Kiddie Canyons?

[Absolute Gravity]

Took my boy Noah (9 yr) rappelling for the first time yesterday and he did great. His biggest complaint was that I was cramping his style by insisting on rappelling side by side with him on another rope, and that it was boring waiting for others to go. Anyway, I know some of you guys take your kids into some canyons and I'd like to get Noah started this coming spring, so what are some good kiddie canyons?

I'm not sure what his max height tolerance is yet, but so far he has been perfectly comfortable with 40+ feet.

[peakbaggers]

Can't offer any advice about the Wasatch Front area because we're from GJ, Colo., but many of the routes around Moab are easy & instructive for beginners wanting to focus on basic rappelling. To qoute another canyoneer, many of those routes are "canyon hikes with rappels." Thinking of ones like U-Turn, Tierdrop, Not Tierdrop, Rock of Ages, Dragonfly, Elephant Butte, etc. See CLimb-utah.com or AJRoadtrips. com.

[Kuya]

... many of the routes around Moab are easy & instructive for beginners wanting to focus on basic rappelling.

Agree, So far my experience canyoneering in Moab has been great and It is a excellent place to take beginners.

[Iceaxe]

Where do you want to visit with the kiddies?

[Absolute Gravity]

I'm not real sure since I haven't been to a lot of places myself, however the places I have been are definitely too much for him right now. I really like Zion, and Bob sent over a few non-technical suggestions as well as Yankee Doodle and Keyhole. Sounds like Moab might be a good place too. I think short canyons with minimal swimming (maybe a little more though if the water is on the warmer side). Noah gets bored really easy so a longer canyon might be too much for him (and by extension me).

[Sandstone Addiction]

My boys have never gotten bored or even complained in any canyon we've done so far (knock on wood ). In fact, just the opposite--they have so much fun and can't wait to see what's around the corner. It's so new and exciting to them, I'm amazed that they always seem to want to help with rigging, carrying and route finding--I just wish they had the same attitude about household chores .

Out of the few canyons we've done so far, Keyhole was by far my boy's favorite--short and sweet with simple and straightforward raps. They loved all the swims too.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...ly-Aug-16-2012

Leprechaun Right Fork was another favorite. They had a blast with the fun raps and downclimbing. They also enjoyed just walking through all the places the grownups had to shimmy sideways.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...orial-Day-2012


Echo was also very fun and more of a challenge. They loved it too.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...ly-Aug-17-2012

I believe that a good wetsuit that fits properly is a major key to kids having a good time in a wet canyon. I found this site that has very reasonably priced wetsuits and plan to order 2 very soon.

http://www.divers-supply.com/-P1384....ntent=SEE0061#

[peakbaggers]

I think short canyons with minimal swimming (maybe a little more though if the water is on the warmer side). Noah gets bored really easy so a longer canyon might be too much for him (and by extension me).

Most routes around Moab are half day at best and very little water. Dragonfly & Entrajo I'd stay away from if trying to stay dry. Rock of Ages may hold some water in two places. I would think the Tierdrops, U-Turn, Elephant Butte, Bighorn & Medieval could keep him entertained. Rock of Ages and Medieval would have longer/higher rappels though. (They did have some seroius rain around Moab last Friday, so you never know for sure.) When he's done some of the shorter, you could take him there. Sounds like your son's gonna take to it just fine.

[Absolute Gravity]

Sweet! Sounds like Keyhole and Moab will be going into the plans. I haven't been to Keyhole yet but it looks like a fun little canyon.

Out of the few canyons we've done so far, Keyhole was by far my boy's favorite--short and sweet with simple and straightforward raps. They loved all the swims too.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...ly-Aug-16-2012

Leprechaun Right Fork was another favorite. They had a blast with the fun raps and downclimbing. They also enjoyed just walking through all the places the grownups had to shimmy sideways.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...orial-Day-2012

Those are great. Seeing your kids do that stuff makes me quite a bit less stressed about taking mine through.

[Slot Machine]

Echo was also very fun and more of a challenge. They loved it too.

http://www.bogley.com/forum/showthre...ly-Aug-17-2012

IMO, Echo is a big step up for a 9-year-old from anything else suggested (although @Sandstone Addiction and his family look like they had an awesome day ).

There are a couple of awkward rappels in there, but more significantly, the water in Echo is SO cold. 40 degrees in August perhaps? With a 7mm wetsuit, booties and gloves, I'd bet Noah would probably have a good time. Echo is a GREAT canyon, however I'd suggest doing a couple easier canyons with him first.

I'd add Zero Gravity to "Echo skill level" list. It's short and really cool, but it would be more fun with a little experience.

Since Noah can climb, he would probably like Lucky Charms. You would probably have to belay him a bit, but nothing on that route is scary.

Bob

[ilipichicuma]

I've seen video/pictures of kids going down Birch Hollow (outside Zion) a couple times. It may be a little outside your son's attention span, though, from the sound of things. It is really straightforward and fun, though, with a max height of 100 feet on the rappels.

[Sandstone Addiction]

Here are some other canyons that I've thought might be kid friendly--how do others feel?


Baptist out Upper Chute--not out Faultline
Bluejohn Main Fork with exit out left just below the slot
Buck Canyon
Pine Creek
Arscenic
Yankee Doodle
Blarney Canyon Left Fork
High Spur (split in two-I think there is an E/E before the corkscrew slot?)
Birch Hollow


My main concern is length of hike because of my 5 year old, if it wasn't for him I'd consider longer canyons as my older boys can easily hike as far as I can.

As far as awkward starts go, we've got the "left hip slide" down pretty well and for my 5 year old I will just lower him on all awkward starts.

[Mountaineer]

My main concern is length of hike because of my 5 year old, if it wasn't for him I'd consider longer canyons ...

Completely agree. The limiting factor for my 7 and 11 year old is distance, or my endurance. There have been plenty of times I've had to put one on my shoulders or back, and carry them out. The Zion canyons tend to have a lot of elevation hiking, so my younger kids wouldn't like a lot of those.

Cold water is also a concern, however I've found that I can usually "shuttle them" across water to keep them dry. It just takes a lot longer, as you end up doing the canyon 1-3 times. My rule of thumb was to take the median time as reported in the Betas, and then double it.




Hogwarts is probably my favorite with kids! Not too bad approach, and the return drops you on ~top of your car.

I could add a bunch more I've taken my then 6 year old on: Shillelagh, Morocco, Blue John, Angel Slot/Cove canyons...lots of options! Hog 1 and Monkey Business were doable, but given the higher technicality involved, length, and cold season & water when we did them, those were two that I still remember weren't "as fun" ...

I like this thread, as I'm always looking for fun adventures to take the kids on.

[Iceaxe]

I think short canyons with minimal swimming (maybe a little more though if the water is on the warmer side). Noah gets bored really easy so a longer canyon might be too much for him (and by extension me).

No Swimming.... bored easy..... are you sure this kid is ready for canyoneering?

With my kids I waited until they asked to go and I've never had a problem with water, bordom, long hikes.... YMMV...

FWIW: I think East Fork of Leprechaun is the perfect kid/noob canyon.

[Absolute Gravity]

No Swimming.... bored easy..... are you sure this kid is ready for canyoneering?

With my kids I waited until they asked to go and I've never had a problem with water, bordom, long hikes.... YMMV...

FWIW: I think East Fork of Leprechaun is the perfect kid/noob canyon.

I'm not sure yet, but I'd like to find out. So far as water goes, he can swim just fine but has really bad asthma, so cold water + exercise might be asking for trouble. On a warm day or in warmer water he would be fine.