UTAH is one cool place. The climate and geology combine to make an extraordinary landscape of sweeping slickrock, desolate dirtscapes and wonderful canyons. Exploring this stuff is called canyoneering, and ranges from civilized strolls through terrain suitable for small children to technical explorations requiring ropes, wetsuits and a short memory for the discomforts experienced last time out.

It's a lot of fun. I hope with the information here, it will be even more fun. I have collected beta for a variety of explorations - easy and difficult, short and long, civilized and wild, popular and obscure. Please read the Introduction, Warning and Ratings sections at least once, and use common sense when you are out there.

Backcountry Travel in Utah is unlike hiking in most parts of the United States. Official trails are few. Map reading, climbing and terrain reading skills are all important for safe and satisfying backcountry adventures. Getting yourself in trouble is an ever-present possibility. This guide is no substitute for common sense. Instead, I strive to provide enough information for fellow enthusiasts to find adventures that suit their desires and skills.

My emphasis is on the developing sport of Technical Canyoneering.If this is your idea of fun, be sure to read the Introduction and the Ethics & Style sections, and join the discussion about wilderness ethics and canyoneering issues at the Canyons EGroup.
 

Utah presents a marvelous smorgasbord of desert forms: everything from lush, deep canyons in Zion to dry barren slots in the San Rafael Swell, to the sculpted, inviting canyons in the Escalante. Some canyons in Zion are heavily used and managed under a quota system, while many canyons of the Swell see one or two groups a year.

Here's a rundown on each canyoneering region:

ZION NATIONAL PARK

This is the place! Zion is a grand and impressive place, with huge sweeping walls of beautiful sandstone, deep canyons running with water, and the highest concentration of canyoneering adventures found in the USA. Unusual for Utah, Zion has the abundance of water. Zion canyons are cut deep and fast, and the plateau rises broad and high. The resulting canyons cut through an aquifer layer that provides a year-round source of clear, clean water; making them the ideal hangout when summer temperatures peak above 100 degrees. Many canyons are best done when it is scorching hot out, and several require full wetsuits year-round. The steeper and narrower the canyon, the more swimming is likely to be involved.

Zion is the most civilized of canyoneering destinations. As to be expected of a "Big League" National Park, rugged wilderness has been infiltrated by the trappings of civilization. Many of the developed trails in Zion required massive blasting and lots of concrete to create some of the best conventional (albeit unnatural) hiking trails in the world - and quick access to the wilder, less-traveled places in this guide. Tom's Guide features both wild, technical adventures and pretty tame, but wonderfully scenic, excursions.

SAN RAFAEL SWELL

Fifty million years ago, a bubble of rock swelled this portion of Central Utah upward. Erosion quickly responded, cutting into the rising layers and creating a wild array of forms. More recently, 100 years ago, minerals were found and exploited on the small scale - no lode large enough to warrant large-scale mining. Remnants of the mining past dot the Swell - crumbling dirt roads, old shafts, abandoned cars and shacks, and miles of iron pipe left in improbable places.

With deep canyons, reefs of stone and a distinct lack of water, the Swell is one of the most desolate places left in Utah. We share it with Off-Road Vehicle enthusiasts, wild horses and the scorching sun. It is uncivilized. The canyons cut into the stone are improbable and intriguing. The scale is intimate, the desert hostile, and the feel, pure Wild West.

There are amazing hikes here for adventurers of all abilities. Little Wild Horse Canyon is the Swell's numero uno attraction and is certainly charming and easy. There are a few other easy strolls, plus more challenging adventures and a bunch of technical pothole sessions for the truly masochistic. Due to the lack of water, most adventures in the Swell are done as day-hikes rather than overnights.

Summer is a quiet time in the Swell. With a few exceptions, it's just too stinkin' hot, and down by the river the green flies will eat you alive. Spring and Fall offer more reasonable weather, and are somewhat more crowded. April and May are the best times for wildflowers and hummingirds.

CANYONS OF THE ESCALANTE Driving out the Hole-In-The-Rock road, only pinon-juniper forest, sagebrush, sand and the bulk of Fifty Mile Mountain greet the eye. No clue is given to the marvels carved into the stone but a scant mile away. And marvelous they are - the Canyons of the Escalante provide oases of lush greenery between soaring sandstone walls. Endowed with beauty rather than grandeur, the Escalante is an area of long and marvelous canyons that make perfect multi-day wilderness journeys. Carved into thick, white Navajo sandstone, every turn of the canyon offers a new and interesting view. The Escalante is dominated by fairly tame but long and marvelous canyons that beg for multi-day explorations. Many daytrips are available - both easy strolls and strenuous thrashes. In either case, once you are there, you are probably in for a fair amount of driving and plenty of hiking. Keep a good supply of water in the car. Careful planning pays off in the Escalante - the area is too spread out to just show up and do stuff.

 

CEDAR MESA Center of an ancient desert civilization, Cedar Mesa presents interesting canyons cut into sandstone spiced with remnants of the Anasazis who lived here 800 years ago. There are interesting canyoneering adventures to be found, always with the possibility of finding ruins or Moki steps in the most improbable of locations. Grand Culch is well known as a destination ruin-hunting area. There are a handful of technical canyons in the area - what this guide concentrates on.

NORTH WASH Skinny? North Wash is the home of the skinnies! The canyons here are cut into the Navajo Sandstone in a most interesting way. The rock is soft, even softer than usual, and lies flat. The result is long canyons with deeply cut and skinny slots. A lot of clamboring, squeezing, chimneying, elevator-ing, and clothes-destroying is involved, and the advantage is distinctly to the small. There's a generous handful of quality canyons here that are just plain fun - IF you know what you are doing. There is trouble, too. If you don't fit, sometimes you can chimney over, sometimes you cannot. People larger than 180 lbs must consider their adventures carefully. Several people have been trapped and at least one party severely injured due to inexperience. Be smart, be safe. Fall, Winter, Spring - good times to be in North Wash. Some canyons involve a bit of swimming, but most do not. Cool weather allows the intrepid canyoneer to wear more layers of protective clothing - a definite bonus for the skinny, scrapey stuff. Just make sure you are willing to toss it after the trip, as you and your gear get torn up good.

ROBBERS ROOST The Roost has been outed! Recently revealed to the public, the Roost is a place of sweeping plateaus, deep slots, and wide, friendly canyons. The problem is getting from the bottom back up to the top where the car is! There's some really good stuff out there, and this guide will showcase a few tasty bits. Please be a good team player and leave the bolt kit at home. The Roost yields easily to natural anchors, and it would be a shame to tear the place up with a bunch of artifacts. Bring a little extra webbing and your thinking cap, and you'll do just fine.