, which had been engulfed in a global dust storm last June, likely coating its solar panels in a fatal layer of dust. Since then, the team of scientists and engineers has sent more than 835 commands, hoping the rover will wake up from its long slumber—that perhaps winds on Mars might have blown off some of the dust that covered the panels.

So on Tuesday night, they listened. They reminisced. But in the end, no response came. Opportunity would finally be declared dead on Sol 5352, as in five thousand, three hundred, and fifty-two days on Mars.

edited excerpts from ... https://arstechnica.com/science/2019...ow-gone-to-us/

---

i have been following the discoveries of the mars rover opportunity since it landed in 2004. over the years on canyon tales i've been adding a collection of images of the sandstone landscapes on mars taken by opportunity and curiosity rovers illustrating that long-said idea that mars would look like the colorado plateau (see the following link)

link: sandstone landscapes on mars

celebrating opportunity's 5352 days on mars :cheers:


Attachment 91888

Attachment 91889

^^^Wow!!! Those images are incredible!!! If you hadn't mentioned it was Mars I would've thought for sure that it was somewhere on the CP.


The second image --- the geologist in me wants to point out that the sandstone outcrops are two-toned...almost as if they are interbedded with alternating layers of sandstone and limestone/mudstone. But of course the presence of mudstone/limestone would mean that life existed on Mars at some point in the past. Interesting stuff to ponder on...