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Canyoneering, 300′ big wall rap, zero deproach, AND rafting the Colorado? Count me in! I heard about the canyon last year and was drawn to it immediately. Unfortunately Waterholes is a bit of a logistical nightmare:
It does require a permit from the Navajo Nation which can be tricky to get.
The lower part of the canyon is intermittently closed (on a whim) from what I’ve heard from other sources and has been a barrier in the past.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the canyon requires a modest car shuttle that has been turned into a monster (1hr 45min) by the highway 89 washout that occurred well over a year ago. Are they ever gonna fix that thing?
I wanted it bad enough though that we did it anyways…
I read of the infamous “Rope eating crack” and “edge of the world anchors”. I absolutely did my homework to make sure the big wall drop went swimmingly.
On a two week trip I wanted to pack a canyon in every day. The logistics of obtaining a permit IN PERSON before close of Navajo office was going to be too challenging given my expectations so I attempted to do everything via phone/mail from Seattle. Given the barriers that I had heard existed in the past I went full court press on the permit process and submitted a 1) cover letter 2) equipment list 3) Navajo Nation backcountry use permit 4) canyoneering portfolio to ensure everything went smoothly. Sure enough, a few phone calls later, I was in business with a permit for Lower Waterholes.
Day 3 of a two week canyon trip: Lower Waterholes Cyn.
Arrived Lee’s Ferry at 10pm, cooked dinner, sorted gear, bedtime at midnight. AM alarm at 4:30!!! OUCH!!!!
Waterholes is a fascinating canyon. It is divided into upper (non technical), middle, and lower. Leaving from Hwy 89 (36.837162, -111.508441), upper waterholes supposedly has some of the prettiest narrows around. We were conscious of time and turned down canyon to descend middle and lower. Stunning canyon! Unfortunately it was quite muddy and consequently slowed us down a bit. There were a few unpleasant swims that caught us off guard. We did carry wetsuits, however, they were unnecessary.
The big drop went smoothly. A number of old, dirty, haggard looking ropes were jammed in the pinch at the top of the edge of the world anchors. All had been cut LONG ago but served as a reminder that this was not a crack to mess with. EXHILARATING rappel!
As for the exit: rafting the Colorado? BEST IDEA EVER! The cool float took about 1.5hrs with some paddling, zero head wind, and a steady current.
10 hours car-to-dock
DONT MISS the Spherical Panorama I took at the “big drop” : http://www.emb3dphotography.com/spherical-panoramas/southwest/waterholes-canyon/
and the gigapixel shot: http://www.emb3dphotography.com/gigapan/lower-waterholes-rappel/
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