Top 5 Moab

[seth.l.craig]

Hello,
I am taking a very experienced friend to Moab. He has never been to that area, so I would like to know what everyones top 5 canyons are there? I haven't done enough to have a top 5, so thank you for your input.

Seth

[Kuya]

Fiery Furnace
Pleiades
Rock of Ages
Undercover
Elephants Butte

Those are some of my top 5 :)

[jman]

1. Pleiades
2. Elephant Butte
3. Not Tierdrop (& Tierdrop)
4. Undercover
5. Dragonfly

[Scott P]

Assuming Elephant Butte is not a canyon (and it isn't):

1. Pleiades
2. C-3/C-4
3. Rock of Ages
4. Professor
5a. Bull Canyon
5b. Dragonfly

I don't know how to rank the Lost Springs stuff, but others who have done those can and it's a longer drive from Moab.

Same with Granary and Entrajo.

I'd highly recommend the Hell Roaring loop and Elephant Butte as well. They aren't exactly canyoneering, but are two of the best routes around Moab. If you could count them as canyoneering routes, either would be in my top 5 in the Moab area.

U turn and Tierdrop are nice short routes if you only have an hour or two to kill.

[oldno7]

1) Fiery furnace
2) Fiery furnace
3) Pleides during high spring flow
4) Fiery furnace
5) Fiery furnace

[Kuya]

Assuming Elephant Butte is not a canyon (and it isn't):

1. Pleiades
2. C-3/C-4
3. Rock of Ages
4. Professor
5a. Bull Canyon
5b. Dragonfly

I don't know how to rank the Lost Springs stuff, but others who have done those can and it's a longer drive from Moab.

Same with Granary and Entrajo.

I'd highly recommend the Hell Roaring loop and Elephant Butte as well. They aren't exactly canyoneering, but are two of the best routes around Moab. If you could count them as canyoneering routes, either would be in my top 5 in the Moab area.

U turn and Tierdrop are nice short routes if you only have an hour or two to kill.

Um... Bull Canyon and C-3/c-4. Tell me more please! :)

[Iceaxe]

1) Fiery furnace
2) Fiery furnace
3) Pleides during high spring flow
4) Fiery furnace
5) Fiery furnace

IMHO Fiery Furnace isn't nearly that great. It's good but there are other comparable routes.

Personally I put Elephant Butte at the top of the Moab list.



Pleiades is just too short, it's only a couple hundred yards long. But it might be the most scenic route.

Pleiades in high water




Pleiades in lower water




Pleiades in frozen water




Fiery Furnace



Tap'n on my smart phone.

[Iceaxe]

C-3/c-4. Tell me more please! :)

Better known as Onion Creek. They are on my website.

http://climb-utah.com/Moab/onion.htm





Tap'n on my smart phone.

[Iceaxe]

Undercover is by far the best of the Lost Springs stuff.

[Scott P]

PS, it might help to say what time of year you are going. Routes such as Professor Creek, Pleiadis, and Bull are warm weather canyons (unless you want to go ice climbing in Pleiadis).

I don't know if Fiery Furnace is the best destination for someone who doesn't know the area well, unless they are looking for an exploratory trip.

Um... Bull Canyon and C-3/c-4. Tell me more please! :)

Bull Canyon is the first side canyon below Dewey Bridge along the Colorado. By Moab standards, it is a pretty good canyon, comparable to Dragonfly. One 80' rappel, some downclimbs, and a swim of the Colorado River.

I have brief descriptions of C-3 and C-4, but Shane's are probably better since I wrote them a while after I did the routes. Plus he has GPS waypoints.

Anyway, it could be the #1 canyoneering route in Moab if it weren't for the fact that the route finding is somewhat tedious and the rock loose. There are lots of really nice rock formations along the way and the canyons are interesting. If you get off route on the approach, it can be scary. The canyons themselves are easy, but C-4 is challenging to ascend when the rock is wet and when the fixed rope is missing.

http://www.summitpost.org/c-3-approach/162802

http://www.summitpost.org/c-4-approach/162804

[jman]

Bull Canyon is the first side canyon below Dewey Bridge along the Colorado. By Moab standards, it is a pretty good canyon, comparable to Dragonfly. One 80' rappel, some downclimbs, and a swim of the Colorado River.

How fortunate, I'm headed down to Moab next weekend for our annual Moab family party. Sounds like a short n' sweet one to try. Thanks! When you swam across the Colorado, how was it? (I mean besides fording a large river and all )

[Kuya]

Bull Canyon is the first side canyon below Dewey Bridge along the Colorado. By Moab standards, it is a pretty good canyon, comparable to Dragonfly. One 80' rappel, some downclimbs, and a swim of the Colorado River.

This sounds fantastic! thanks!

[Scott P]

When you swam across the Colorado, how was it?

Easy if you are wearing a life jacket.

[seth.l.craig]

Thanks for the good suggestions. This time of year do I need a wet suit for Pleiades?

[Iceaxe]

Thanks for the good suggestions. This time of year do I need a wet suit for Pleiades?

If you have a rain coat it works much better than a wetsuit. There is no swimming in Pleiades, just ankle to perhaps knee deep wading. A wet suit is kind of a giant waste. This time of year the problem is more getting splashed on by the tiny waterflow. Wal-mart sells some cheapo rain suits with jacket and pants for about $15 that work perfect for Pleiades. Of course if you belonged to my website you would already know this plus 100 other things that would make your outdoor life much easier....

.....come to the dark side, we have cookies.... http://climb-utah.com/index.htm

[moab mark]

Thanks for the good suggestions. This time of year do I need a wet suit for Pleiades?

If you ask my wife she will say Hell yes. She will never go back. We just wore rain gear and she was very cold. I survived. Her feet got really cold even in neo socks. Her and my daughter were not happy. The spray is very cold. It's just a drizzle but it's enough.
If your just a couple of guys and you motor a rain coat will do the trick.

Edit didn't see Shanes post. What he said.

[moab mark]

If your looking for Hardcore Canyoneering you will not enjoy Moab. Moab is family friendly Canyoneering with the Moab Diner tossed in between routes.

[seth.l.craig]

Good to know. &nbsp;<br><br>Shane I used to be in your circle of friends (3 years) but it got too expensive. &nbsp;You should consider a lifetime price (IMHO). &nbsp;Love your website though and still use it for the pictures.<br><br>We are looking for some tammer stuff. &nbsp;We got our hard core canyons out of the way earlier this year.<br>Thanks again all.