RE: [PNWCanyoning] canyoneering frontiers

Chris Hood Feb 27, 2007 03:51 PM permalink

I had a conversation with Ken about this once. One thing that I would comment on is that in BC, most streams develop a canyon at some point along their length. Many of them are pretty average, but the trick is picking the good ones out of the mix. Access is also an issue. As an example, the Squamish-Elaho Valley system north of here has dozens of streams dropping into the major valley system. The two major rivers have big canyons-the upper Squamish even has something approaching the Cowlitz slot. Ashlu Creek, the major side drainage, has several canyons on it (still too big). That in turn has probably 4 or 5 streams that I can think of that have significant canyon development visible from the mainline or major side spurs (never mind the ones that you can't see). Some, but not all are glacier fed. You also have serious gorges like High Falls, Huberts, and Peaches and Cream which provide testpieces, but there are many, many more hiding in the forests up there. The largest canyon that I'm aware of in the area (Shovelnose Creek) I haven't yet managed to assess, despite numerous trips into the area and including 2 specifically to assess the gorge. Lots of streams have 1000'+ descents as well. And the Squamish-Elaho system is just one of dozens of similar-sized drainages on the BC and Alaska coasts. Never mind the Cascades and Columbia Mountains, both of which have high quality canyons with good access and probably no descents. There's elephants hiding up here!

SE Oregon does have some interesting stuff that I'm aware of. The west side of the Steens has big canyons, but they are strictly hiking targets and are quite open. Nice places to hike, but they have world-class tick populations in the spring. The east side of the mountain seems to be where the canyoneering action would be, with streams like Pike Creek cutting narrower, waterfall-rich drainages. There's some similar (not a lot) stuff on the Catlow Rim and Hart Mountain (and possibly Abert Rim). The Owyhee Country looks like it may have a lot of terrain, too. Also across the state line in the High Rock country of northwestern Nevada. Fly Creek Canyon is supposed to have some world-class keeper potholes!

So many places, so little unemployment!

Chris

From: pnwcanyoning@yahoogroups.com [mailto:pnwcanyoning@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of coonrad222
Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 6:01 PM
To: pnwcanyoning@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [PNWCanyoning] canyoneering frontiers

I was just sitting here pretending to be working, and I started to
think how the pacific northwest still has a lot of potential for new
canyons to be discovered and descended.

I then started thinking north towards northern B.C., the Queen
Charlotte Islands, Southeast Alaska. SE Alaska is like Oregon and
Washington on steroids. More rain, more islands, more inlets and
fjords and mountains that rise from the sea. I would think that the
canyoneering opportunities in SE Alaska are endless and mostly
undiscovered.

Here's a cool shot from outside of Valdez:
http://icons.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/l/LDWinger/85.jpg

Another area that I often daydream about is Brazil. I know there's
some Brasileiros doing canyons down there but it still is a frontier
in my book. Talking to some Brasileiros I've been pointed to Chapada
do Guimares National Park (here's a few pics):

http://www.belobrasil.ch/_borders/Nationalparks_-_Chapada_Guimaraes.jpg
http://www.belobrasil.ch/_borders/Nationalparks_-_Chapada_Diamantina.jpg
http://www.inf.ufsc.br/i2ts2006/Fotos%20Tratadas/Namorados-(fianc%E9)-Water-Fa.jpg

and Chapada Da Diamantina (Diamond Tablelands):

http://i5.pbase.com/u48/alexuchoa/upload/30654587.fumacinha7.jpg
http://www.ecotour.nl/Reizen/Chapada%20Diamantina/CachoeiraFumaca01.jpg
http://www.delfinadearaujo.com/finaorquidea/foto02.jpg
http://k47.pbase.com/u26/alexuchoa/upload/30654573.cachoeiradocantoverde.jpg
http://i5.pbase.com/u48/alexuchoa/upload/30655048.Pooazul.jpg

Another area would be ION country (the high desert of SW Idaho, SE
Oregon and Northern Nevada). There's a lot of vast open space down
there, they say that you can see next weeks weather. So it might be
slim pickings, but I would bet there's some jewels somewhere out in
the Owyhee desert or around Steens mountains.

Jump creek falls, SW Idaho
http://www.waterfallsnorthwest.com/pics/jump_creek.jpg

Here's one thing I like about canyoneering...compare it to say
surfing. From Alaska to Indonesia, just about everywhere in the world
where there's a decent wave, someone's discovered it already and
surfed it. The easily accessible spots are mostly crowded. In
canyoneering, vast regions of the world are still blank spots on the
map when it comes to canyons. Someone may be perfectly content doing
just the established canyons in Zion, but if not, it seems as if there
will be somewhere new to explore for many years to come.

The link Joe sent in of the french in pakistan was pretty impressive.
If looked as if someone took the Escalante and turned it up on end.

Anyone have any other canyoneering frontiers in mind that may be worth
exploring?

coonrad

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