Dealing with monsoon season

[Krrristi]

I was planning on a fun little trip to Christopher Creek this weekend, and then the monsoons started. I've lived in the desert my whole life, and I know the basics of dealing with monsoons: hike early in the day, make sure the forecast is clear in the entire drainage area, that kind of stuff, but I've never had to really worry about it, as I've never hiked in a slot canyon during Monsoon season before.

My original thought was that by hiking early and getting done by early afternoon I would be safe, as long as I'm out before thunderheads start forming in the drainage area. *But I know that it can take 10-12 hours for floodwaters to hit. Does that mean that if, when I begin hiking in the morning, it hasn't rained in the drainage area in the past 12 hours & it's clear out, AND I'm done early, that I should be OK?

Basically, I'm asking what kinds of things should I look for in the forecast before deciding head out?*Besides just saying flat out "don't go during monsoon season," what are some ways to deal with the storms? Or is it really just that simple? I'm not stupid....I won't go screwing around in a canyon if there's a good chance of me getting flushed down the Mogollon Rim. Christopher Creek is not a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But I'm also smart enough & careful enough to assess my risk factors, I'd just like a little more information on the issue :) *

I'm really worried I'm gonna get blasted for posting this, so please don't yell at me. I'm well aware of the dangers involved, but I also know that the no-questions-asked disclaimer is meant for people who aren't properly prepared & educated. I'm interested in becoming properly prepared & educated so I can make the decision for myself. Please be nice :)

[shaggy125]

Lots of people do canyons during Monsoon season so no one should blast you. How long a flood takes to run its course depends on the size of the drainage. Small drainages (like say the Leprechauns in North Wash) will take a lot of rain in one spot to flood, and the flooding will hit during or soon after the rain. A huge drainage (like say the Black Hole in White Canyon) can take many hours for the flood to run and it can be blue skys where you are but if a huge storm hit upstream it could hit you and you'd never know. The amount of rock compared to soil makes a difference too. Soil will absorb at least some rain (depending how saturated with water it is from previous days storms and how fast the rain is falling) where water will just roll off rock and start filling the drainage.

Starting early and finishing by afternoon is a good plan. Look at topo maps and determine the size of the drainage before you go out. You are taking risk everytime you drop into a canyon during monsoon season but the bigger the drainage, generally the bigger the risk. Also keep an eye out for breaks in the canyon and places you can get out or get to high ground if a storm did hit. Most canyons have places you could hide out in case of a storm just be on the lookout for them. Personally I don't do canyons during monsoon season anymore. After getting rained on in Heaps... twice, multiple thunder claps causing me stress I've quit, I just don't have nearly as much fun when I'm stressing about the weather. I climb in the summers now and do canyons in the Spring and Fall, but if you are smart you can minimize risk during monsoon season. Have fun out there.

[ratagonia]

There's a couple tidbits on Flash Floods here: http://canyoneeringusa.com/utah/intro/flash.php

Canyons vary a LOT in how vulnerable they are to flashing big enough to get ya. Then again, I would have picked Spry as being fairly safe, and it went BIG BIG BIG last summer.

Tom

[Krrristi]

Thanks for the help guys :) I appreciate it. We ended up not doing the canyon because it had been raining all week in Phoenix & although a ff advisory wasn't issued, we had a lot of inexperienced people and the experiences guys decided not to risk it. A bummer, but responsible :) thanks again!

[nonot]

Check the weather - if it's standard monsoon day, you will get the standard forecast "chance of afternoon thunderstorm". Do this because occasionally rain is actually predicted during the morning/noon due to an actual weather system moving through (often due to remnants of a Pacific hurricane).

If the prediction is chance of t-storm in afternoon - start early, plan to finish by about 2 PM.

If the monsoon dumped a lot of rain in your area yesterday, it has less of a chance of doing so today. Why? The rain may keep the heat down, preventing the formation of big thunderheads until later in the day. If there was enough rain, the thunderheads will only start getting big enough as the sun sets and the air cools down again. End result? - no rain. Note: I said less chance, not no chance.

If you're in the canyon, watch the weather (obviously easier in some canyons than others. In the canyon listen for thunder (hard to distinguish if the canyon is near a road.) If you get worried about either, abort the trip (not possible in some canyons). Seeing weather come in is generally better than hearing it. You may have very little warning if you hear it first. Monsoons come often from the south, southeast, or southwest, although they could come from any direction.

Pick canyons that are shorter, Pick canyons that are escapable. It will take less time to complete and allows you to abort. Christopher creek is short (2-3 hrs) and can be exited at almost any point. You may not like a particular climb out, but you can do it without much danger.

Pick canyons with a small drainage - this means it needs to rain close to you and not 15 miles away. Christopher creek is not quite as good for this, its drainage extends for a few miles in two major directions.

[Krrristi]

Thanks! What I worry about more than getting caught in a storm or getting hit from rain miles upstream, is getting caught hours after a storm upstream...I think it was Tom's site that refers to an incident in Utah where floods hit 18 hours after the storm! But you guys gave me lots of useful information on how to get an idea of how long it would take for rain to travel down different drainage areas.

[shaggy125]

Tom's site that refers to an incident in Utah where floods hit 18 hours after the storm

This story was in the Black Hole, which is part of White Canyon, a MONSTER drainage. The headwaters are more than 40 miles from the Black Hole section. It rained at the headwaters and took until the next day for the flood to hit the party in the hole. Monster drainages require a lot of respect, especially during monsoon season.

[rockgremlin]

Start EARLY, EARLY, EARLY!!! Monsoonal showers need time to build. Plan on being out of the narrowest parts of whatever canyon you're doing by 1:00pm. 2:00pm by the latest. You shouldn't have too many problems if you get an early start.

Death chasing you through a canyon is a serious killjoy.

[Brian in SLC]

In monsoon season, you can get t showers any time of day, including morning.

Take care.

[rockgremlin]

In monsoon season, you can get t showers any time of day, including morning.

Take care.

Usually morning showers are preceded by a sky full of clouds...in which case canyoneering in tight slots is not a good idea. Be sure to look up before embarking...

[canyoncaver]

There is a lot less stress in September. Just sayin...