First Hand Experiences with the Black Boxes?

[brettyb]

Not sure if this is more appropriately posted in the Hiking section, but I wanted to solicit first hand experiences people have had with either of the Black Box hikes on the San Rafael River.

I'm looking ahead a few months eyeing a trip in August and trying to sell a friend on the idea. I've read up on these hikes in a couple guide books (Kelsey's latest edition, 100 Hikes in utah, David Day, Hiking Utah), so I know a little.

We're experienced non-technical hikers who can handle lengthy grinds like Nebo, Ibapah or Pilot Peak. But haven't done anything as wet as these.

Anyway, please offer any advice you can such as difficulty level, hiking times, recommended footwear, trailhead camping prospects.

Thanks.

[Scott P]

Watch out for flashfloods in August. If it has been dry, the river will be very low. In fact, during 2002 and 2003 it was either a trickle or pools by September. The water is warm in August.

In wet years or after rains, the hike is much more difficult. In October 1982 we had an epic trip through the Lower Black Box with my father and uncle. September 1982 however had the "flood of the century". It was still high by October. The water was cold and deep and it was swimming the whole way. I was eight years old and my brother six, but I still remember it well. Luckily my uncle is 6'10" tall and it helped a bit. No one (or almost no one) was doing the Black Boxes back then and it was a lot less known back then.

[rockgremlin]

I did the Lower BB several years ago in July I think. The water was very pleasant, and the hike spectacular. It's a pretty long day. Pack your headlamps.

One solid bit of advice: The water is a murky brown color, so you can't see where you are stepping. We were constantly whacking our shins into boulders and large rocks that were submerged. Finally after getting a very impressive shiner on my knee, I resorted to using a "poking stick" to locate the submerged rocks in front of me before every step.

It's much easier to just pack shin guards in your backpack, and not have to worry about messing around with a witching stick to locate the shin-bangers. You've been warned!

Oh yeah -- have fun, and post a bunch of pictures!

[Iceaxe]

You want to do the Lower Black Box from the Sulphur Springs Trailhead (bottom end), many of the older guidebooks list the Swaseys Leap Trailhead (upper end) as the correct trailhead but the access road to Swasey's is now closed and creates a really long slog. The second benefit of doing the route from the lower trailhead is you will have several opportunities along the way to check the river depth and look into the box from the rim. By the time you are forced to commit to the river commonsence should tell you if it's safe or not.

I loved hiking the LBB and consider it a great hike. The river should be bathtub warm in August. Camping at the lower trailhead is so-so, but other camping is nearby. This should be an easy hike for experienced hikers.

Here is my route description and maps

Lower Black Box
http://climb-utah.com/SRS/lbb.htm

And here is a LBB pic for the ladezz of uutah

[Scott Card]

One solid bit of advice: The water is a murky brown color, so you can't see where you are stepping. We were constantly whacking our shins into boulders and large rocks that were submerged. Finally after getting a very impressive shiner on my knee, I resorted to using a "poking stick" to locate the submerged rocks in front of me before every step.

This really is a solid bit of advice. One 17 year old kid we had in my group smacked an under water rock and split open his shin about 3 inches. We butterflied it and then got him stitched up when we got back to the truck. (We had a doctor with us)

Also, don't go when the water is too low. We had almost no flow and it stunk, figuratively and literally. Very pretty canyon and a long hike but fun.

[ajroadtrips]

I've done the upper a few times, the lower once. One of the upper trips was in late August/early September. Interestingly, a buddy had gone through 2 weeks prior and said the water was bathtub warm. We found it pretty/very cold. The lengthy exposure caused minor hypothermia in the skinnier person in the group.

Since then, I generally stop on the buckhorn wash road where the bridge crosses the river. Walk down, dip a big toe in the river for a minute or two, and see if the temp is to your liking.

Lower took around 8 hours I think, but we had high flow, so it was slow going. Upper I have always done via Kelsey's rap in route, which makes for a casual 1/2 day.

Either are great. Have fun!

[brettyb]

My sincere thanks to those posting their experiences. Please keep them coming. I know these kind of questions are kind of hokey--but if you had to pick one of the two, which one whould you do? Or, if you have time for a more in depth analysis, how about a compare/contrast of the two hikes. (Btw, we wouldn't be doing any route that involved rapelling).

[Scott P]

but if you had to pick one of the two, which one whould you do?

If you don't do the rap route into Upper, then I would choose the Lower Box if you could only do one. The Upper Box is best in the lower half, while the lower is good all the way through.