Conditions:Ice Cube Canyon (The Maze)-20171030223815
Latest: |
21 Apr 2017 (8 yrs, 2 mos ago) |
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| Reported by: | Willie92708 (1003 reports) | |
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| Quality: | Amazing |
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| Waterflow: | Deep pools |
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| Wetsuit: | Thin wetsuit |
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| Water temperature: | ||
| Difficulty: | Normal |
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| Time: |  12 hours
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Team: 2 people with experience level Intermediate
Trip report URL: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10211689336421667&set=gm.1327215890647453&type=3&theater
Comments: Before the bolts were removed
All condition reports
| Date | Quality | Waterflow | Wetsuit | Difficulty | Time | Team | Reported by |
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| Great | Very Low
| None 
| Normal | 13 hours
| 3 people Intermediate to Advanced | REMs11 (1 reports) | |
Comment: My team has been running this Canyon the past 4 years and uses it as a season opener to dust the cob webs off and get everyone in the rescue mindset. 3 years ago state parks closed the gate on the drive-in causing a 5 mile hike from the gate to the Sheep Canyon campsite, additionally since the road isn't being used it is extremely soft and sandy. With the additional hike My team decided to launch from the gate at 1 am and made it to the summit next to the rock out cropping just before the start of sunrise. We each packed 2L of water and all were out of water just upon reaching the summit. From there we enjoyed the beautiful sunrise and ate some food before dropping in for the first Rap. Water level was low in the canyon but that was expected with the time of year we went, still plenty of water to get wet and filter water. overgrowth and debris in the canyon were normal. Team was able to ghost everything except for one rappel where we used the tandem pitons left behind. Logged 18 Rappels with a handful of down climbs. Once we got the EYE the hike back to the trail head was easy but the trail out is mostly gone with the lack of people visiting the area. Once we got back to sheep Canyon campground We changed into new boots and clothes and started the 5mile hike out to the truck. We ended the day just before 2pm. We had no issue running the canyon with 2 8mm 75' ropes, with a 150' stored in a pack for emergency.
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| Great | Dry
| Thin wetsuit
| Normal |  7 hours
| 4 people Intermediate to Advanced | Eric W (7 reports) | |
Comment: Beautiful day in a spectacular canyon. All anchor webbing looked good. Water was pretty cold. I would recommend at least a 3/2 wetsuit for comfort. Most pools were wadeable, but two required short swims. Exit trail is still well-marked with cairns.
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| Good | High
| Full wetsuit
| Special challenges |  2 hours
| 3 people Intermediate to Advanced | AdamOtter (56 reports) | |
Comment: Fun day is SF. We bypassed most of the creek walk as in high flow + slippery it was annoying. We did a lot of the jumps at the start but did not do the slide. It should be depth checked.
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| Good | Low
| Full wetsuit
| | 6 hours
| 7 people Beginner to Advanced | Wes (4 reports) | |
Comment: Great day out. Low flow and sunny. All anchors in good condition.
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| Great | | None
| | 6 hours
| 4 people Beginner to Advanced | RFontaine (282 reports) | |
Comment: Another wonderful run through this stellar canyon! Brought my Dad through for his 70th birthday. It was his 3rd canyon and he had a blast! A few wades, 1 brief swim. Water not too cold. Big drop is awesome! Tons to see on this route, great raps, lots of variety!
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| Good | Very Low
| Thin wetsuit
| Normal | 8 hours
| 12 people Brand new to Advanced | Tcarlisle (77 reports) | |
Comment: Group of 12 with mixed abilities ranging from brand new to advanced. Two Advanced leads, One Assistant, and others who were competent belayers. We started later in the day and found plenty of vehicles already at both the exit and starting trailheads so we expected to run into others and encounter frequent bottlenecks but that did not happen. We didn't run into anyone else, nor did anyone else catch up to us, until we finished the last rap into the subway proper. Even then we only saw 4 other people all day while on the exit. We kind of had it to ourselves which was very abnormal.
The approach went smoothly. The "trail" that is depicted on most digital maps comes from OpenStreetMap and it is regularly maintained and is spot on. When there is any doubt about which way to go--such as when it appears you should deviate from the trail on the map based on what you see on the ground, don't deviate. Just follow the map trail and you will take the best course. The water is level is lower but there are still a few mandatory swims. Most or our group did not take a wetsuit. Some of the larger folks were fine, others without a wetsuit did shiver and get cold at times and wished they had one. The remaining members took wetsuits and were happy they did. As I mentioned we did not encounter others which is abnormal. While it is possible to do the Subway without a wetsuit in warm temps it is highly recommended to take a wetsuit because you can get cold waiting your turn at anchors and other bottlenecks in the canyon--whether waiting for other groups or for your own--you will have to wait. In addition there are portions of the canyon that always have windy updrafts "The Subway" proper is always very windy. Anchors are in ok shape. Half our group did the down climb to bypass the first drop and the rest body-rappelled off the anchor. The webbing on the Keyhole falls drop is setup to allow a limited dynamic range which is good. This webbing is in good shape and is a decent setup but it is a bit of an exposed reach so we had a person sit in the pocket with a safety tether clipped to the anchor and from here they could hand the rope back to assist others getting on rope. I did not inspect the final anchor as some one else was managing that station. Half our group hiked out quickly and recovered the vehicles while the rest moved slower managing some small issues and just thoroughly enjoying the exit. We mostly stayed in the watercourse as some of use with canyoneering boots preferred to keep their feet cool but the watercourse is often the most efficient path anyway vs the social trails on the sides. The exit is not all that long but can feel like it never ends. While I have felt that way in the past--and some in our group did feel that way--this time I found it a pleasant hike. The final up climb on the exit to the plateau can appear intimidating from below but it is not that bad. In all honesty it was far easier and less loose as I had remembered. However, some people will find it challenging and slow-going.
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| Great | Deep pools
| Thin wetsuit
| Normal | 6 hours
| 4 people Beginner to Advanced | Nclegg (417 reports) | |
Comment: 4/3 was mostly comfortable, but winds were high today and I was quite chilled hanging out at the anchor station for the big rap. Carpet still has some life in it if placed carefully. We took the super sneak route at a relaxed pace and it took 6.5h car to car.
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| Great | Very Low
| Full wetsuit
| Easy | 7 hours
| 6 people Brand new to Advanced | Shyamv (2 reports) | |
Comment: Practice rigging day for a very inexperienced group trying to shake off some rust after an off-season.
All anchors in great shape except: R1 webbing in good shape, quicklink may need replacement soon (surface rust with some small pit Several bolted anchors could use a little TLC with hammer/wrenching (a handfull of spinners on a single bolt of a pair. no obvious rust or concerns.)
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| Great | Very Low
| Thin wetsuit
| Normal |  3 hours
| 3 people Advanced to Expert | Alepro95 (4 reports) | |
Comment: Si segnala un resinato sul terzo armo parzialmente saltato, è presente naturale sulla verticale che può essere usato in alternativa
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| Great | Moderate Low
| Full wetsuit
| | 4 hours
| 4 people Beginner to Advanced | Fil (36 reports),Briwellman (78 reports) | |
Comment: Great run with class, everyone had a great time! We started at R4. New anchor and line at the 75 foot rappel is great! Thanks Kevin and Dusty.
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| Great | Moderate
| Full wetsuit
| Normal | 5 hours
| 5 people | Hendbc (5 reports) | |
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| Good | Dry
| None
| Normal | 9 hours
| 12 people Brand new to Advanced | Tcarlisle (77 reports) | |
Comment: Group of 12 with mixed abilities ranging from brand new to advanced. Two Advanced leads, One Assistant, and others who were competent belayers. Exited via Orderville and the Narrows (with a permit). 9.5 hours Trailhead to Temple of Sinewava shuttle stop.
We were a larger group and there were plenty of groups ahead and behind us. At a few places some groups and us set up different rappel anchors for the same drops to expedite people. We encountered a 20-person scout group that we played through by setting up a second anchor on the large fluted drop and then using their rope on the subsequent drop. Despite having a group of 12 with mixed experience we actually moved through the technical section of Birch relatively quickly and efficiently. We set up twin rope systems (some static some releasable) for each drop which helped speed things up. We did hike through Orderville at a more casual pace due to blisters and other minor issues but it was nice not to race through it. Once in the lower part of Orderville we downclimbed the first short-drop that and used a rope on the final drop with a bolted anchor. We did have one scare near then end of Orderville where there is a fat log to shimmy down. That log can be very slippery and one girl in our group fell off it sideways. She was totally fine luckily. I personally have slipped on that log in the same way and banged my head so please be wary and do a better job spotting down climbers here than we did. Nearly all the anchors are bolted and in good shape. The ones with webbing, such as the very first bypassable drop needs to be rebuilt so that it extends over the edge. We did not take the time to do that as there were a lot of groups waiting with us at the top so we didn't want to slow things down and we had one group drop our rope. I let them know they should consider fixing the anchor after us. Water is low, even in the Narrows it is mostly shin-deep. Orderville itself is completely dry (i.e. not muddy) with water coming in near the end were it is always wet.
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| Great | Deep pools
| Full wetsuit
| Normal | 6 hours
| 4 people Beginner to Advanced | Nclegg (417 reports) | |
Comment: Water level in the final pothole is 8.48" below the lip.
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| Great | Moderate
| Thin wetsuit
| Normal | 4 hours
| 6 people Brand new to Advanced | Julienlecorps (5 reports) | |
| Good | Moderate
| Thin wetsuit
| Special challenges | 8 hours
| 2 people Intermediate | Williammesscu (1 reports) | |
Comment: Lots of technical down climbing and a bit more excitement then we were expecting and we did 10+ rappels entirely off natural anchors. Route description says it’s bolted but the bolts are mossy old slings tied directly onto the bolt hangers so we didn’t use them. The route would benefit from someone bringing some quick links to attach to the hangers. But an enjoyable day with a phenomenal giant rappel that ended up being 60m+ for us off a nearby tree.
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