About 30 intrepid canyoneers turned out for a weekend of gnats, canyons and sunshine. Many new techniques were shared, new friends made, faces connected with email names, and good times had.

Canyoneering, San Rafael Swell, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesMay 3, 2002Hidden Splendor, Quandary Direct, Quandary Direct Canyon, Squeeze Swell, The Squeeze, the swell, san Rafael swell, canyoneering

Blue John Canyon, Robbers Roost, UT

Saturday, a trip through Lower Squeeze was delightful and uneventful. Sunday was a day for Blue John Canyon. Ram gave us the beta and we headed over, starting at an incredibly crapped-out cowboy camp just off the Hans Flat road.

Canyoneering, Robbers Roost, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesApril 14, 2002Alicia Scotter, Blue John Canyon, Bluejohn Canyon, Hank Moon, robbers roost, canyoneering, canyoneering robbers roost

One Nasty Ass Slot Canyon, Escalante, UT

The man with the white hands denies responsibility for all that occurs on our last day in the Escalante, when fate had ordained our encounter with the dreaded canyon, Nasty Ass.

Canyoneering, Escalante, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesMarch 15, 2002Nasty Ass Slot, escalante, escalante canyoneering, Escalante National Monument, canyoneering in Escalante

Kaleidoscope Canyon (Choprock Canyon), Escalante, UT

Another morning, another early start, another day humping the pack through some wonderful terrain. Today’s objective was the mysterious Moe Slot, an unusual find I had not heard of before. It promised cold swims, strenuous climbing and beautiful sandstone slots.

Canyoneering, Escalante, Tom Jones, Trip Report, Tom's First VisitTom JonesMarch 13, 2002Choprock Canyon, Chopslot, Moe Slot, escalante, Escalante canyoneering, canyoneering, Kaleidoscope Canyon

Neon Canyon and the Golden Cathedral, Escalante, UT

After a quick descent of E2, we realize we have enough time to pack up, make the walk down to Fence Canyon, and set up camp for a little more adventuring. After a quick hike and a brief evening scotch-and-storytelling session, we set the alarm clock for dawn.

Canyoneering, Escalante, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesMarch 12, 2002Escalante River, Mike Dallin, Neon Canyon, Steve Ramras, golden cathedral, the golden cathedral

Egypt Two, Escalante, UT. Natural Anchors, Water, and Downclimbing

Made the dash to the Escalante... First on the agenda: Egypt Two. Yeah, you've driven by it a dozen times. It looks interesting, but if it's not in the bible...

Canyoneering, Escalante, Tom Jones, Trip Report, Tom's First VisitTom JonesMarch 11, 2002canyoneering in Escalante, Egypt 2, Egypt Canyon, Egypt Two, Escalante canyoneering, Escalante National Monument, canyoneering, steve ramras

Death Canyon, North Wash, UT

Death sits on the map just north of Turkey Knob, and looks like it might be interesting. But not too interesting, as it turned out.

Canyoneering, Exploration, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesMarch 10, 2002Alicia Scotter, Death Canyon, Mike Dallin, North Wash, Steve Ramras, canyoneering, north wash canyoneering

Shenanigans Canyon, North Wash, UT

We decided to start the week with a canyon we had looked into recently, but had not explored the upper part of. Unfortunately (maybe), jumping into canyons in this area can be dangerous, and we almost re-created our friends' experience in Sandthrax last fall.

Canyoneering, Exploration, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip Report, Alicia ScotterTom JonesMarch 9, 2002Alicia Scotter, Dave Black, North Wash, Shenanigans Canyon, Steve Ramras, canyoneering, north wash, north wash canyoneering, Shenanigans North Wash

Winter Conditions in Imlay Canyon, Zion National Park

Went down to Zion with the Boyz for a little Freeze Fest. Imlay Canyon in winter sounded like a good idea at the time.

Canyoneering, Imlay Canyon, Tom Jones, Trip Report, Zion, WinterTom JonesFebruary 1, 2002FreezeFest, Imlay Canyon, Imlay Canyon in winter, Mel Brown, Steve Brezovic, winter canyoneering, imlay, zion, zion canyoneering, canyoneering, imlay sneak

Christmas with the Jones Family, 2001

It's not canyoneering, but man cannot live by canyoneering alone. So I took a few days off over Christmas to visit with the family, first stopping in Reno to visit my friends Larry and Karen.

Tom JonesTom JonesDecember 25, 2001family

Hidden Falls Canyon, Red Rocks, Las Vegas

I've always been interested in those canyons cutting into the Red Rocks escarpment outside Red Rocks, and Lost Wages resident Dick Shear invited us down for the weekend.

Canyoneering, Red Rocks, Tom Jones, Trip Report, Tom's First VisitTom JonesNovember 17, 2001Alicia Scotter, canyoneering in Red Rocks, Dick Shear, Hidden Falls Canyon, Red Rocks, Red Rocks canyoneering, hidden falls canyon

Left Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, North Wash

Ms Scotter kept insisting that her Irish heritage would eventually produce a visit from the elusive namesake of Leprechaun Canyon. Sunday we headed up to find the actual Left Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, and in the woods below the canyon mouth… what do we see?

Canyoneering, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesNovember 4, 2001Left Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, Leprechaun Canyon Left Fork, leprechaun canyon, leprechaun, north wash, north wash canyoneering

Middle Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, North Wash

After a quick lunch in the sun, Dave gives us the beta on Left Fork. Dave and Deb go off exploring.

Canyoneering, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesNovember 3, 2001Alicia Scotter, Dave Black, Leprechaun Canyon, Main Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, leprechaun canyon, leprechaun canyon middle fork, north wash, north wash canyoneering

Right Fork of Leprechaun Canyon, North Wash

Shane has been exploring a new slot canyon area down near Hanksville, and was getting ready to release it to the Circle of Few when, ahem, well, they got kinda stuck. Sounded intense, so it seemed like a good time to go check it out.

Canyoneering, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesNovember 3, 2001Alicia Scotter, Dave Black, Deb Davis, Leprechaun Canyon, Steve Lewis, north wash, leprechaun canyon right fork, leprechaun canyon, canyoneering, north wash canyoneering

Sandthrax Canyon (aka The Chasm of Doom), North Wash

Sunday we visited The Chasm of Doom, aka Sandthrax Canyon, to see where our friends got stuck.

Canyoneering, Exploration, North Wash, Tom Jones, Trip Report, X-RatedTom JonesNovember 3, 2001Chasm of Dom, Sandthrax Canyon

The Sandbag: A New Anchoring Tool for Canyoneering

Deadman anchors have been discussed for awhile, usually as an anchor of last resort. It goes like this:

Anchors, Canyoneering, Tom JonesTom JonesOctober 27, 2001sand bag anchor, sandbag anchor, the sandbag

Bolt Removal, Potholes, and New Anchors in Quandary Canyon, Direct, San Rafael Swell

A few years ago, I stuck some bolts in the difficult, central section of Quandary Canyon in the San Rafael Swell, thinking I was doing the world a service. Oy veh!

Arch Rappel, Canyoneering, San Rafael Swell, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesOctober 27, 2001Quandary Canyon, Quandary Direct, Ramp Canyon, Scott Holley, Steve Brezovic, san Rafael swell, the swell, Quandary Direct Canyon, canyoneering, bolting, rebolting, bolt removal

Fence, Neon and Ringtail Canyons, Escalante, UT

A bit of that fall nip in the air, we headed down to the Escalante to try our hand at Neon. Oft targeted, not so oft succeeded on, Neon requires some good weather to do the moderately long approach and exit, and have enough prime time to enjoy the canyon.

Canyoneering, Escalante, Tom Jones, Trip ReportTom JonesSeptember 22, 2001Fence Canyon, kurt bellock, melody bellock, Neon Canyon, ringtail canyon, canyoneering in escalante, escalante, Escalante canyoneering, canyoneering

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