Looking for canyon Beta

Howdy!
After several guided trips my family finally took a three day course and have started do solo canyons. We are returning to Utah in late March and thinking of hitting some canyons in the Robber's roost area. I am wondering if anyone has any beta on High Spur or other 3A canyons in the area. We are particularly interested in the anchors available in the canyons in the area. We are comfortable constructing anchors off the easy stuff - trees; choke stones, etc, but are are not yet comfortable with deadman anchors, sandtraps or using fiddle sticks and such. Has anyone been in High Spur lately that can speak to the anchor material available, especially on the last rap. Any other recommendations for 3A II or III canyons would be great. 2As are great too but we really like using the ropes. We have a high clearance vehicle and good route finding skills.

Also would love recommendations on diameter and brand of rope you prefer. We have 200 ft. of 9mm Imlay that we bought for 50 bucks of a dutch guy in zion last summer. It's a bit stiff. We would like to purchase more rope and in different lengths. What lengths of rope do you all own? I do not think we need anything longer for a while but we might need to get some pull cord.

Would value any input or ideas.

Thanks much!

Canyonkat

I haven't been in High Spur for a couple of years now but unless there is some indication of a good flash the final rappel had tons of ton-sized rocks that could all make sound anchors. We found the majority of the rest of the canyon descendable with partner assists.

We descended Tidwell the day after and it was a fun and straightforward canyon. If you choose to descend into barrier creek be ready for a long day of sand slogging and winding through brush - with some quicksand added for fun.

I'm not sure what your trip dates are looking like, but send me a PM if you're open to company. Most all of the canyons I have done to date have been in the Roost area.

Be safe and have fun!

Technically there is nothing difficult about High Spur in normal conditions. As long as you have basic canyoneering skills, a good route description and the ability to navigate you should be good to go. High Spur also has several places you can bail out to the north (canyon right) if required.

I was the first to publicly beta High Spur and named the route. The beta is here:
http://climb-utah.com/Roost/highspur.htm

Here is the canyon video:
https://youtu.be/DSVWEEjlBEg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSVWEEjlBEg

I always get my rope from Tom at CanyoneeringUSA.com. It's a good rope at a fair price.

As for rope lengths if you are noobs that 200' rope you have will be cut up into a bunch of short ropes in the very near future. It's just the nature of the game and learning.

But FWIW, I consider 60', 120' and 200' to be the standard rope lengths for canyoneering and always try to write my beta for those rope lengths.

The first two ropes you should buy are two 200' ropes as that will allow you to do 99% of the routes on the Colorado Plateau.

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Originally Posted by Cayonkat

Also would love recommendations on diameter and brand of rope you prefer. We have 200 ft. of 9mm Imlay that we bought for 50 bucks of a dutch guy in zion last summer. It's a bit stiff. We would like to purchase more rope and in different lengths. What lengths of rope do you all own? I do not think we need anything longer for a while but we might need to get some pull cord.

Would value any input or ideas.

Thanks much!

Canyonkat

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Length wise I'd pick up a pair of 120' ropes, outside of Zion you'll use this length almost exclusively, and inside Zion you'll have the 200' and can use the other two to pull with. Even 120' can be a bit long for some of the stuff in North Wash and Ticaboo, but I wouldn't buy anything shorter, just wait until you inevitably core shot one of your ropes and have to cut it.

As for brands here are a few options, If money is not a concern, then Bluewater Canyon Extreme or Canyon Pro DS are very nice, they're very durable for an 8mm rope, and since they're 8mm they're light and pack down small, but at almost 2.00$ a foot its more than most people want to spend (I got mine at a steep discount). If you go this route though just know that at 8mm its super fast on rappel so you really need to know how to set your friction on your rappel device, as newbies this one is probably not a good option, but something to keep in mind once you get some experience.

The next step down in price is the sterling c-iv and the sterling canyontech, they are 9mm and 9.5mm respectively and have a technora sheath so they are very durable as well. They are also a little lighter for their size than Imlay ropes and very supple and come in at around 1.40$/ft, but I have often seen deals for this online and can be found cheaper. Many people like this one, but I found it to be rather bouncy on rappel, especially when it gets wet so I sold mine.

The best bang for your buck though is the Imlay canyonFire at 8.3mm, still rather stiff, but better than the 9.2mm canyonero you bought. When bought in precut lengths, ie 120', its only .80$/ft. Its durable for its size and since its so cheap its not a huge deal when it gets a core shot.

There are other options out there, but these are the ones I have the most experience with. The only one I recommend against is the BW canyonator. I had one core shot in three places on its second outing, and have heard from many others (experienced canyoneers, not newbies) that have had similar experiences. I've also heard of people that have had one for a long time with no problems, so you might get a good one, but for me I won't that particular one again.

Hello Bosco and thanks for the beta on spur and the idea for TIdwell. If we get to go it will be between the 17 ad 21st of March and will PM you when our plans are firm. We are open to company, but have to caution you that we are a couple of older ladies who have fallen in love with all things rocks. I am 55 and the other half is 60 - we are super active and fit people! Have to be so we can enjoy the rocks!

Iceaxe I saw your video - it is what inspired me to go! Thanks for the information and your thoughts on the ropes. Tommy boy you went above and beyond on your rope info too so thank you both for your kindness and time. Perhaps our pathe will cross some time and we can buy you all and Bosco a beer,