Wintertime Canyoneering

[Erik B]

Are there any reasonable places to canyoneer in the wintertime (Dec/Jan/Feb)? I certainly dont like the idea of breaking through sheets of ice and plunging into water. I'm thinking....warmer....

Death Valley?
Red Rocks?
Southern Arizona?

Where do you all go? Do you shut it down until spring?

[Scott P]

Marble Canyon, Ticaboo area, North Wash, Robbers Roost, Moab. Sometimes the Swell too.

[Renatomic808]

Are there any reasonable places to canyoneer in the wintertime (Dec/Jan/Feb)? I certainly dont like the idea of breaking through sheets of ice and plunging into water. I'm thinking....warmer....

Death Valley?
Red Rocks?
Southern Arizona?

Where do you all go? Do you shut it down until spring?

plane ticket to Maui

[Bootboy]

Go skiing instead. To everything there is a season...

[Eric Holden]

Where do you all go?

San Gabriel Mountains, CA

[Byron]

The Grand Canyon. Pick up the book by Todd Martin...there's plenty to do there in the winter without freezing your butt off. As long as a big nasty cold front doesn't come in, it's actually a great time to hike.

[peakbaggers]

If avoiding water/ice is the main goal, watch the reports on Candition.com to get an idea of what's dry. Also trip reports here & on Canyon Collective. (Can I mention a competing site and not be castigated for it?) Many of the canyons in North Wash area will be dry as well as Poison Springs, the Mini Slots near the Dirty Devil & some of the Roost areas. This winter, I think some/many of the canyons in the Swell may be slow to drain out from the very wet fall. If you want warmer, head further south or into CA as some others have suggested.

[ilipichicuma]

The North Wash is generally pretty good in the winter. It will be freezing up in Salt Lake/Provo and a balmy 35 down in the North Wash. There are the few canyons down there that stay pretty dry, and if they don't, the water is often frozen almost solid. Just keep an eye on what conditions you can get.

[MrAdam]

The Superstition Mountains in central AZ are great winter canyoneering. Minimal water and a different type of canyoneering than Utah due to the volcanic rock. Just make sure and wear long sleeves and pants, the all of brush out here is trying to make you bleed!

[Kuya]

plane ticket to Maui

This is by far the best answer I have read! haha :) Can't wait for the day when I can get back to some Maui Cayoneering!

Go skiing instead. To everything there is a season...

Agree! there is a lot to be said about just engaging in the sport of the season.

[lucach]

This is by far the best answer I have read! haha :) Can't wait for the day when I can get back to some Maui Cayoneering!


Agree! there is a lot to be said about just engaging in the sport of the season.

I like canyons because of the water, so to go do dry shit is not appealing at all for me. I have some friends in Europe that go Ice Canyoning... they say it's lots of fun. They have to smash the ice to swim through potholes and sometimes the wetsuit will get cut with the sharp ice edge. There's one hot spring canyon they do in the Pyrenees that they always ask me to go to, but the hot water is only in 2 pools out of 7.

Pics are amazing but honestly, that shit is NOT for me...
In winter I'll usually prefer to go skiing or caving.

[Kuya]

I like canyons because of the water, so to go do dry shit is not appealing at all for me...Pics are amazing but honestly, that shit is NOT for me...

I'm confused, it's usually the wet canyons that cause the slots to smell like s&%t Unless we are talking "canyoning" which usually includes flowing water. Then it might not smell so bad haha