Conditions:Cottonwood Creek-20161127212248
Latest: |
25 Nov 2016 (8 yrs, 10 mos ago) |
|---|
| Reported by: | PatWinstanley (80 reports) | |
|---|---|---|
| Quality: | Ok |
|
| Waterflow: | Very Low |
|
| Wetsuit: | None |
|
| Water temperature: | ||
| Difficulty: | Advanced |
|
| Time: |  5 hours
|
|
Team: 1 people with experience level Advanced
Trip report URL:
Comments: The upper Tapeats narrows are short, easy and scenic and well worth the quick detour to check out if you're in the area. The lower basement rock narrows are not as scenic or fun as others, and contain three difficult bypasses, the second of which I found to be quite horrible. This second bypass takes you a few hundred feet above the canyon on a long, steep, crumbly, climby and very difficult to follow traverse before dropping back down into the canyon below. The exposure on this route isn't all that bad except for a spot or two, but it is very complex, the way isn't obvious at all in many spots (the cairns are easier to follow on the way down canyon than the way back) and on my visit a few cairns led to more difficult and dangerous options than were available. I made the mistake of taking the gully that was cairned to go back up, this gully has a few 20 foot vertical climbs, whereas the next gully down canyon is much more straight forward and safe. Even though it isn't all that long (mileage-wise anyway, it still took something like 45 friggin' minutes one way), I thought this route was more frustrating, difficult and dangerous than either the Eminence Break or Scotty's hollow exit routes. There is a bolt on canyon left at the top of the first 25 foot drop - if I were to do this one again (I won't) I would consider fixing ropes on the few drops in the canyon and ascending if going back up canyon.
Heed the parks warnings about ravens and take your food or anything that could be mistaken food with you if hiking the canyon from a base camp - or leave it behind in a bomb-proof container.
All condition reports
| Date | Quality | Waterflow | Wetsuit | Difficulty | Time | Team | Reported by |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ok | Very Low
| None
| Advanced | 5 hours
| 1 people Advanced | PatWinstanley (80 reports) | |
Comment: The upper Tapeats narrows are short, easy and scenic and well worth the quick detour to check out if you're in the area. The lower basement rock narrows are not as scenic or fun as others, and contain three difficult bypasses, the second of which I found to be quite horrible. This second bypass takes you a few hundred feet above the canyon on a long, steep, crumbly, climby and very difficult to follow traverse before dropping back down into the canyon below. The exposure on this route isn't all that bad except for a spot or two, but it is very complex, the way isn't obvious at all in many spots (the cairns are easier to follow on the way down canyon than the way back) and on my visit a few cairns led to more difficult and dangerous options than were available. I made the mistake of taking the gully that was cairned to go back up, this gully has a few 20 foot vertical climbs, whereas the next gully down canyon is much more straight forward and safe. Even though it isn't all that long (mileage-wise anyway, it still took something like 45 friggin' minutes one way), I thought this route was more frustrating, difficult and dangerous than either the Eminence Break or Scotty's hollow exit routes.
There is a bolt on canyon left at the top of the first 25 foot drop - if I were to do this one again (I won't) I would consider fixing ropes on the few drops in the canyon and ascending if going back up canyon. Heed the parks warnings about ravens and take your food or anything that could be mistaken food with you if hiking the canyon from a base camp - or leave it behind in a bomb-proof container.
| |||||||
| | | | | HikeArizona.com (271 reports) | |||
Comment: Most recent conditions reported at HikeArizona.com, see Trip Report for full details.
| |||||||