Conditions:Asbestos Creek-20160706215807

Latest:	2 Jul 2016 (8 yrs, 10 mos ago)

Reported by:	Tiffanie (139 reports)
Quality:	Great
Waterflow:	Moderate
Wetsuit:	Full wetsuit
Water temperature:
Difficulty:	Normal
Time:	12 hours

Team: 5 people with experience level Intermediate to Expert

Trip report URL:

Comments: We attempted to drop-in higher (3200 ft elevation) than our first attempt and retrieve the stuck ropes on the 500' waterfall. We hiked about 1.5 hours more uphill than our previous drop in and drop-in on small side drainage and did not need to rappel in. Getting to the main drainage required downclimbing, traversing cliff ledges, and one rappel (about 100 feet). Once we got into the main drainage, we had one extra rappel (50') before we reached our first original anchor. Our team agreed that pushing the extra mileage uphill was probably not worth it and dropping in at 2800 is the best way of running this canyon. We ran the upper and lower sections. 1 extra bolt has been placed for the 500' waterfall - it is a hanging station to break up the last rappel. Another bolt has also been placed in the lower section where the canyon makes a sharp left turn.

Flow was considerably lower - perhaps 50% less. Still a wonderful canyon but now definitely more fun in high flow!

All condition reports

Date	Quality	Waterflow	Wetsuit	Difficulty	Time	Team	Reported by
26 Apr 2025	Great	Moderate	Full wetsuit	Special challenges	8 hours	6 people Advanced to Expert	Beccap (47 reports),Coops (121 reports),Korey (65 reports)
Comment: Started at R4, added a bolt DCL above where the webbing pinch was (removed webbing as it was very sun bleached). Some of the rap lengths were a bit short in the beta. We meat anchored the first person down to the bolts for the beginning of the main falls multi pitch as the webbing was missing. We also noticed a lot of the bolts were galvanized and were showing rust around the heads so any group going through should be prepared for anchoring solutions and this canyon will need new bolts shortly. All that said, this canyon was absolutely amazing. There’s not a bad rappel in the canyon and the views and scale of everything is astonishing, and the obstacles are non stop. Lots of long (100’+) rappels in the flow requiring some fun (but not overly challenging) movement at moderate flow, nice commitment factor. Definitely a top tier canyon. This is a very seasonally sensitive canyon (meaning it’s tricky to know when its in prime condition). Some reference beta for predicting conditions: - Jumbo Frog still had snowpack up to R6; Asbestos had a small snow patch (creating a neat cave!) just above R4 but no snow otherwise - Caltopo snowpack photos attached - Air temps had been sunny and highs in the low 60’s for 4 days, and the flow was noticeably higher when we ran it Saturday than when it was scouted Wednesday
15 Jun 2023	Good	Moderate Low	Full wetsuit	Special challenges	7 hours	4 people Beginner to Advanced	Coops (121 reports),AdamOtter (52 reports)
Comment: Started near R4. Added some extra bolts to the multipitch so that most stations have 2. R10 now has 2 different anchors, we put 2 SS anchors just to the climbers left of the flow. Replaced some webbing but one anchor still needs webbing replaced or preferably, links. Certain things should have a bolt added to them instead of webbing around rocks.
2 Oct 2021	Good	Moderate Low	Drysuit	Normal			Coops (121 reports)
Comment: The road is now clear of the massive tree. A local said it was still blocked until last week but people were squeezing their vehicles under it. Did the lower section. Approach was great - until it wasn't. Good walking in the forest, then traversed left under the first rock face (@1700ft), then climbed up a steep not very fun gully. Perhaps should have gone right (north) around the face instead? Finding the best way to "drop in" at 1800 was a bit messy too. It's unclear what the optimal way is, and if it's a down-climb or rap. Ended up doing almost exactly a 100' rap from a tree directly uphill from R12 bolts, all the way into the creek. Once in the canyon things went smoothly. Bolts & webbing all look in good condition. Moderate-low flow meant a good soaking but no challenges. Updated beta to explain a few rap options. Good back to back rap fun. Will likely be back next year to do the upper section and bump the 4* rating to 5*. Weather: no rain in the prior 48 hrs. 2" in the last 72 hrs.
13 Mar 2021	Poor	Very High	Thick wetsuit	Special challenges		2 people	Jkthompson760 (4 reports)
Comment: Huge (8-10' thick) log completely blocking road to parking spot. This is roughly a couple hundred yards from creek. Road is covered in snow. We were able to park a mile away and hike to the base. Mountain is also covered in 6-8" base for the hike up. The canyon is unrunnable as it is also covered in snow. Some of upper and lower asbestos have large snow bridges and fields across. The mountains above the watercourse also have large amounts of snow and ice on them and present a danger if they melt off. Might open up in a month or two.
13 Aug 2020	Poor	Very Low	Thin wetsuit	Easy	7 hours	3 people Advanced	Blueshade (55 reports)
Comment: 7:50 (with a screw up at the big rap sequence) for the "full" canyon from the upper confluence at 2800'. (I assume a time of 5hrs must be the lower only?) We had very low water but otherwise this must be pretty impressive and pushy in higher flows. Although we were able to downclimb many of the drops having low flow (satisfying our dry canyon nature). Replaced some of the webbing, built one or two better anchors, and ghosted many others. Be prepared with webbing if going in and not intending to ghost. The beta is/was incomplete/unusable for the entry and many of the drops/rope lengths were wrong, especially in the lower part. Lower canyon (from 1800' has now largely been bolted). I'll do my best to update the ropewiki.
2 Jul 2016	Great	Moderate	Full wetsuit	Normal	12 hours	5 people Intermediate to Expert	Tiffanie (139 reports)
Comment: We attempted to drop-in higher (3200 ft elevation) than our first attempt and retrieve the stuck ropes on the 500' waterfall. We hiked about 1.5 hours more uphill than our previous drop in and drop-in on small side drainage and did not need to rappel in. Getting to the main drainage required downclimbing, traversing cliff ledges, and one rappel (about 100 feet). Once we got into the main drainage, we had one extra rappel (50') before we reached our first original anchor. Our team agreed that pushing the extra mileage uphill was probably not worth it and dropping in at 2800 is the best way of running this canyon. We ran the upper and lower sections. 1 extra bolt has been placed for the 500' waterfall - it is a hanging station to break up the last rappel. Another bolt has also been placed in the lower section where the canyon makes a sharp left turn. Flow was considerably lower - perhaps 50% less. Still a wonderful canyon but now definitely more fun in high flow!
18 Jun 2016	Amazing	High	Thick wetsuit	Advanced	15 hours	8 people Intermediate to Expert	Tiffanie (139 reports)
Comment: This was the first descent of upper asbestos. None of us thought we would find such an amazing (epic) canyon. It will quickly become a top canyon in Washington. We descended the section from 2800 to 1800 ft and it was one rappel after another. There waterfalls above have still yet to be descended. Drops that had no natural anchors are bolted with single bolts and should be backedup at least until second bolt is placed. Flows are high in the early Summer and will reduce significantly during late Summer. We had to abandon a 300' rope and 200' rope on the last pitch of the 500' rappel just above 1800' elevation. Please do not attempt to ascend it as there are sharp ledges that will coreshot the rope. The 300' rope is already coreshot due to a sharp ledge. If anyone runs the canyon prior to us re-running it and wants to return the rope...we'd greatly appreciate it!