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Thread: Nevada Canyons?

  1. #1

    Nevada Canyons?

    I am looking for canyon beta for Southern Nevada. Does any exsist?
    Bueller..........Bueller............

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  3. #2
    Here are a couple of little things from Climb-Utah

    Valley of Fire
    http://climb-utah.com/VoF/index.htm

    If you live in Southern Nevada then Branch has a bunch of great stuff here:

    Hiking Las Vegas
    http://www.hikinglasvegas.com

    It's a pay-per-view site but I think it's well worth the money if you are into Vegas area stuff. There are no technical canyons on the site but some interesting possibilities if you read between the lines of what is basically a good hiker website.

    I'll try and post some other stuff for you when I get some free time but here are some places to start looking. There are some good side drainages that drop into Black Canyon.

    Arrow Canyon near Moapa is a great limestone slot to hike.

    I hear tale of a complex of limestone canyons near Lund.

    Supposed to be some good stuff around Cave Valley Springs that is supposedly still flying under the radar.

    There has to be some good stuff in the limestone around Great Basin NP, with all the caves in the area.


  4. #3
    No canyons there go climbing "Mesquite the sport climbing mecca" - Andy Raether

    The limestone will love you long time
    So, Kid, you think you got what it takes to be a Punch King?

  5. #4
    One side of Arrow Canyon is grid bolted. You can climb and canyoneer at the same time.

  6. #5
    Arrow Canyon
    Moapa Nevada


    General Information:
    This is a good hike through a deep, narrow canyon with vertical and overhanging walls. At the narrowest points, the bottom of the canyon is about 15 feet wide. The rocks are carbonate, so there are lots of fossils to find. Native Americans left lots of interesting petroglyphs. The top of the canyon is blocked by a dam, but with some with some scrambling and route-finding you can get around the dam.

    There are three parts to this hike: the lower canyon, the lower narrows, and the upper narrows. The lower canyon is a typical, rocky desert canyon with a rough road up the wash. The lower narrows is the lower part of the spectacularly deep-and-narrow gorge, but there is a road here too. The upper narrows are the narrowest part of the canyon and contain no road.

    The road is accessible to high-clearance, 2-WD vehicles under good conditions. The road turns out of the main canyon (and ends in a side canyon) just before the main canyon gets really narrow. Above that point, the main canyon is too narrow for vehicles. If you go out to hike Arrow Canyon (as opposed to going out to drive the canyon), I would park about 1.75 miles beyond the pavement, which is about 0.9 miles below the entrance to the narrows. The road gets much rougher beyond that point, and the lower canyon is a nice place to hike too.

    Trailhead Information:
    From downtown Las Vegas, drive north in I-15 for about 30 minutes to the Moapa-Glendale exit (Exit 90) (GPS Coordinates: 6.6606N, 114.5734W). Exit the Interstate and drive north on Highway 168 to the north side of the Warm Springs Valley (GPS Coordinates: 36.7375N, 114.7363). Turn south (left) on Warm Springs Road, the last paved road before the highway goes up into a canyon. Highway 168 crosses a big wash just beyond the intersection.

    Drive south on Warm Springs Road, parallel to Arrow Canyon Wash, until about 15 yards before the paved road makes a hard left (east) turn (GPS Coordinates: 36.7332, 114.7394; 1,798 ft). There is another dirt road right on the curve, but that one goes along a fence to a gun range.

    Turn west (right) onto the dirt road, and drive west along the north edge of the foothills until the road curves southward (leftish) and drops into Arrow Canyon Wash (GPS Coordinates: 36.7325, 114.7462; 1,807 ft). Follow the wash upstream to a point about 1.75 miles from the pavement (GPS Coordinates: 36.7279, 14.7678; 1,859 ft).

    At this point, the canyon curves to the right (north) and gets narrower, and the road crosses from the north bank to the south bank (left across the wash). If you are here to hike, this is the place to park and start walking. Above this point, the road gets much rougher (not that it isn't rough up to this point). Park here, this is the trailhead for the long hike.

    Route Information:
    From the trailhead for the long hike (GPS Coordinates: UTM, NAD27; Zone 11; 699336E, 4066812N; 1,859 ft), continue up the canyon following the road. After about 0.9 miles, you will arrive at the entrance to the narrows (698174, 4067238; 1,870 ft). Before going in, stop of a few minutes and examine the extensive petroglyph panels on the rock walls just south of (outside the entrance) the entrance to the narrows (698209, 4067251; 1,875 ft). These are not on the rocks that form the mouth, rather they are a separate outcrop just south of the mouth, behind some campsites.

    Entering the narrows, you literally go into a slit in the side of the mountain. The walls instantly are only a few yards across and the tops tower above you. Hiking up the canyon, the bottom gets a little wider in places, but it is always narrow. There is little vegetation in this part of the canyon, a testament to the water that must rush down and scour out the canyon from time to time.

    About 0.75 miles from the entrance to the narrows, the canyon widens a bit, and a side canyon comes in from the southwest (697305, 4067764; 1,932 ft). The road goes up the narrow side canyon and exits the canyon through another narrow gap in the side of the mountain. The side canyon is just as interesting as the main canyon, and it is only about 0.2 miles to the edge, so it is worth the side trip to walk up there to get a feel for the surrounding area. Unfortunately, some people drive into the Arrow Canyon Wilderness Area from here, but most seem stop at the mouth of the canyon where the road gets very bad and the wash is quite rocky.

    Back at the junction in the main canyon, if you drove up the canyon, this is the place to get out and start walking, as there is no road into the upper canyon. Walking, continue up the main canyon heading northwest. The nature of the canyon changes here. Previously, the canyon bottom was water-polished cobbles and rocks, but from here on up, much of the bottom is dirt and covered with grasses, forbs, and other vegetation. There is lots of catclaw acacia, but the claws have been worn down by passing animals and humans.

    About 0.27 miles from the start of the upper canyon, you arrive at an enormous cave on the west side of the canyon (696962, 4068042; about 1,950 ft). Rock climbers have been working here, and this is a good example of why bolting is prohibited in wilderness areas. There are lots of bolts, slings, carabiners, and other equipment hanging on the wall. The climbers perform some impressive feats here, but a wilderness area is not the place; there are lots of other rocks.

    Continuing on, the canyon tends to narrow a bit and you have to dodge back and forth to avoid the acacia and mesquite. About 0.26 miles above the cave (696656, 4068323; about 1,950 ft), there are opportunities to exit the canyon bottom and climb onto ledge systems that run along the cliffs above the wash. If you want to hike out the upper end of Arrow Canyon, you will need to start here and take one side or the other. It is easier and safer to climb onto the ledge on the east side, but I don't know for sure if it goes all the way. I've seen the route from the west side, and it looks OK. Getting up onto the west side ledges is a dicey 4th climb with few handholds and dirt on the ledges. The west side ledges go for sure, but the start looks rough. Alone in the canyon, I didn't want to chance the down climb or the climb up.

    Continuing on for another 0.3 miles, you arrive at the base of a 30-foot dam that blocks further progress in the bottom of the canyon. This is literally, almost the end of the canyon. Above here, the canyon is narrow for a few more yards, then it opens into a broad, salt cedar choked wash between low sedimentary cliffs. So, if you don't go farther up, you aren't missing much more narrow canyon.

  7. #6
    Hey.... I almost forgot about Ice Box and Ice Cube. These are both located over in Red Rocks just outside of Vegas.

    Icebox
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icebox.htm

    Icecube
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icecub.htm

    I have no clue why these canyons would be rated a 4. Maybe part of over inflated ratings?



  8. #7
    Definately check out http://www.dankat.com. I've been to the top of all three, icebox, Icecube, and Hidden and talked with several people who have done all three of them. Supposedly they aren't that tough but have some tricky rope pulls and a few unorthodox anchors and rappels. Donnie B. tells me that they are real nice canyons.

  9. #8
    Forgot to mention that there is also a nice little slot in th Lake Mead Rec Area called Anniversary Mine Narrows. The hike goes along a riverbed for about a mile and a half past a few old mines (more on this later till it reaches the narrows. The narrows are only like a 1/4 of a mile long and are non-technical but they are scenic and interesting. If you go in the spring, like i did, there is actually quite a bit of water to avoid.
    The Anniversary Mine is very compex and super-fun to explore. We went in for about three hours and probably only covered about 25% of the old mine. There are old wood ladders going up and down all over the place with tunnels branching off after every 20-30 vertical feet, each of the tunnels are generally about 200-300 feet long. very interesting day of exploration when combined with the narrows.

  10. #9
    Here is anther Vegas area website you don't want to miss.

    http://www.birdandhike.com/index.htm

    Lots of canyons, rock art and other stuff.

  11. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by nelsonccc
    The Anniversary Mine is very compex and super-fun to explore. We went in for about three hours and probably only covered about 25% of the old mine. There are old wood ladders going up and down all over the place with tunnels branching off after every 20-30 vertical feet, each of the tunnels are generally about 200-300 feet long. very interesting day of exploration when combined with the narrows.

    Now you're speakin' my language! Where is this mine exactly?
    It's only "science" if it supports the narrative.

  12. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by rockgremlin
    Now you're speakin' my language! Where is this mine exactly?
    Here is a route description for Anniversary Mine & Narrows

    http://www.birdandhike.com/Hike/LAME...Anniv_Mine.htm





    Anniversary Narrows


  13. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by Iceaxe
    Hey.... I almost forgot about Ice Box and Ice Cube. These are both located over in Red Rocks just outside of Vegas.

    Icebox
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icebox.htm

    Icecube
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icecub.htm

    I have no clue why these canyons would be rated a 4. Maybe part of over inflated ratings?


    heard that anchors are sketchy and some "tricky" climbing. one group i heard of left cams behind that were taken for use as anchors. if cams, why not chock knots ? maybe they are inflated to keep 'em low volume. not sure how red rocks actually feels about their visitation. i have tried twice to go thru but both got 86'd. since i'm not sure what they are really like and all i have heard is how serious they are, i'm gonna take 'em serious until i can get a good climber to join up with. anybody out there a good climber ? free this weekend ? also heard the road up is washed out good and is a definite high clearance route (4 X 4 ?).
    signature

  14. #13
    ice box can barely be classified as a canyon. it was like a nice sunday walk in the park. there is a fork that merges into the canyon from the north. this canyon was more difficult but i wouldn't consider it a 4.

  15. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by rockgremlin
    Quote Originally Posted by nelsonccc
    The Anniversary Mine is very compex and super-fun to explore. We went in for about three hours and probably only covered about 25% of the old mine. There are old wood ladders going up and down all over the place with tunnels branching off after every 20-30 vertical feet, each of the tunnels are generally about 200-300 feet long. very interesting day of exploration when combined with the narrows.

    Now you're speakin' my language! Where is this mine exactly?
    It's fun in there. Pretty safe as far as those things go. I think you could spend an entire day in there. We saw a fe places where a rope would be needed as well as ascenders to return. Fun to see all of the old wood beams. If you're in vegas look me up and I'll take you out there.

  16. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by goofball
    Quote Originally Posted by Iceaxe
    Hey.... I almost forgot about Ice Box and Ice Cube. These are both located over in Red Rocks just outside of Vegas.

    Icebox
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icebox.htm

    Icecube
    http://www.dankat.com/swhikes/icecub.htm

    I have no clue why these canyons would be rated a 4. Maybe part of over inflated ratings?


    heard that anchors are sketchy and some "tricky" climbing. one group i heard of left cams behind that were taken for use as anchors. if cams, why not chock knots ? maybe they are inflated to keep 'em low volume. not sure how red rocks actually feels about their visitation. i have tried twice to go thru but both got 86'd. since i'm not sure what they are really like and all i have heard is how serious they are, i'm gonna take 'em serious until i can get a good climber to join up with. anybody out there a good climber ? free this weekend ? also heard the road up is washed out good and is a definite high clearance route (4 X 4 ?).
    I used to climb... :0)

    Actually I have tomorrow or Sunday free if you are interested in meeting up could do some hiking in the area for some exploration? I'm really excited to see all these hikes around vegas as it's only 2.5 rs from me.

    I don't have a rope but I have all the other equipment, could buy a rope in town I suppose. Also I have a sturdy 4x4 to get to the trailheads.

    Can send me a PM if interested or post here.

    -Rob Davison

  17. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by snatch
    ice box can barely be classified as a canyon. it was like a nice sunday walk in the park. there is a fork that merges into the canyon from the north. this canyon was more difficult but i wouldn't consider it a 4.
    Did you do the entire canyon? Care to elaborate a little bit about your trip? like what time of year did you do it, gear used etc.

    Thanks,
    Rob

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