The Squeeze Canyon, San Rafael Swell, UT

Ryan and I were down Hanksville way, looking for a canyon to do. A couple days earlier, it had taken me 8 hours to drive from Mt Carmel to Ticaboo, as I had trouble getting across the Burr Trail, due to flash floods from a Utah-wide massive storm. Had to go back through Boulder. Met up with Ryan the next day. And then it was sweltering hot. What canyon would have a bunch of water to keep us cool? So we ran over to Factory Butte to do The Squeeze.

Factory Butte in the gentle evening light.

Our little convoy out on the high desert.

Morning found us on the road, close to the crossing of Muddy River, when the road turned into 6 inches of foam, and we backed up JUST in Time! And parked here.

The hike from where the road crosses the Muddy to the base of the Moroni Slope is a bit confusing, but pleasant enough following the flood plain of the Muddy, trying to avoid getting into the river.

Lovely sunrise, lovely pictures Ryan took.

Ryan having a quick snack at the base of the Moroni Slope, the trail up in the background.

A view up the Gorge of the Muddy River, from the hike in.

A bit of a trudge up the Slope, especially in August Heat.

An hour later, near the top of the Moroni Slope, we crawl into some shade for a quick rest.

We made our way to the edge of the bowl, and spent some time trying to find a "better" entrance; perhaps Steve Allen's non-technical exit. We scouted the right edge of the bowl, and found a clean slot downclimb that got us close enough to the ground for a short rappel off a pretty-good arch. Into the canyon we went.

Previously, I had sniffed out two ways in, both involving raps off of dubious anchors with few resources to bring the anchors up to non-dubious status. And difficult descriptions of how to get to the actual anchor points. Part of this trip was to try to find a better way in.

Ram has a great way in which I have done with him once. It involves going quite a bit higher than I go, and the complexity of the route makes it indescribable... or at least, any reasonable description has only a 50-50 chance of getting Joe Public to the right place.

I think this "new" route in Ryan and I scoped out really 'solves' the problem, but since it was hot and I was bothered and unsure that the route we took would go, I did not take sufficient pictures and notes to describe it well. On the next trip, I will strive to do so.

On a summer trip to The Squeeze, the heat and the steep climb up the south-and-east facing Moroni Slopes can be a big problem. Certainly for me, who withers easily in the heat, it is. This 'new' approach involves 20 minutes less hiking UP the slope, and 40 minutes quicker access to the cool depths of the canyon than Ram's circuit. Yes, you miss the delightful twisted narrow passage of the upper narrows - for which Steve Allen formulated the name "The Squeeze" - but one can always run up that way unencumbered by baggage and protected from the radiant body if time and energy allow.

Pictures? Yeah, I should have taken more pictures. The canyon had pools, short rappels, lots of nice swims in beautiful clear water, like you see in the movies…

Ryan got to swim in some really wonderful pools.

My turn…

Tom splashes into a pool, and swims across. Squeeze=Splasher when full of water!

The keepers were no problem, being full. Here is the first big rap, two stages.

Some swims, some raps, some more swims, some more raps… Fun canyon when full like this.

Tom on the bottom of that same rap.

Classic beached-whale move. Always flattering.

Second-to-last rappel.

Mmmmm. Yummy swimming!

For the last rappel, Ryan “pulled the plug” replacing the sling around the chockstone, which started a bit of a flow, lasting long enough for both of us to get a bit of a shower on the rappel.