Latest:	21 May 2023 (18 days ago)

Reported by:	Brdn.gonzales (27 reports)
Quality:	Amazing
Waterflow:	Deep pools
Wetsuit:	Thin wetsuit
Water temperature:
Difficulty:	Normal
Time:	11 hours

Team: 3 people with experience level Intermediate to Expert

Trip report URL:

Comments: Fantastic day in The Maze, we opted for the full route! Started at 6:30AM at the Lost Creek Canyon parking lot and hiked up Rocky Gap Rd. Had a few people offer us rides to the North Peak Trailhead but we opted out. Hike up was steep but nothing crazy, trail was in good condition and route-finding was easy. All anchors looked great except the following. R3 - The tree is creaking quite a bit, but was told there is a glue-in bolt for that rappel after the trip. The tree is still fine for now, but check it. Shortly after R3 is a "down climb" but we opted to stay on rappel. There is a horribly placed single bolt anchor that is sticking about 2 inches out of the ground. The hanger glides up and down, but the bolt didn't move. Definitely check this one before rappelling on it. The webbing on R8 is way too long and makes for an awkward low start. we locked off our devices and down-climbed a bit before rappelling. All other anchors, especially in the lower section, looked great. Some water in the upper section, maybe 1 swimmer. Forested section is mostly dry. Lower section had a lot of water with multiple swims and jumps! Lots of options to filter water. I wore a 5mm, another wore a 5/3mm, and the last wore a 3/2mm. All of us were comfortable, but a 4/3mm should work great for most.

All condition reports

Date	Quality	Waterflow	Wetsuit	Difficulty	Time	Team	Reported by
4 Jun 2023	Great	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Easy	10 hours	5 people Intermediate to Advanced	Lukemurray2016LV (3 reports)
Comment: Second run through the maze this year. Much different than a month ago. Little to no flow, pools getting stagnant and grimy. Lots of algae and bad smells, some pools cleaner than others. Removed the webbing around the dead logjam in upper section; bolt is above RDC. Replaced webbing at R1 of first section, very sun bleached. Somebody replaced the extended webbing I placed last month around the tree anchor after the logjam section, making the pull unnecessarily frictiony. All other anchors in good condition.
29 May 2023	Amazing	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit		11 hours	4 people Beginner to Advanced	RFontaine (125 reports)
Comment: A beautiful fantastic canyon with lots of variety. From big rappels, swims, slots, and unique rock features throughout, this route is a total treat! We left our vehicles at Lost Creek and had a friend drive us up to the approach in his jeep. Approach is a solid trail that disappears occasionally with the slick rock. A stair stepper, but is over quick. The log jam anchor in the upper section in unnecessary, look for a glue in anchor high above it DCR on the ground. This is a much better higher rap with a bit of free hang. The next anchor is a bolt that is only halfway installed. This should be cut out and replaced but is is good for now with a soft start. The natural arch anchor further up is not necessary (and kinda sketchy) as you can easily downclimb all the way to the next bolt. When the canyon opens up to a mostly rocky creek bed, this is the middle section that takes longer than you think. After stopping to filter, it took us about 1 hour to hike to the next rap. I was glad to have lowered my wetsuit top for this. My teammates didnt and they were overheated. The lower section is fantastic, the big rappels are fun. Most of the pools are wadeable and not super cold here. I kept my wetsuit top down up until the big deep swimming pool (that some people jump). Water gets much colder at this point. At the 2nd to last rappel (the drop over the big boulder) we got our rope stuck because it some how got twisted up top. After messing with it a bunch I ascended the rappel side and got it free. The last drop was glorious. I stemmed out to rig the 2 bolts far out DCR as these provide the best pull. Very exposed stem, best to protect the climb with the webbing slung rock below. Boulder field exit was tough for our beginner, lots of spotting on downclimbs, slow going, exit is quick once getting to established trail DCL. I wore a 4/3 wetsuit and was very comfortable. Definitely a favorite in Vegas, will return!! Beta updated!
27 May 2023	Amazing	Deep pools	Full wetsuit	Normal	14 hours	4 people Intermediate to Advanced	Austin3623 (12 reports)
Comment: All of our first time in The Maze. Found Brendan’s recent beta really helpful. A few additional notes: R1/downclimb - Current webbing is really sun-baked and 100% needs to be replaced. We weren’t able to loosen it with the tools we had (needs a nut tool), so instead we added an extra knot-chock anchor for redundancy to the current webbing. The crack we placed it in wasn’t especially bomb proof, as we were only using it for redundancy. Should be tested and may need to be altered by a future group if it doesn’t inspire confidence in time. R2 - glue-in was not well-placed. Some of the adhesive is missing near the surface and pulls out in the direction of the rappel. We backed it up and rapped on it carefully. Held up well enough on a low-angle rappel. R3 - Per the beta below, my 200lb self didn’t love the dead log anchor. That thing looks like it could go at any minute. The bolted anchor is an easy climb up to the DCR ledge above the watercourse. Couple more general notes: - We all wore 5mm of neoprene and were really happy about it. - Factor more than 12 hours to problem solve in the upper section if it’s your first time running the canyon and/or if you’re not super comfortable with down climbing. Our extra time was not due to any major technical issues or setbacks. - Some of the downclimbs in the upper section feel a bit spicy at first glance if you’re not familiar with them. Had 1-2 instances where we lengthened our rope on the previous bolts to protect them (some of us used it, some didn’t). Rope pulled smoothly without any issues. Love this section. - The lower section runs smoothly because it’s well bolted (for better or worse). Amazing canyon. Really loved both upper and lower sections for different reasons. Can’t wait to come back and run it again soon!
21 May 2023	Amazing	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Normal	11 hours	3 people Intermediate to Expert	Brdn.gonzales (27 reports)
Comment: Fantastic day in The Maze, we opted for the full route! Started at 6:30AM at the Lost Creek Canyon parking lot and hiked up Rocky Gap Rd. Had a few people offer us rides to the North Peak Trailhead but we opted out. Hike up was steep but nothing crazy, trail was in good condition and route-finding was easy. All anchors looked great except the following. R3 - The tree is creaking quite a bit, but was told there is a glue-in bolt for that rappel after the trip. The tree is still fine for now, but check it. Shortly after R3 is a "down climb" but we opted to stay on rappel. There is a horribly placed single bolt anchor that is sticking about 2 inches out of the ground. The hanger glides up and down, but the bolt didn't move. Definitely check this one before rappelling on it. The webbing on R8 is way too long and makes for an awkward low start. we locked off our devices and down-climbed a bit before rappelling. All other anchors, especially in the lower section, looked great. Some water in the upper section, maybe 1 swimmer. Forested section is mostly dry. Lower section had a lot of water with multiple swims and jumps! Lots of options to filter water. I wore a 5mm, another wore a 5/3mm, and the last wore a 3/2mm. All of us were comfortable, but a 4/3mm should work great for most.
22 Apr 2023	Amazing	Deep pools	Full wetsuit	Normal	10 hours	4 people Intermediate to Advanced	Lukemurray2016LV (3 reports)
Comment: Great run through the full maze route. Seemed to be the first ones through for the season, we rebuilt several anchors in the upper section. Lots of deep pools throughout, very cold water. Wonderful time had by all
5 Nov 2022	Great	Deep pools	Thick wetsuit	Special challenges	12 hours	2 people Advanced	Reiternick (9 reports)
Comment: Great canyon. Comfy in 7-10mm suits. Last rap has 3 options, we went for the higher of the two bolted options DCL which required a a fee easy 5th class moves which we did on belay. That anchor seems to offer best rope pull.
12 Oct 2022	Good	Deep pools	None	Normal	8 hours	2 people Advanced	Sammy1185 (1 reports)
Comment: Maybe I'm spoiled, but this isn't Zion quality as it's commonly called. It's a good canyon for southern Nevada, but overall it's not super impressive. The shuttle is a myth, basically. Just walk the trail up to a cairn on your left marking the start of the slope up. Shuttle is definitely not required. If you shuttle, it's absolutely HCV 4x4 and is a pain. With 2xShoes it's an easy cruise up a jeep trail that takes about 55 minutes. You'll need to walk back to Willow anyway from ice box after you finish the descent. Almost every rap is bolted. There's no actual challenges, just "challenges" if you want to avoid a small swim. An example would be stemming over some easily wade-able pools. The only minor challenge is the stem/chimney movement to the very last anchor bolt (two feet on the anchor wall, back on opposite wall). 8 hours, 57 minutes car-to-car without a shuttle. It's more like 3+Biv.
3 Jun 2022	Great	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Normal	11 hours	2 people Intermediate	Coalemus (149 reports)
Comment: Amazing canyon. Water in the upper section was pretty low with one swimmer and one deep wade, the rest was largely avoidable with difficulty. The lower section was more aquatic with several swims, though all but one was short. water was pretty warm for the most part, seems like it gets sun. One person wore 2mm shorty with rain jacket and only got cold right at the last sequence. Lots of sun and warm air. The final rappel has an exposed stem to get to the anchors which can be protected from above but it's really a very easy stemming move. The lower part is all bolted, the upper part is mostly natural anchors with a lot of the challenging downclimbs currently lacking anchors. We used LAPAR techniques several times. Did ~14 raps.
19 Mar 2021	Good	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Special challenges	15 hours	4 people Beginner to Expert	ESR (2 reports)
Comment: At the beginning of the canyon the pools were ice covered and therefore quite cold. I wore an Xterra 4/3 with 4mm Argos booties and 3mm fourth element gloves. I never got cold. Our leader wore 5mm full suit with a 3mm jacket and was too warm. The other two in our party froze and were shivering much of the canyon. Water flow was low but the pools will filled. Several swimmers throughout the canyon. Nearly every rap was bolted except for a few. We fiddle sticked two of them and rigged a fresh anchor on another a we could not see anything viable in place. The 15 1/2 hours was not due to any specific technical challenges. We just took our time and did not leap frog until the end. This could easily be run in under 12 that day if we were on our game. We brought three 200 foot ropes as were concerned about sticking one and the length of the final rap. The final rap turned out to be truly under 200 but we rigged a contingency as it was dark and we could not see the rope hit. Plenty of extra rope. The bouldering after the final rap is fairly long. I advise that you immediately look for the trail likely using a tool such as Gaia as it will save you much time rather than following the creek bed. Overall, a beautiful and long day but an amazing canyon that has a little bit of everything. You really want to shuttle this. And the shuttle for the rocky road better be high clearance and 4x4 or you will not make it.
3 Oct 2020	Great	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Special challenges	11 hours	4 people	Willie92708 (770 reports)
Comment: We started as a group of 12 because we organized shuttle drop-off vehicle with drivers that did not run the canyon. We stayed together until the just after the front-end water section, then the other 8 went ahead. The was OK, but they got some of our webbing, and a shorter rope, leaving us with only 2x 200 footers. Everything went smoothly enough, and we took more time to enjoy the place than the faster 8. However, when we got to the 100 (money) Hollywood Rappel we got our rope stuck, because the tail going up wrapped around the rope coming down and tied itself into a overhand slip knot against the quick-link on the glue-in U bolt. The 2 foot of extra sheath on the Canyon Pro DS, and the twists that I did not straighten out before pulling (rope has no extra slack at the bottom), caused the problem. We pulled on it like crazy, and knew from the half marker that the end was stuck right at the quick-link, so we had no choice but to abandon it. There was another party 30 minutes behind, and we figured they would free it, but they did not as they thought it was rigged fixed for ascending! Anyway, we proceeded down the canyon with one rope, and all went OK. At the last drop, I tied all the remaining webbing we had, and a 125 foot piece of 1.8mm Dyneema together to pull our only 200 foot rope down the last drop. That all went smoothly and as we were packing up the other party showed up, rapped down and we found out they did not retrieve our stuck rope. Big help they were! Anyway, we had friends running it the next day that retrieved our rope. The pools were not so stagnant as the previous trip, and overall great conditions to run it.
12 Sep 2020	Great	Deep pools	Thin wetsuit	Normal	9 hours	6 people	Willie92708 (770 reports)
Comment: Pools are low and stagnant, mid sections almost totally dried up, shaded pools are cold at 56F (measured), pool at the 80 foot rappel into the T pool was a bit nasty, otherwise water was good. Air temp was surprisingly cool during the day. Big U bolts with quick-links are still there for most all the rappels, except 1st, 80 footer, 2nd to last, and last. 2nd to last and last have other bolts, but 2nd to last is a single bolt (can easily be backed up to a pinch point with webbing). Even with the low water, The Maze was amazing as always.
7 Jun 2020	Amazing	Deep pools	None	Advanced	10 hours	3 people Beginner to Advanced	Doctors out (25 reports)
Comment: Great run through this canyon. Last log book entry was january 2020 and some webbing anchors were buried in dried runoff debris/leaves, so hasn't seen much traffic. Webbing on first anchor was purposefully cut, and second anchor (cairn) was ghosted. Easy enough, and most other rap stations intact with natural anchors or fixed U bolts. Water levels low, only 1-2 short swims if you have stemming/climbing abilities. Potholes either full or avoidable. Wish we'd left the wetsuits in the truck. Lots of fun down climbs if you're up to it. Shave off about 2000' of hiking and take a high clearance vehicle to the Rocky Gap Road summit. 10 hours from summit/bridge mtn trailhead to ice box canyon trailhead
7 Jun 2020	Amazing	Deep pools	None	Advanced	10 hours	3 people Beginner to Advanced	EMoorcroft (282 reports)
Comment: the most memorable canyon experience and a clean fun run! enjoyed the options for advanced anchors on sketchy ledges, the spiral chute downclimbs, and rigging deadman anchors with the homies. this felt like a game of mouse trap with technical sections and a variety of value. placed a rap at a chockstone into a deep pool towards the end. this made for a chilly rope pull, but there was plenty of patches of sun to warm up. wet suits were hauled but not needed. extra webbing and quicklinks would be a good idea as it seemed this canyon doesn't get a Ton of traffic. some anchors need replacing. this was a good canyon to practice retrievable anchors.
7 Jul 2019	Great	Deep pools	None	Normal	10 hours	6 people Brand new to Expert	Erek (197 reports)
Comment: No wetsuit needed, cold swims but warm quickly when out of water. Lots of in sun hiking between being in water. One member of team did it with only doing 7 rappels and 1 jump, was able to downclimb everything else. Rest of group was able to downclimb many of the rappels. Four wheel drive needed to get to trailhead. Beautiful canyon.
7 Jul 2019	Great	Deep pools	None	Normal	10 hours	6 people Brand new to Expert	Erek (197 reports)