| |
Secret Place #12 (Aspiran Canyon*)
*
Alias, not found on any map.
| Summary: |
A nice canyon with 3 or more rappels. To complete
this trip you should be familiar with the use of natural anchors which are
plentiful in the canyon. Gear required: helmet, webbing, harness, descender
and 2x150' ropes (or a 150' rope and a pull cord). You will also need two
cars or hope you can hitch a ride back to the starting point.
Note: There are several options for anchors at each rappel point. Which one
you choose will determine how much rope you need to complete the trip. Due
to the cold temperatures when the author was here, the primary factor for
choosing the anchor was to stay dry. |
| Road
Conditions: |
Passenger Car |
| Navigation: |
Easy |
| Length: |
5-7 hours |
| Date
Hiked: |
December 2003 |
| Weather
Conditions: |
Cool and Sunny |
|
Required Skills: |
 |
| Hike
Description: |
From the parking area, walk across the road and pick up a
faint trail/wash which leads down a steep hill into the canyon. If it was
snowy, like it was when I was here, you'll need to be extra careful on the
descent. Once in the canyon bottom, turn left and begin rock hopping your
way down stream (flowing at a trickle when I was here). Be aware that there
is quite a bit of quick sand throughout the canyon. You may be surprised to
find yourself ankle deep in water after stepping onto what you thought was a
solid sand bar. After a half hour or so, you'll reach a confluence with the
left fork of the canyon and the drainage widens & flow increases (that is,
if it's flowing at all). The canyon is quite scenic as it meanders through
the forest and over slick rock until you reach a water fall and rappel #1.
The rappel is about 50' & there are several options for anchors, we chose a
tree on canyon right. You are now standing in a granite chute which a large
chock stone and short drop just down canyon. You can either rappel the rest
of the way down or climb out and around the obstacle on the right (we chose
the latter). The boulders in the canyon bottom become larger below this
point and you will have to do a little climbing to get through. Be aware
that the granite boulders are quite slippery, particularly where they have
been polished smooth. Continue down canyon until it looks like the canyon
just drops away to the valley in the distance. This is rappel #2 and again
there are many choices of anchors. The author climbed to the edge of the
falls then under a boulder on the right to a solid tree on the edge, just
down stream from the falls and the spray. The rappel from this point was
just shy of 100'. Below the falls is another drop off that can be bypassed
by climbing around on the hillside on the right, before working your way
down into the main channel once again. More rock hopping and large boulders
interspersed with ledges and pleasant pools bring you to the final rappel
into a grotto and deep pool. From above it appeared as though the pool were
unavoidable, so we chickened out and climbed around to the left to do a
crappy 75 ft rap through the prickly pear and agave to a point on the
hillside where we could easily walk down. Once down we saw that the grotto
has a prominent ledge on canyon right which allows you to bypass the pool. I
believe a better option would be to rappel down to this ledge from a tree on
canyon right at the top (probably 100' or so, but since we did not choose
this route this is merely a guess). Take off your harness and continue down
canyon passing some nice cascades and pools until you near the confluence
with a prominent canyon that enters from the left. Work your way left in the
lower part of the canyon to avoid some steep drop offs where the two canyons
meet. Turn left and begin ascending up this drainage. You will immediately
be faced with a climb up a moderately steep waterfall. It's not terribly
difficult, but you have to be careful on the slippery rock. Above the falls,
it's typical rock hopping and boulder climbing you've been faced with all
day. In the upper canyon, walk through the huge corrugated pipe that directs
the stream under the road. A few minutes later look for a trail on the left
which leads up to the car you spotted earlier. |
| Rating
(1-5 stars): |
The author and his wife completed this canyon with a group of 3 others in
6.5 hours. We completed the entire canyon with 1x200' rope, however, I
recommend 2x150's since this combination will give you more options. |
| Photos: |
Click picture for larger
view, click your browser's 'Back' button to return to this page. |
|
|
