Trip Report Egypt Combo 1,2,3,4&5 3/27/16

Egypt Combo 1,2,3,4,5 in a day 3/27/16

Escalante has been our go to spot in the spring to kick off the canyoneering season and this year was no different. It can be windy and down right cold at times but we have been blessed with generally favorable weather the last few seasons. Doing the Egypt canyons(1,2,3,4&5) in one day originally started as a joke between Angus and I, last fall we took a serious look into the feasibility of it and this winter, finalized a plan. My parents Kris and George and a new canyoneer/friend Peter joined us for a week and agreed to be our support team. They also got to check some canyons off their own tick list as well. Angus had done all of the canyons except E4 while I had previously done 1,3 & 5.

Sunday March 27th we awoke at 5:30 to temps in the 30’s, drank some coffee w/baileys en route and by 6:22 were making our drop into E1 by headlamp. Peter joined us for a quick one hour round trip romp through here. While it's a great beginner canyon and a fantastic place to reinforce skills, that wasn’t the purpose today. This canyon has several short raps/DC’s but we chose to rappel most since many of these can turn into fast slides and pose a risk of lower leg injury. A short but nice warm up and motivated by low temps to set a brisk pace for the day. By 07:45 we were at the head of E2 with a rising sun and ready to make our cross canyon trek to E4. Peter stayed behind for this leg and would meet us at the top of E5 later. Meanwhile my parents were happily sleeping in at our camp off Egypt road in the only tent that successfully weathered the wind, snow and dust storms that would torment the camp in the coming days.

Using the Rick Green approach we crossed the head of E3 and made our way to E4 picking up a cache of water we had left the previous day while scouting routes and setting a rope for upper E5. Around 9:00 we arrive at the top, left our small pack and everything but the essentials...short rope, phone/PLB, snacks and water.
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Top E4

E4 is rated an X canyon for good reasons and we geared up with knee and elbow pads at 9:15 and dropped in. It has no rappels and is about a mile in length that consists mostly of stemming, a few hard upclimbs, DCs and silos. We hauled one tethered pot shot and chalk bag as our only luggage. Shortly into the stemming we found 3 large packs that had been washed down into the canyon. One was very deep and would require a hook and rope for capture, another had easy access while the other was mostly entombed in sand. Out of curiosity we went through the top pack to find a short rope, 3 rolled up dry bags and other ruined items. It seems that E4 was not their destination. Last I heard Rick was on a mission to retrieve these packs but with our combo on hand and no intention of adding packs for the X section, we left them behind. E4 turned out to be a pleasant canyon that we moved quickly and comfortably through in 2H45M for the upper and two short non technical lower sections.

We both found the crux to be upclimb that Ram has well documented in his canyon tales. It is a 40 ft? up climb from flaring canyon walls that quickly narrow. One wall is flat and mostly featureless while the other wall slopes inward. As with most up climbs going up early and tolerating more exposure makes for easier moves than later with narrow walls and better protection but more grunting and heavy breathing. However, for whatever reasons both Angus and I get equal enjoyment hearing the other get worked a bit. That being known, Angus taunts me to go up late but I know better. Feet go on the straight featureless wall as the opposing wall was more prone to a blowout. Once you are 15 feet off the deck there is section of about 5 feet that was quite awkward but then quickly improves as you climb through it to a dish and slowly back into the safety of the crack. As for the series of 5 silos that people mention, we had a hard time differentiating where exactly this was. There are silos and they are exposed but at 5’7” I never had to leave a back to feet stem position to conquer any of these. Angus is 6’4” so we move at different levels but none of them stood out as a serious problem. The wider silos always had a mostly comfortable position if you were willing to adjust your level of attack.
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Featureless walls
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Up Climb
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Exposure
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More Silos
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Serious up climb
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Overall we enjoyed E4 and found it less problematic than we had both imagined it could be. Some awkward walls to negotiate but not the consistent very high exposure we have found in other X canyons. However don’t interpret the last statement as a low risk place, there are still plenty of areas where a fall or slip would be disastrous. We exited on the west and made our way back to the head of E4 to reclaim and move our stashed gear up canyon to be intercepted after E5. It’s worthy noting that the cell reception has drastically improved over the last year, I was able to send out texts to my parents with our progress throughout the day in most areas. Sprint was on extended and Verizon was 2-3 bars with slow but working internet/email. (Parts of King Mesa had 3G!)

As we made our way to the head of E5 my parents and peter were making their way down to meet us with more water and lunch requests. After rehydrating and eating we started down E5. Peter down climbed with us to the top of the first rap which we have always appreciated due to being a tear drop shaped clump of dirt and vegatation that makes a solid anchor when set proper. The drop is about 150ft and Peter released the 200ft rope to us once we were both down.
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1st Rap
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After a short knee to toes stemming section we were to the next 100 ft rappel down to the business of E5, a moderate upclimb followed by high stemming back to feet down the corridor. Some people just do one 300 ft rap but we also enjoy the ingenuity of the second anchor as well. Meanwhile Peter hiked around this section to meet us below the upper section. Upper E5 is familiar ground as we often use this as a test piece for new partners to see if they fancy the high stemming. We feel it's a solid R for the up climb and stemming exposure. We make our way through this short but demanding section quickly, moderate exposure with great walls always make this corridor a blast and quite scenic.
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Upclimb
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More stemming
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Final DC

Soon we find ourselves at the final down climb, some walking and an awkward slanted crack with sharp moquis known as the shredder room. Angus insists “The combo doesn’t count if you go high Aaron” as he enjoys watching me squeeze, grunt and suffer through this short but punishing section.
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Shredder Room

The canyon walls relax without a swim and Peter meets us in the open section and we hike down to the lower. Peter carries majority of the gear and refuses to let us carry much at all…he has intuitively discovered how to get invited back for more canyons!
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Lower E5 brought the hardest non-move of the day with a large silo and empty pothole that presented a 15ft fall. Starting to feel the effects of the day we weren’t up to attempting the dynamic move. Instead belays were given from a stemmed position and Peter was last man at risk with partner assist from us. The challenge of this crack is that it undercuts and bombays the last 6 feet which forced us to do a full capture on our Amazing Yen as the crack spat him out. Lower 5 seemed more difficult than I remember and harder problems than the upper. Doing the lower also adds a considerable amount of hiking to escape since the walls stay high for a distance after the final 80 ft rappel. There was an anchor but we equalized another chock knot to the existing since the anchor options are small and limited with high penalty points.
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Some painful bushwacking ensues, down canyon Angus effortlessly makes an amazing 20ft climb up a sheer wall to give us a premature exit by hand line in an isolated weakening of the cliff band. Without hesitation I happily take the easy solution while Peter’s eyes light up as the climber inside him drools over the wall and required moves to conquer. We inform Peter on limiting unnecessary exposure and using each other to conserve energy by taking advantage of the hand line. He smiles and obliges but I saw the pain behind those eyes, there will be other opportunities. Not enough can be said about having two strong climbers at my disposal.

After a 1 1/2 hour slog we picked up our previously abandoned pack and hiking poles above E4 and made our way to the head of E3 dropping in around 18:30. With great cell service we put in our dinner request to the parents who are patiently waiting up top and thankfully still giving in to our demands. We made our way though the enjoyable narrows requiring a headlamp for the final section as darkness set in. For how deep, narrow and long this slot is, it must be one of the most beautiful and sustained non technical canyons. E3 was quite serene in the failing light and the tight spots a little spooky before we finally gave in to artificial light. Prior to this, Angus took full advantage of the situation while hiding in the shadows to get a good scare out of peter(who is quite hard to startle). After finishing the canyon, Angus with only the guide of his headlamp and knowledge of the area nails the exit perfectly to get us back to the top of E2 quickly where my parents were waiting with a warm meal, gatorade, fresh clothes and much appreciated dry socks. I was feeling pretty exhausted at this time while angus on his second wind was being his usual energetic self and planting seeds about how we should add bobo (egypt 1.5). We rested for a little over an hour and wasted another 20 minutes when it was noticed we had the wrong rope bag and had left the 100m rope at camp. Angus and peter went to retrieve it while I put together the necessary gear for a E2 night descent.

A little after 10pm we started the first 280ft rappel into the darkness of E2. Erie but not unfamiliar ground to Angus and I as our first run through Heaps had us doing the final sequence in darkness. Peter gets a workout on this rappel as he found out the troubles of having too much tension at the top of a large rap, still better than the alternative. A few down climbs, another short rappel and we were making our way quickly by headlamp through E2. Although temps were cool on the rim, the canyon itself was warm and we found ourselves slightly overdressed with pants and long sleeves. Very unique sandstone walls with blotches of white throughout create a layering I've never encountered before. The moon has finally risen enough to join us late on this final leg but pleases us by reflecting light off the high walls for a nice touch. After completing the canyon Angus delivers another flawless exit and guides us up steep slick rock on the west back to the rim. As we crossed by Egypt 1.5, Angus points out the direction in the dark and again reminds me of its close proximity. Feeling tired and content with our existing accomplishments, I decide to call it a day as we made the final walk along the rim where the 4 Runner was waiting to deliver us back to camp. We had achieved our goal finishing at 12:10 am with a time of 17 hours 48 minutes. Based on google earth I estimate the total hiking including the canyons to be at 17.25 miles.

At camp we talk for a while around a dwindling campfire while drinking some of the finer microbrews from colorado. Peter does most the talking while I listen with enjoyment as he raves about canyoneering and looking forward to the days we have left. He has the same canyon fever I clearly remember getting a few years ago and Angus a few more before that. I retire to to my bed which is coated in layers of sand, lazily I brush some aside before crawling into a gritty sleeping bag that is safe from the elements. I quickly drift into a more sound sleep than I can remember.

***Special thanks to my parents and Peter for all you did to assist us, it would have been a longer and harder day without your support and encouragement.
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Peter AKA Amazing Yen
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Kris and George