Halls Creek May 17th - Poe

The hardest part of this trip was getting together the right group, I had several people in mind for this trip, unfortunately most of them couldn't make it. I started sketching out the idea for this trip back in Sept. of last year and had several excited groups that were sure they wanted to do it, however as the time drew closer it was hard to find a date that would work for all of them. I finally got enough together that were confirmed as going that I felt comfortable going ahead with the trip, The group that was set to go was Dale, Micah, Guy, and myself, then a week before the trip I got an email from Bucky saying that his trip in the same area to do some explorations was falling apart and he wondered if he could join me and my crew which filled our crew to a 6 man team. Dale Micah, and I drove down Sat. 16th to meet the others that had hiked in a day earlier.



It looks like a nice flat hike out to some hills, but nooo, its up and down and through washes










Storms rolled in just as we crossed over the cliff to drop into the halls creek area


They didn't last long but made for some great pics


This would be boring and easy if not for the 60lbs packs




We missed the walk down entrance and went a little too high up so we fiddled a tree and in we went




After the rain for the last two days and seeing this I was worried that the canyon would be in full mode and we would swim over all the fun stuff


The canyon starts out rather mild






A fun problem solved by meat anchor for the group and a pack drag/partner assist for LAMAR




This ones for Ram since he says I'm never in any of my posts








Here's me getting in the way of Guy making the Pit toss (I was trying to help)


Bucky was the lightest so he got to go first, as you can see my fears of an easy canyon were unfounded, Bucky measured the drop and it was 14' from lip to water.


Guy was next


This Pothole looks hard, but once you get in it its an easy run up the RDC side.




Such an amazing canyon, it was pretty and hard and required teamwork to get everyone through, and that doesn't even account for the effort just to get into the general area in the first place. Next time I'm making the throw at the pit though.

Nice job! Sweet deal. Looks like a blast. The pit looks like it has some debris to help catch there?

Planning and logistics is tough. Sorry I missed this one. High on my list to do someday.


Amazing pics and write-up!! Thanks for sharing.

Yeah the debris field is very nice, if you can toss a potshot just to the other side of it they snag nicely. Guy did the tossing and he was able to land four 1/2 full potshots and they held for the first man up. The pit is something special though, even with the water 14' down it was still deep enough that I meat anchored everyone else in and I was able to jump. let me know when you go, if you still need someone I'd love to do it again.

Oh and I forgot to mention the surprise at the end, all three canyons we did this trip had a sea of poison ivy at the end. Some of the plants were taller than I am. It was quite the thing, hiking out, pushing aside some of the bigger plants and praying that they didn't slip and pop back to smack you in the face.

Enjoyed, very much, the trip report and pictures; certainly gives you a sense of the entire adventure. Just curious, what's the nasty looking creature in pic #16?

Looks great. Sorry I missed it.

The canyon clearly hasn't flowed with much if any appreciable volume since September when we did it. That debris pile at the pit was fresh when we were there and would wash away with a decent flow. A very fortuitous spot for it. I reckon a few groups would have some trouble if not for that pile, my own group included. We rearranged the pile a little to help it catch bags a little better. It was a little scattered when we arrived but we tried to pay it forward

A drowned scorpion. I see them in canyons from time to time.

The debris field was very nice, it gives the thrower more options. You can fill the bags more and it is still a hard throw that way, but ascending out becomes easier since you don't need as many bags so fewer lines, or you can stay with the light bag tosses and it is easier to land them. Our tosser went with fuller bags, I think they were 1/2-2/3 full.

I just spoke to Guy and he said bad rope grooves are forming from what he felt was "potshot misses" being hauled back up, on the upcanyon side of the Pit of Despair. Remember to get toward the edge when pulling them back. That debris field is pretty handy. Best not to count on it being there, but it just might stay awhile. The pit has been measured, empty and to the bedrock, to be 26 feet deep. Having at least 5 feet of water sure takes much of the danger out of the climb out. Also for most throwers, the left leg being stabilized helps the balance of the thrower a lot. Often a tall persons shoulder works best. Great TR. I do love a canyon that makes you travel far to even get to it. Makes it more rewarding
Ram

Mark, if you plan something for this year I would love to be included.

Clearly seen at the pit location and another pothole in the photo's above. Ahem...a fair bit more damage to the sandstone than a 3/8" bolt hole...(!).

Hard to believe the canyon gets that much traffic? Maybe its on everyone's hit list.

Heavy duty meat anchor to hold onto the potshot tosser so they can lean out and retrieve in the air if need be? Must be soft rock.

It surprises me that there aren't any drill holes...at least none that can be seen from the pics.

Bolt, no bolt, there is no reason for grooves there. The rap line in, is left of the grooves, LDC. It has to be carelessness pulling failed pots back. During my 6 trips and with awesome throwers I still think less than 40% of the throws made it where they needed to be (pre-debris field) and we generally use pots that are 1/4 full. The new debris pile may be changing the dynamic there too. More full pots thrown shorter? Those misses would likely impact more as a heavier pot (add water too) is being pulled back and up. Its been 2 or 3 years since I was there. The grooves there are younger than that. I suppose the betabase on the canyon should be updated to warn folks to approach it with more caution. The meat idea would work. Here is a picture LUC, pre-grooving.

You mean down canyon side, for escape? Yeah, good news on that front. Doing better. Can do MUCH better still