Blue Velvet Canyon
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| | Difficulty:3A II (v3a1 II) Raps:10, max ↨100ft
Red Tape:No permit required Shuttle: Vehicle:Passenger Watercraft:Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Condition Reports: | 24 Feb 2024
"Lovely canyon! Floated out to Cranes rest on a no-wind day. Mixed crew of alpackas and explorer 200s. Time includes the rather leisurely float. |
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| Best season: | Oct-Mar
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35.9522, -114.7253
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Introduction[edit]
A short canyon with numerous rappels, Narrow corridors, and great scenery of the colorado river all the way down.
Please, remember that installation of permanent fixed hardware is prohibited in Lake Mead National Recreation Area. No bolts.
Do not enter this canyon if you do not have the knowledge to entirely inspect and replace anchorage. Do not assume anchorage is prepared to hold any load bearing weight upon your arrival. Bring anchorage replacement material and be prepared to replace all anchorage. This canyon floods and becomes hot. The sunbaked and worn webbing can break. Inspect and Replace all anchorage in this canyon.
A great day would be to go down Red Velvet Canyon, exit Black Cat Canyon, Down Blue Velvet canyon, out AZ hot springs.
Approach[edit]
Descent[edit]
The first vertical encounter you will face is a downclimb. There is opportunity to build an anchorage for a master point but we meat anchored and spotted LAMAR. Here you will find a R1, 40 ft rap that curls around a slightly awkward chute. It could be downclimbed and the pull could have potential of sticking. downclimb the next two dry falls until you get to R2 which is around 50 ft into a pothole. You can climb out of this pothole or you can traverse the wall. You will start seeing the river from here. IMO, this is where the scenic views and the remainder of the canyon begins. You quickly descend at least * rappels between 20 and 60 ft in length. Each rappel will be very close to each other. The canyon narrows and meanders down the mountain rapidly while the views of the colorado river can be seen. There is one two stage rappel that could use an additional anchor as the rock was catching the pull, around a bend. Continue down until you get to the river.
Exit[edit]
We exited with the wind coming from the south. This allowed us to be pushed upstream and exit VIA, AZ hot Springs. You can paddle upstream or exit Big Horn canyon if you parked a shuttle car at Big Horn. If you are paddling into the wind you might want to consider your teams strength and desire, than decide if a shuttle car at the TH of Big Horn will be the best option.
Red tape[edit]
Get a wind and weather report before heading out to decide what canyon you want to exit. You must have a USGC approved PFD and watercraft for your exit strategy.
Beta sites[edit]
Trip reports and media[edit]
Background[edit]
This canyon was named "Holy Water Canyon" in 2021 after its first technical descent. The name originated from an unexpectedly large amount of water encountered in the canyon's potholes on that particular day.