Thanksgiving weekend I spent some time with the rangers in Arches NP and the following is what is required of canyoneers if they do not want a permit system similar to Zion’s installed. This is all unofficial at the moment but you will get the drift if you read this to the end.
U-Turn: The final rappel needs to be at the head of the canyon in what would be the natural watercourse. All other rappel options are not acceptable. If you see webbing at any of the other optional rappel points please do us all a favor and remove it. Taking 5 minutes to do it now will save you hours standing in a permit line at a future date. The rangers want this rappel out of sight of the typical tourist.
Bighorn: When you exit Bighorn please follow the wash out to the road. The rangers have installed a giant cairn in the correct wash to try and direct traffic into the wash.
Undercover & MMI: Use the slickrock exit. Do not use the sand hill exit or the through Culvert Arch Exit. If you are not exiting from wash bottom to rim completely on slickrock you are going to get this canyon closed to canyoneering. If the slick rock exit is beyond your abilities the rangers have asked that you exit out to the Lost Springs trailhead and enjoy the hike through their lovely park.
Dragonfly: Do not use the petrified sand dune viewpoint as the trailhead. ¼ mile to the west is a large dirt pull-out where canyoneers are requested to park. This allows access to Dragonfly across slickrock and avoids creating social trails leading from the viewpoint that tourist will follow.
Group Size: Please limit group size to 12 maximum. It appears the one certainty of the new management plan is it will contain a limit on group size. The discussion at the moment appears to be if the limits should be 10 or 12. Scout leaders this means you, as scout groups are really giving the large groups a black eye.
Bolts: Please do not place any bolts until after the new management plan is approved. That was a direct request from the rangers. The new management plan will address the bolting issue. Currently the thought is bolting will not be allowed except by rangers. The rangers will place and maintain bolts where required to address sensitive or environmental issues. Whomever placed the bolts in Undercover did canyoneers no favors and caused a lot of turmoil. The park took a very dim view on those bolts as the Lost Springs area will be managed as a pristine area.
Cryptobiotic Soil: As far as the park is concerned please think of this as Holy Dirt. Every footprint the rangers see is bad for us all. Please avoid disturbing all cryptobiotic crust. Stay on existing trails, walk in wash bottoms or on slickrock. Go out of your way to avoid cryptobiotic soil.
Lost Springs: Getting this section added to the park a few years back was a real prize. This area will most likely be managed as a pristine area. Other than footprints in the bottom of the washes the rangers are hoping to see no trace of humans. As I mentioned earlier, the new bolts in Undercover caused them great concern and were seen as a big problem in the parks eyes.
The New Management plan: Arches NP is hoping the new management plan will be out in the spring, but it could drag out longer. They still have to do things like count the owls and sheep. A lot of stuff has to be done by the park that the casual canyoneer or climber never even thinks of.
10%ers: Canyoneers suffer from the same problem as the ATV groups. 90% of you are doing things the correct way, but 10% of you are not. And the 10% is giving the rest of us a bad reputation. If this continues routes will be closed or restricted. The 90% needs to step up to the plate and get the 10% in line or we are all going to lose.
Arches NP Rangers: The rangers at Arches are some of the nicest people and easiest to work with that I have come across. They are canyoneers and climbers, they know this new management plan will effect them also. They are giving canyoneers this opportunity to correct some of the problems before they become an issue. Its up to the canyoneering community to actually police ourselves and correct the problems. Please do your part.
Thanks for your help.
Shane Burrows Climb-Utah.com http://Climb-Utah.com
RAM
Thanks for sharing Shane. Hopefully folks will comply. Still seeing more footprints out of washes in the Furnace. We need to keep spreading the word and behaving when no one is watching. Shane, would you share the first names of the rangers you spoke with? It would be great if others engaged them along the way just to let them know that their message has been heard, the message is spreading and is being taken seriously. It would also open the door to the park sharing further concerns. Then the information can make its way back to the forums for sharing. It will help us be more effective in pokicing ourselves too. Thanks again. Ram
— In Yahoo Canyons Group, “Ice” wrote:
Thanksgiving weekend I spent some time with the rangers in Arches NP and the following is what is required of canyoneers if they do not want a permit system similar to Zion’s installed. This is all unofficial at the moment but you will get the drift if you read this to the end.
U-Turn: The final rappel needs to be at the head of the canyon in what would be the natural watercourse. All other rappel options are not acceptable. If you see webbing at any of the other optional rappel points please do us all a favor and remove it. Taking 5 minutes to do it now will save you hours standing in a permit line at a future date. The rangers want this rappel out of sight of the typical tourist.
Bighorn: When you exit Bighorn please follow the wash out to the road. The rangers have installed a giant cairn in the correct wash to try and direct traffic into the wash.
Undercover & MMI: Use the slickrock exit. Do not use the sand hill exit or the through Culvert Arch Exit. If you are not exiting from wash bottom to rim completely on slickrock you are going to get this canyon closed to canyoneering. If the slick rock exit is beyond your abilities the rangers have asked that you exit out to the Lost Springs trailhead and enjoy the hike through their lovely park.
Dragonfly: Do not use the petrified sand dune viewpoint as the trailhead. ¼ mile to the west is a large dirt pull-out where canyoneers are requested to park. This allows access to Dragonfly across slickrock and avoids creating social trails leading from the viewpoint that tourist will follow.
Group Size: Please limit group size to 12 maximum. It appears the one certainty of the new management plan is it will contain a limit on group size. The discussion at the moment appears to be if the limits should be 10 or 12. Scout leaders this means you, as scout groups are really giving the large groups a black eye.
Bolts: Please do not place any bolts until after the new management plan is approved. That was a direct request from the rangers. The new management plan will address the bolting issue. Currently the thought is bolting will not be allowed except by rangers. The rangers will place and maintain bolts where required to address sensitive or environmental issues. Whomever placed the bolts in Undercover did canyoneers no favors and caused a lot of turmoil. The park took a very dim view on those bolts as the Lost Springs area will be managed as a pristine area.
Cryptobiotic Soil: As far as the park is concerned please think of this as Holy Dirt. Every footprint the rangers see is bad for us all. Please avoid disturbing all cryptobiotic crust. Stay on existing trails, walk in wash bottoms or on slickrock. Go out of your way to avoid cryptobiotic soil.
Lost Springs: Getting this section added to the park a few years back was a real prize. This area will most likely be managed as a pristine area. Other than footprints in the bottom of the washes the rangers are hoping to see no trace of humans. As I mentioned earlier, the new bolts in Undercover caused them great concern and were seen as a big problem in the parks eyes.
The New Management plan: Arches NP is hoping the new management plan will be out in the spring, but it could drag out longer. They still have to do things like count the owls and sheep. A lot of stuff has to be done by the park that the casual canyoneer or climber never even thinks of.
10%ers: Canyoneers suffer from the same problem as the ATV groups. 90% of you are doing things the correct way, but 10% of you are not. And the 10% is giving the rest of us a bad reputation. If this continues routes will be closed or restricted. The 90% needs to step up to the plate and get the 10% in line or we are all going to lose.
Arches NP Rangers: The rangers at Arches are some of the nicest people and easiest to work with that I have come across. They are canyoneers and climbers, they know this new management plan will effect them also. They are giving canyoneers this opportunity to correct some of the problems before they become an issue. Its up to the canyoneering community to actually police ourselves and correct the problems. Please do your part.
Thanks for your help.
Shane Burrows > Climb-Utah.com > http://Climb-Utah.com