Thanx for the journey home, Tom Ah…They say life is all in the timing. Timing issue #1-Though not your fault, hiking at 5:30 AM from Lava gets one to the suit up just as it gets warm (I think? Maybe?) Timing issue #2-Water quality MATTERS!! Some floods leave it nice, others, err……Pays your money, you takes your chances! Seems to me that if a place hasn’t flooded for a while, the first one collects all the gunk and the second flood flushes. This year, beggars can’t be choosers, I guess. Timing issue #3-Personal preferences and interests aside, it’s still MOUNTAIN season! 108F??? This route (Lava to Left Fork Trailhead) is a gem in May (Warm) and October (Ccccold!). 15 mile day (Approx.) with over 4 + miles of water and narrows in a row. Tom, sounds like it needs another flush and some cooler nights. I shall return in Oct. RAM
Yahoo Canyons Group
Shane B.
>>Do the math. Do the Boot.
ratagonia
Hanging around Springdale, my partner failed to materialize thus making the early start out of the question. Given the 108 degree temps predicted, a wiser canyoneer would have chosen a different objective, but…
The Upper parts of the Left Fork of North Creek had been on my *List* for a couple of years. Pitney turned me onto the Das Boot section last year, thus adding to the intrigue. If the upper part was good also, this could be a gem.
I loaded 4 liters of water in my pack and headed out. Having but one vehicle, I would do it all from the Wildcat Canyon Trailhead, take the trail toward Lava Point and drop into Wildcat Canyon, look for interesting stuff there then do the Left Fork through Das Boot to Russel Gulch and exit out the normal Subway entrance.
It was hot, real hot. I like to hike fast when it is that hot, to get out of the sun as fast as possible. It took me a little more than an hour to get to Wildcat Canyon, where I found a trailcrew cleaning up the trail from flashflood 2 weeks ago, which had stripped the burned over area toward Lava Point from Blue Creek. I thought this was good news, as it confirmed that the Left Fork would have water in it from the flash.
Wildcat Canyon, noonish, 102 degrees approx. I hustled, thinking I would eventually find some nice narrows to hide from the sun in. Not. While Wildcat got narrow, it was brush choked and running straight north/south, not developing any shade. I pushed on hoping for something good, eventually taking a social trail up and right to get out of the brush and up on the ridge, where at least a tiny breeze offered some respite. I decided *Wildcat* canyon was named for as mad as you would be, if I sent you down here looking for a fun adventure.
The social trail eventually descended into the canyon just above The Seeps, and, finally, into the shade. The canyon was mucked up from the flashflood – chunks of trees, mud, pine cones, pine needles. A couple pools appeared of very, VERY yucky water. Strings of bacterial scum laced the surface, and the stench was strong. I waded two pools knee deep, but the next one looked deeper, so I struggled into the wetsuit and bagged up the tender stuff in the pack.
3-1/2 hours of approach in the full sun before hitting the first narrows.
OK, it was a nice section of canyon. Many scummy pools, interspersed with sunny sections, plus some nice narrows. I soon came to The Seeps, which was not, and moved on, enjoying the brief pools. One pool gave me actual exit difficulties, not because of it being a real problem, but just because it was REAL slimey. A few downclimbs, a couple short rappels off logs. I soon realized that getting dehydrated and using up a lot of energy hiking in the full sun does not contribute to keeping warm once in the pools. I was lagging, and getting cold when in the water. Did I say water? Interestingly, the top 3 inches of slime were quite warm, but the bottoms of the pools were quite cold. So it was warm in the waders and cold in the swimmers. I hustled along to keep warm.
And started looking for the Das Boot entrance, which seemed like a good place to exit. Now that I had decided to leave as soon as I found familiar territory, the canyon got better. Longer swims through darker, more sinuous narrows were the main treat. I also got one of those *crawl over floating debris pile under jammed debris pile keep the weight spread out or you’ll get stuck* kind of things. And in many pools, I pushed my pack ahead of me wading or swimming, to push the rotting debris, dead animals, and bacterial scum out of the way.
And then a moment of sublime beauty. A hummingbird, spreading its tail and hovering at the surface to drink, 3 feet in front of me.
Just as I was getting really cold, I hit the Das Boot entrance. Hooray! I stripped off the wetsuit, ate the rest of my food and the penultimate half liter of water. I was bushed. Four-thirty. I figured an hour and a half out, I could race to the canyon floor and snag a permit for tomorrow, and still have enough time to recover for the next day’s planned long adventure.
Yeah Right.
Digging deep, I summoned enough will to make it to the trailhead right at seven. It is a long way up.
Usually in a canyon, you pay the price either at the beginning or at the end. On this trip, I paid at both ends. Six hours of hiking in the full sun for 3 hours of pretty good canyon. Do the math. Do the Boot.
Tom