Conditions:Grotto Canyon (South Fork, Death Valley)-20241230011217

Latest:	29 Dec 2024 (23 days ago)

Reported by:	Blueshade (54 reports)
Quality:	Great
Waterflow:	Dry
Wetsuit:	None
Water temperature:
Difficulty:	Normal
Time: ":15" is not declared as a valid unit of measurement for this property.	7 hours

Team: 1 people with experience level Advanced

Trip report URL:

Comments: As with other canyons in the area, the automatically imported beta is pretty inaccurate. I'm surprised it hasn't been updated already. I'll try to do so.

I have the longest rap as R2 (2 stage) at 100', whereas another beta site has it at 115'. I think mine is more accurate, but doesn't hurt to bring a tad bit longer rope to check. Either way, way less than the previously listed 150'. Can confirm the sneak entry that is obvious just after the head of the East Fork. Unfortunately had to do 1 short rap/handline that even I wasn't willing to risk, as well as several moderate DCs.

Many potential DCs, but solid skills are a huge advantage. I did 7 total raps, including after the junctions. A sandtrap could be used on many of the earlier raps, if wanting to practice, but doesn't make much sense if anchors are mostly already in place.

MUCH more action and MUCH prettier than Mosaic West Fork, albeit with more effort.

All condition reports

Date	Quality	Waterflow	Wetsuit	Difficulty	Time	Team	Reported by
29 Dec 2024	Great	Dry	None	Normal	7 hours	1 people Advanced	Blueshade (54 reports)
Comment: As with other canyons in the area, the automatically imported beta is pretty inaccurate. I'm surprised it hasn't been updated already. I'll try to do so. I have the longest rap as R2 (2 stage) at 100', whereas another beta site has it at 115'. I think mine is more accurate, but doesn't hurt to bring a tad bit longer rope to check. Either way, way less than the previously listed 150'. Can confirm the sneak entry that is obvious just after the head of the East Fork. Unfortunately had to do 1 short rap/handline that even I wasn't willing to risk, as well as several moderate DCs. Many potential DCs, but solid skills are a huge advantage. I did 7 total raps, including after the junctions. A sandtrap could be used on many of the earlier raps, if wanting to practice, but doesn't make much sense if anchors are mostly already in place. MUCH more action and MUCH prettier than Mosaic West Fork, albeit with more effort.
18 Feb 2024					10 hours	6 people Beginner to Expert	Cheveran (84 reports)
Comment: Nice canyon!! Moved a little slower on the approach. Lovely striated layers in the canyon. We took the short cut drop in the avoid some unnecessary elevation gain and loss.
1 Jan 2021	Amazing	Dry	None	Special challenges	7 hours	3 people Intermediate to Expert	Sqshemet (75 reports)
Comment: Did the sneak route, but dropped in I think one side drainage farther upcanyon than the previous group (a third of a mile or so before the first rappel, around 36.557462, -117.093539), resulting in a very mild downclimb and no additional rappels. Beautiful day. We found many of the listed rappels downclimbable. Replaced webbing on a few. The R16 webbing around the horn is looking bleached and crusty, we fiddlesticked a cairn instead of replacing, since, judging by footprints, it looks like that area sees a fair amount of hiker traffic. Fun rappel though, recommend instead of walking around!
29 Feb 2020	Great	Dry	None	Normal	8 hours	5 people	Morgan (103 reports),Xenonrocket (102 reports)
Comment: Morgan: Perfect weather. Used the sneak route this time - adds one 20' rappel and several downclimbs in a side drainage, and bypasses about a mile (each way) of nontechnical scrambling on the Layer Fork approach and descent. We stuck a rope in the pinch point below the R10(?) anchor and had to send someone up on ascenders to unstick and retrieve it. Several lessons here. 1) Don't get complacent about re-rigging 8-blocks for the pull. Although even a biner block could easily have stuck in the crack here, the 8-block sealed the deal. 2) That webbing left by a prior party looks and feels good enough to rappel on without replacing. Will you be equally stoked if you have to ascend on it? Also worth noting that hand placement of a small chockstone in the offending crack above the pinch point may help future parties avoid this issue; the one I left in place for pull attempt #2 isn't likely to be there after any serious rain.
16 Feb 2019	Great	Dry	None	Normal	11 hours	10 people Beginner to Expert	Morgan (103 reports),Dangel (157 reports),Dominik (64 reports),Eljefe62 (55 reports)
Comment: Nice canyon with a long approach - the majority of our car-to-car time was the approach hike. We used the route marked "E Ridge" on the topo, finding it to make the most sense for this particular fork. We rigged a total of 16 rappels but found none in the upper reaches of the canyon, so future visitors looking for scenic rappels but desiring a shorter trip might consider evaluating one of the several possible drop-ins for a "sneak" route.