Monsoon Season

[Erik B]

To all the Utah locals: when does monsoon season typically end down there? Seems like it started the end of June. I remember having some weather issues last September down there too.

June-September?

How do you all fit in some canyoneering with thunderstorms looming in the forecast almost every afternoon? Start and finish early?

[Scott P]

Mid July through mid September is peak monsoon season, but it can linger longer than that. It can last into October occasionally.

How do you all fit in some canyoneering with thunderstorms looming in the forecast almost every afternoon? Start and finish early?

It depends on the chance of rain, but personally I wouldn't risk being in any slot canyon during a thunderstorm. Some of the wider canyons might be OK.

[Aj84737]

I've only lived in Utah for a couple years but to me the monsoon season isn't that bad. Sure there are weeks that it rains everyday but there are also we gaps where it doesn't rain at all. I guess being local it makes it easier to just go out on a whim on a no rain day. If you had to plan a trip In advance there is a chance that it could be rained out. It generally rains in the afternoon but it can rain in the morning just watch the sky. Not saying I recommend this but if you pick a shorter canyon and get a early early start and be efficient you should be fine. I've done that a few times but never on a canyon I've never done before. And also never with anybody new to the sport or that I havnt done a canyon with before.

[Canyonbug]

Yeah mostly what has been said -

Starts the end of June, first week of July and goes through the end of August and Labor Day weekend. It can extend into September and will flare up occasionally into October. Some of the worst storms we have had in the past 10 years have been the 2nd week of September and first week of October.

I generally play it very careful, but yeah, I am here so if it looks bad I'll just wait til my next days off and go. Nothing like planning my whole vacation around the trip. We hit canyons early and go fast. We pick ones with small drainage's and watersheds, and take smaller groups. We watch the cloud movements on radar a few days prior, check where the fronts are and the projections for where they are going. In the end it's still a gamble this time of year, and it's user beware. Of course with canyoneering we are all kinda gambling to some degree