Disclaimer: this post and it’s photos might be best avoided for the squeamish or animal loving.
I can’t help myself when it comes to exploring canyon, but you won’t believe what we found in this one. It’s a slot canyon just north of Death Canyon in North Wash and looked great from the rim but potentially non-technical. Michael Pintal and I decided to hike in the from the bottom. We started to notice a bunch of cow dung and then right as the canyon slotted up I noticed that pieces of the walls had been cut out kind of like moqui steps, but there were only 4 and they were on both sides of the canyon. We decided it was cut out to put in place some sort of fence to not allow access to cattle and became very apprehensive as to what we would find further up canyon.
Sure enough, 50 feet up canyon we spot a cow. It sees us and starts running up canyon so we decide to walk back out and go to the head of the canyon and work it down canyon free. We walk to the head and drop in seeing a small narrow downclimb that would surely halt any cow’s progress up canyon. After about 100 ft heading down canyon through the slot, we find a duo of cows, different from the solo cow we had seen at the bottom. Not good, how many cows are in here?
With waining sunlight, we try to shoo the cows out through the bottom of the canyon for about an hour and a half involving stemming over the cows and even giving them water from our water bottles. After about 200 ft of progress down canyon with the duo, we run into the rest of the herd, I counted an additional 9 cows. We aren’t rescuing them tonight that’s for sure. Time to head to town and notify someone.
After heading to two of the gas stations we have phoned the sheriff and notified some of the local ranchers. They view the cattle as money, which for this bunch represented about $20,000, so the ranchers were planning on heading in as soon as possible.
A couple of days later, my dad was passing back through Hanksville on his way home, saw the sheriff in town and asked him about the cows. The sheriff said they were all rescued and there was a very happy rancher. He also said that two weeks ago several got stuck in the same place and they had to put them all down. The ranchers are planning on putting something up to keep the cows out in the future, but apparently think that canyoneers are responsible for scaring the cows into the slot canyons. This last statement my dad refuted to the sheriff.
Unfortunately or fortunately, BLM land is not just for recreational use. You think canyoneers would get a little more appreciation for helping to rescue a herd of cows. Regardless, I’m even more resolute in my decision to not eat beef or other commercially sourced meat.
Note on the name: I’m sure this canyon already has a name to others, namely ranchers, but we called it Eleven Cows and a Balloon Canyon. Right as we were entering the slot canyon a helium filled balloon finished it’s journey through the skies landing right next to us. Not too long after we located the (at least) Eleven Cows.
Alias_Rice
I never spend more than about an hour on the Colorado Plateau before I think just how utterly stupid it is to raise cows in that terrain.
ratagonia
Your Tax Dollars at Work!
2065toyota
Cows are pretty hearty. They can survive about anywhere.
Except in narrow slot canyons I guess.
Alias_Rice
They can no doubt survive, but can the landscape?
2065toyota
I would like to reply with my thoughts, but instead I’m going back to work so I can make some money and keep playing.
Thanks @kmanz for helping get the cattle from the cattle
CanyonRam
Three years ago a cow strolled up from the bottom of Repeat Junior and got itself wedged into the bottom of the rappel. Cow’s can’t walk backwards and as it struggled it just got wedged in tighter and tighter. If I remember correctly, Morga and Klaus had to dismount on the dying cow’s back in order to get off rappel as there was no way around it. They notified the ranger but sadly there was nothing they could do and the cow died in situ. Unfortunately, it was left there. A year later, I went down that rappel and you still had to stand on the now dead cow’s back to get off rappel. By that time sand had accumulated up to the cow’s belly. By now I think it is completely covered over.
kmanz
We walked this guy backwards for a hundred yards or so until we ran into the rest of the herd. They can walk backwards, maybe the one you found was just too exhausted or emaciated.