Monmouth Canyon
| Rating: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| | Raps:11-14, max ↨150ft
Red Tape: Shuttle: Vehicle:Passenger Watercraft:Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Condition Reports: | 3 Sep 2024
"We had to tight some nuts on few anchors but all good now.. Perfect anchor condition.. Perfect flow and weather.. Be careful on some jumps |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Best season: | Jun-Oct
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Regions: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
49.7151, -123.1911
Search nearby locations
Weather forecast
Waterflow
Introduction[edit]
Meet Monmouth Canyon, the larger relative of the adjacent Box Canyon. While Box Canyon features narrow slots lined with polished granite walls, Monmouth showcases large multi-tier drops (and the occasional infinity pool) forever peering towards the towering granite cliffs of Squamish. Motivated parties may even find harrowing vertical slides and jumps in the shade of the magnificently sculpted walls that adorn much of the upper descent.
The source of this wet beauty is glacier melt; even during late summer expect to need thick neoprene (and perhaps the hot tub at Squamish Watersports if they were the source of your transport).
Warning: The canyon features potential jumps and slides, many technical and shallow. As always rely heavily on scouting and techniques to avoid broken bodies and rescues (YouTube can show you multiple videos of these if you are interested).
Approach[edit]
River Crossing[edit]
See Crossing The Squamish River.
Hike[edit]
From the shore (49.71393, -123.17353), head west along a developed trail to Echo Lake. Shortly after passing under the first set of powerlines, the trail forks at a sign describing “ascending” (left) and “descending” (right) routes to Echo Lake.
- The left trail follows along the side of Monmouth Creek, never straying too far away. It provides views of multiple features of the canyon (including Keyhole Falls) and is good for checking the flow. However, the trail is very steep/scrambly in places, requiring the use of fixed chains, ropes, and root ladders. There is some exposure in places.
- The right trail makes a more moderate ascent, staying away from the canyon until it reaches the upper drop-in point. This is likely a more pleasant option if you don’t need eyes on the canyon.
The two trails converge again just before a sign indicating you've reached the top of the waterfalls. Options:
- This is the official start of Upper Monmouth.
- For the upper bonus section of Monmouth, follow the trail another 300m until it gets close to the creek again.
Descent[edit]
Jumping into deep pools can be tremendous fun, but always send someone down first to check the depth and look for underwater obstacles (ex: underwater ledges, boulders, and impaling logs). Jumping is a leading cause of canyon injuries (i.e. broken ankles and legs).
Bonus Upper Monmouth[edit]
Basalt pillars and narrow corridors provide interesting contrast to the wide open granite slabs of the rest of the canyon.
The section starts at 49.71511, -123.19108, and ending with a toboggan slide immediately before R1 of the classic section.
- Short jump to enter a pool
- 6m/20ft rappel DCL
- Short jump
- 6m/20ft toboggan slide DCL, immediately adjacent to the start of the classic Upper Section.
Upper Monmouth[edit]
The classic section - well bolted with large raps & great rock.
- R1 - 9m/30ft DCR from pair of bolts to the pool below. If necessary due to flow, go DCL and down-climb to bollard.
- R2 - 23m/75ft DCL from pair of bolts. Takes you down a beautiful, wide waterfall. At the bottom of the rappel, there is an awesome little alcove behind a rock, with water curtains on each side.
- R3 - 42m/135ft DCR from pair of bolts. This is the “infinity pool” rappel. In and out of the cascade, but ends in the full flow.
- R4 - 30m/100ft DCL from pair of bolts on downstream side of boulder. Much of the flow can be avoided by keeping to rappeler’s right near the bottom.
- R5 - 14m/45ft DCL from single bolt. This is a short rappel down a slab to an alcove below a boulder. Anchored off a single bolt on your left as you approach. Allows you to avoid a diversion into the trees and scramble down mossy logs.
- R6 - 24m/80ft DCL - Emerge from the alcove under the big boulder, and find a pair of bolts on your left side. Down the waterfall to a pool below. In very high flow, could be rapped off a slung boulder in the right side watercourse – less flow here.
- R7 - 14m/45ft - At the end of the pool, find a pair of bolts on the far side of a large boulder in the watercourse,. Drop down into a pool, over a lip to a ledge, the off to rappeler’s right (canyon left) into an alcove.
- R8 - 12m/40ft - single bolt under a huge boulder, through a dark tunnel into a deep pool. This rappel is very cool, but can be avoided by an even more amazing jump (about 9m or 30 feet to the pool) on the right.
- R9 - 20m/65ft - Monmouth Tube (aka The Keyhole) rappel. Anchored bolts DCL. Some options for fun:
- Rappel most of the way down and slide the last 4m (15ft).
- Jump off the diving board! Tricky climb on the DCL side of pool to a narrow rock fin. There are alternate, easier locations to jump from too.
- R10 - Immediately after the tube (The Keyhole) rappel, there is a jump of about 3m into a narrow, deep pool. This is quickly followed by your choice of either a long shallow slide down a slab into a pool, or a drop into a small but very deep washing-machine-type pool on the right. Continue down to where a fin divides the water course into two, and find a pair of bolts on the left side of the left channel. Again, you have a choice here: Set the rope length for 15m (50 feet) and rap down to a series of pink ledges, where you can jump into the deep pool below, or else set out 19m (65 feet) and rap all the way into the pool. From there, partner assist through a narrow gap.
If there is too much flow to safely descend this waterfall, then instead move canyon left, and find a pool with a pinch where you can anchor to descend a groove along the left wall. With high flow, you will want to make this two stages, all the way into the 'diving board' room (this diving board is a log). Approximately 27m (90 feet).
Explore both rooms above the diving board section. The pool can be jumped from the log diving board. Those not comfortable with shallow water jumping should either climb down off the log onto the rock below before jumping, or rappel off of a meat anchor behind the log.
Lower Monmouth[edit]
aka below The Keyhole
- R11 - Follow down a nicely carved section of rock to a rappel on the right side. The route follows a channel on the right past a small pool, and pours down into a narrow section at a 90 degree angle to the main canyon. There is a single bolt above the pool on the right side to simplify descending to this next rappel stance in higher water. Drop into the channel that crosses the canyon, and pours o to the left. Find a pair of bolts on the right wall, and rap down to the pool below. ’'14m (45 feet)
EDIT (Aug 2021, Max): we set out 20m and it was just long enough to get to the pink ledge, so the original length of 15m for jump is wrong, more like 20m to jump and 24m all the way into the water.
- R12 Follow the pool to a large boulder in the watercourse, and keep left. Rappel off of bolts through a waterfall into a pothole, cross it, and continue down into another pool. 14m (45 feet)
- R13 After rappel 12, a downclimb through a groove leads to a very nice alcove. Follow around behind a huge boulder, in a very showery room. Swim below a wedged boulder to a landing with a large pour-off ledge. You will find a pair of bolts on the right where the water wells up and over a lip. Big water, and lands in a large pool, occasionally with fish in it! 39m (130 feet)
- R14 Move to the channel on the left, and find a single bolt on the left wall. Descend a groove to a stance below a big boulder. 14m (45 feet)
- R15 From here, move to canyon right, and find a rock pinch. Rappel from here to the rocks and shallow pool below. 21m (70 feet)
- R16 Short rappel from webbing RDC.
- R17 The rappel goes down a narrow corridor, but it’s easy to stay out of the full flow. 12m (40 feet) to slabs which can be followed to the right, all the way to the confluence with Box and an exit to the trail.
GPS Waypoints
Upper canoe put-in: 49.719579 -123.167867
Lower canoe put-in: 49.715572 -123.167973
Take-out canoe: 49.707469 -123.170288
Trailhead landing: 49.713905 -123.173527
Trail turns uphill 49.713249 -123.181175
Keep right: 49.713478 -123.184620
Normal entry: 49.715020 -123.187978
Upper entry: 49.715059 -123.191296
Monmouth-Box confluence: 49.712734 -123.18177
Exit[edit]
There are many potential exits throughout the canyon. If your group needs to exit early (cold, tired, nee to go back up to unstick a rope), there are an assortment of exits DCL, about every 1-3 rappels.
Some groups run the upper section of Monmouth (often to the base of Keyhole Falls), then cut across through easy open forest to run Box Canyon.
At the bottom of Lower Monmouth (at confluence of Box Creek), look carefully DCL to find a faint trail contouring along the river bank. It leads to the main trail back towards the river. Return the way you came.
Red tape[edit]
Box Creek and Monmouth Creek, as well as their approaches, lie within a designated cultural site of the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish First Nation).
The canyoning community is allowed use of this area but we share the responsibility of respectful use. Please take measures to minimize impacts and leave the canyon better than you found it.
Beta sites[edit]
- BC Canyoneers (Archive of a website defunct as of 8/17/19)