High Spur Warning

[Iceaxe]

WARNING!

I was taking with MK yesterday about High Spur and it appears this is a young and fast changing slot canyon so go prepared....

A few highlights I noticed about the canyon in our conversation..... I mentioned to MK I thought the initial rockfall was a pretty stiff obstacle for a hiking book. He asked what rockfall? After more discussion it became apparent that the initial rockfall was new and had happened sometime between our visits.

I mentioned that his noted first rappel was in the wrong place and there was no arch to use as an anchor. He informed me that what he had listed as his first rappel and pothole has completely disappeared and is now buried somewhere under the sand. What I noted as the first rappel/downclimb/slide has increased in size and I don't think is even mentioned in his hiking book.

So bottom line..... this canyon appears to be prone to some major shifts in conditions. Rappels and potholes appear and disappear. I don't see this as much of a problem for tech canyoneers, but hikers should probably seek out the latest conditions before attempting the MK hiking options. This is also a strong warning that conditions in all canyons are forever rotating so go prepared.

High Spur Route Description
http://climb-utah.com/Roost/highspur.htm

[jumar]

The nice thing about spur is at least up until you get to Shane's first downclimb/slide, there's some good places to escape out the canyon. We tried doing spur, but got a much later start to the day than we wanted, and didn't feel like hiking out in the dark, so we bailed just before the downclimb/slide.

[marc olivares]

Oh man, you missed the best parts of that canyon...

[Iceaxe]

To bad you missed the Corkscrew. The Circle and the Corkscrew are the two best features. How was the lighting in The Circle?

I believe you could easily escape above the Corkscrew (and below the slide), but I did not try it. That is where MK tells hikers to exit.

[jumar]

Yeah we're thinking of trying it again in April to complete the route. The lighting wasn't that great in the part we did. Probably be a better time of year the closer we get to summer anyhoo.

The exit we took was really easy.

[Iceaxe]

Hmmmm.... did you happen to notice all the other canyoneering opportunities in the hood

I think the place could keep a guy busy for at least a year.

Just a guess, but I'm betting a few more canyons from this area turn up in MK's next tech book.

[jumar]

Indeed! Almost enough to make a guy give up all his other hobbies and stick just to canyoneering. Almost.

[Iceaxe]

For those interested. I have revised the opening statement of the High Spur route description to include the following:

Do not try and short-cut the entrance to the start of this canyon. Take a few extra minutes and hike to the actual head of the slot. Several of the side drainages appear to be inviting options. The problem with entering through one of the side drainages is that they all cut off large chucks of the best slot, some chunks are larger than others. Don't cheat yourself by being in a hurry.

I have heard reports of a couple different groups missing small to large chunks of some of the best sections of slot. We checked out all the side drainages and options when we setup the route presented. The entrance noted in the route description is by far the best.

[CarpeyBiggs]

RockGremlin and I were in there this weekend (April 7, 2007). That first rock slide is a bear, with a tight little squeeze to get out. Probably not for the family. But, it seemed like you could easily enter the canyon at a number of places between the rock slide and the beginning of the circle... I should've paid closer attention though.

The big pothole? Doesn't exist as of first week of April. The first little rap/but slide was pretty easily DC'ed, just sit your ass in the chute and slide down. There was a nice pile of silky soft sand though, and RockGremlin just jumped the whole thing... Glad I didn't have to carry his gimpy ass out.

There was one strange rap/DC after the corkscrew but before the last major rappel we had a fun time with, and decided to rig some webbing to a log that was wedged in the crack, and just rap down. It was about 20-30 feet? I guess some crazies might DC this? This was right at the spot where the canyon seems to have widened out, then you slip right into a deep crack that can be downclimbed for about 80 feet, then rap the last 20-30.

We did notice that it looked like some very huge floods had been through, as water levels and debris were caked to parts of the corkscrew section up to 8 or 9 feet high. Tons of deadfall and debris in there on the ground too. Not sure how long that's been there.

As for lighting, the circle was ho-hum. The corkscew was probably the best light I've seen in a slot in my very short canyoneering career, I'd say it rivaled Antelope, and you didn't have to worry about 1,000 tourists...

Pretty sweet canyon, no doubt. Full TR coming from RG a little later.

[rockgremlin]

Yup, yup....High Spur is definitely worthy of all the hype. If you did High Spur and came out unimpressed it means you either went through blind-folded, or you went when the lighting was bad. CarpeyBigg's photo is just a typical scene in the lower corkscrew section. Awesome canyon -- TR pending.


BTW, CarpeyBiggs is a VERY talented photographer - go check out his website!

http://www.danransom.com/blog/

[marc olivares]

you have some great shots in your bog Dan.

[Iceaxe]

That is a sweet picture

I hope to see some more of your pics from High Spur. It's one of my favorite for scenery. I'm thinking of going back in the near future and packing a tripod.

We went over the top of the beginning rock fall and did not squeeze through. I think it's probably easier over the top. And we downclimbed the drop after the corkscrew and before the finial. Its not to bad of DC if you have a climber along to show you the holds.

[CarpeyBiggs]

I'll process the rest of the pics today or tonight. It was definitely worth packing the tripod in for.

[stefan]

nice photo!! looking forward to the rest.

[CarpeyBiggs]

Not sure if we should do a separate TR of High Spur for the stickied list of TR's, but I figured I would link the gallery of my photos. It was amazing in there.

Full TR here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/?p=10

Gallery here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/HighSpur

[rockgremlin]

Not sure if we should do a separate TR of High Spur for the stickied list of TR's, but I figured I would link the gallery of my photos. It was amazing in there.

Full TR here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/?p=10

Gallery here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/HighSpur

I'll get an official one posted up 2night.

[rockgremlin]

Not sure if we should do a separate TR of High Spur for the stickied list of TR's, but I figured I would link the gallery of my photos. It was amazing in there.

Full TR here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/?p=10

Gallery here: http://www.danransom.com/TripReports/HighSpur

I'll get an official one posted up 2night.

Holy sheeyat!! Nevermind! Your TR is more than adequate.