Life Doesn't Always Play Out the Way We Expect

What I mean by the title is that the expectations one has of a canyon day, may not turn out to be the reality of what was / is going to happen.

I've tackled Adobe Swale on a couple of other occasions and been with groups much less competent than this group was on this particular April 2019 day.  I've been wanting to get my current group of Canyoneering partners into this canyon for a long time. We have a good solid team and we all work well together.  This was our annual weekend where we camp in the North Wash for several days and Dan and his family from Denver come out to join us. We should have had a premonition early on when Dan started his trip and had problems with his truck pulling his camp trailer and then shows up with one daughter only instead of the whole family. This was starting to turn out to be a terrible week already.  Jeff and Tammy and I had done Constrychnine canyon the day before this one and we were able to stay dry and warm enough despite the wind and cold front that was present.

Jeff, Tammy, Dan, Lizzy and I embarked on Adobe Swale this day with positive enthusiasm for a day I have been waiting for for a long time - Adobe Swale with my friends.  Due to the lack of getting wet the day prior and unbeknownst to any of us, Jeff opted out of bringing any neoprene. Tammy and Lizzy changed into wetsuits before leaving the car (Smartest ones there).  I wore a 1.5 mm bottom and a 2mm top. Dan brought a wetsuit and decided that he'd wait to put it on til after swimming through two of the potholes we encountered.

Right off Jeff and I began to get cold after we were dunked in the first two holes. We became even more cold standing around waiting for Dan to finally put his suit on. Tammy and Lizzy were looking for sun just to stay comfortable.  The wind was howling and this brought the air temps down and even though the sun was out and no clouds in the sky, the cold front wasn't letting the heat penetrate. The wind brought our core temps down as we muddled through the stress of trying to stay focused and get through the technical rigging and rappelling.

We hit the crux potholes in the canyon and ended up spending over an hour there while Dan and Tammy worked through the triple pothole problems and cleared the path for us to come down. I asked for the rope length to be set up so Jeff and I could rappel off the end and not get stuck in the water. I was told this was done - it wasn't. This day just turned into one big Charlie Foxtrot after another and it continued to compound the fact that Jeff and I were starting to feel the effects of the onset of Hypothermia. Yeah, it wasn't looking good, but we weren't about to give up and let the cold take us out.  We trudged on and through it all we made it out that day. We fought the cold and we fought the negativity and we fought the urge to push the S.O.S. button on our SPOT locator beacon and to get rescued out of there. Truth be told too, we got ourselves out of there faster than Search and Rescue could have even mobilized and made an attempt to get to us.

Take aways from this you ask? Always be prepared. But most importantly I feel.... Training. Without the proper training and knowledge and experience to be in the canyon in the first place, we probably would have just thrown our hands in the air and given up not being able to think and function clearly. Having the proper Canyoneering training and experience we were able to talk each other through the issues and the pain and cold and make appropriate decisions to get us and our team out. Next would be the team. If I'd been in there with a group of newbies who didn't have the experience and training either it could have gone a lot worse. A lot of directions that could have gone. They may have freaked out and given up. We had a good solid team that was able to stick with us and help us function and work through the hypothermia and cold pains that we all began feeling.

Before you go out on your next Canyoneering adventure, watch this. Understand that often times things can go wrong and it's not because of anything you did. Mother Nature can be a relentless Bitch sometimes and you and you alone are the only one that can fight her on your own terms.  I hope that this video helps prevent any injuries or rescues for someone else out there.

"It Depends"

In Canyoneering there are arguments that will just never die.  I guess this is the same in any other sport probably.  I mean how long are we going to be talking about Tom Brady's deflated Balls?  Well, I guess that's not an argument, if they were they were.  But, lets leave that for the campfire discussion.

Canyoneers get set in their ways and as a training school we like to help them get set in those ways early on.  We seek the opportunities to help train future explorers to be safe and rig their rope systems responsibly.  After a few years they hopefully gain enough experience and understanding to start making some decisions on the subject matter on their own.  One of the most hotly debated concepts is the subject of Single Strand Rope Rappel or Double Strand Rope Rappel - Often times abbreviated as SRT vs. DRT (Single/Double Rope Technique).

Photo from Climbing Magazine: Unbelayvable Article
The Art Project

This topic came up last week on a Canyoneering forum discussion and I used it as a Q&A topic for our Facebook page this week.  Just last evening while surfing Twitter I came across an article posted by Climbing Magazine poking fun at an anchor rigging set up that a climber stumbled across:

http://www.climbing.com/news/unbelayvable-the-art-project-anchor/  What was common in all these discussions about rope technique in canyoneering is the usual "It Depends."

For new Canyoneers we teach a single rope technique set up in what is called a contingency anchor format.  Climbers look at us and with one eye brow raised they go - Huh?  Why?  Why not just set it up Double Strand and be done with it.  No fuss, no muss.  Well, that's all well and good for a climber who understands putting a rope through a point and rappelling down to the next point, but in Canyoneering "It Depends."

Learning to lower a stuck rappeller on an SRT
contingency Anchor

Teaching a "Newb" to single rope a contingency anchor offers them the opportunity to better self rescue or buddy rescue if the need arises.  Without going into a long discourse on the how the setup works, it allows one to better ascend the rope, or have a partner lower them down from on top, or quickly convert to a haul and raise them up.  In a double rope scenario, all this can be accomplished as well, but through much longer processes and equipment usage.  

In Canyoneering, not all of our rappels are straight down.  Some wind around a corridor in the canyon, some squeeze through/over/or under pinch points, some land in pools of water where you may be swimming, or just wading, may not know til you get there.  Some are through waterfalls pounding on your head and back pack and forcing you to the ground.  "It all Depends."

Aaron dropping over an 80' rappel SRT on
contingency setup

Setting up a double rope rappel can complicate some of these situations with rope retrieval, or with plain old safety.  Halving a rope and dropping it into a pool of water could complicate the disconnect from the rappel if you are swimming at the same time.  40'-50' of rope being kicked underneath you while treading water can cause entanglement or complicate trying to disconnect as well as dropping your rappel device completely.  Single strand can alleviate some of these issues.

There are many many arguments for each side of the coin DRT vs. SRT or is it SRT vs. DRT???  "It Depends."  Once a Canyoneer gets some training under their belt, and some understanding of canyon dynamics, I hope you go out practice and understand the fundamentals more and you will be able to then decide on each and every drop, is it going to be an SRT or a DRT drop?

Oh, and that anchor in Climbing Magazine - it is called a Joker setup.  The pic shows two different setups used to rappel 2-4 people simultaneously.  If it were me, I would have equalized the setup off the two bolts instead of using each one independently, but Hey, they are a guide company, they must know what they are doing right?

Join us for Canyoneering chatter on Twitter: @North_Wash use #CanyonChat

Mother Knows Best

As a young child I was taught that Mother ALWAYS Knows Best.  Many of us were taught this, or more or less, were forced to have this engraved into our psyche at a young age. We are given the opportunity as we grow to learn and develop our own sense of what we should and shouldn't do.  But in the end of course - Mother Knows Best or as I have modified - Mother is Always Right (and now that I'm married I'm constantly reminded that Mommy is always right).

What does this have to do with outdoor adventure you may ask - well it has everything to do with it.  It was the first outdoor lesson that I was taught without my parents even realizing it.  Let me elaborate a bit.

2014 saw it's shares of mishaps and misadventures in the canyons.  Early on in the year it looked like it was going to be a rough year for adventurers.  For those of you that have been in our office you might have seen my white board above my desk with the quote on it "Without Risk There is No Reward".  In adventure sports this rings very true.  We risk our lives in search of that next great thrill, or to see the next great landscape that many others are not willing to put risk into to see.  When I take clients out I explain to them that the places they will see today, the majority of the human race will never experience.  It is only with that step off the edge into the abyss and the trust in the rope do we see some wonderful sights.  "Without Risk There is No Reward."

What does this have to do with my Mother?  Well, not in the sense you are thinking, although I did tell a friend, Ram, this year that my mother would die if she saw what I was doing as I slid down a rock slab landing into a pool of water in a crevasse about 16" wide.  The Mother I refer to in adventure sports is our very own Mother Nature.  She always knows best, or in any sense, she is always right.  Her laws and rules are permanent and we had better be mindful of them.  

Many times we find a way to circumvent those rules for just a little bit, or a way to manage them to our advantage.  We mitigate gravity with ropes and parachutes.

One issue that has always plagued us is the decision to go or not to go.  This generally has more to do with the laws that Mother Nature has outlined in regards to weather and the safety that comes from the issues of diving into a slot canyon filled with water, or where water can potentially accumulate and take control of you.  I try to instill in students during our courses that the hazards in canyons can be mitigated to a point to enjoy the adventure, but that when the hazards start adding up to more than we can mitigate at once, the risk becomes too great and it's not worth the reward anymore.  The canyon will be there another day, let's make sure that we are as well.

I make no hesitation when booking trips to tell potential clients that if the weather seems questionable or the canyon seems out of reach at the time, then we won't be going in.  I know there has been many that have been disappointed in this.  A little over a year ago some potential clients booked and then proceeded to fly in from the Netherlands.  After frequent communication and constant weather checking I cancelled the trip.  They drove to our town just for the trip and showed up to talk with me.  I explained that the recent storms and the future forecast has me too concerned for the safety to feel it will turn out in our favor.  They, while being disappointed, expressed understanding and went on their way.  Their natural path of travel took them past the canyons we were going to do and they spent the night there getting up early in the morning to look around.  There were many other recreational canyoneers also camping at this location and they tried to convince these guys to go out with them instead.  The clients declined relying on my hesitation they later told me.  When they contacted me after getting back to the Netherlands they sent me some pictures of the wash outs in that area that happened that day from rain storms.  The entire campsite where they were was flooded out and later reports surfaced that some of the groups who had gone into the canyons were caught in flash floods and some minor injuries incurred.  Thankfully nothing serious.

Another client this year booked a trip and the weather the days leading up to it was pretty bad, but the day of the trip was really nice.  We headed out and entered the canyon drainage.  We donned our wet suits and harnesses and started down.  50 yds into the canyon we hit the first technical section requiring some gear to drop in.  I observed that the prior storms had filled the canyon with a large amount of debris and I knew that if this was just the beginning, and the rest of the canyon was like this we were gonna have a rough day.  By starting out this way we may hit spots that would be impassable.  I aborted the trip right there citing the potential obstacles and the hazards that may be encountered causing us some undue hardships and potential dangers.  

Currently in the past few weeks ending off the 2014 year, we have cancelled two trips that once we started down the road, the light rain we left town in turned to heavy snow and the roads were snow packed to a point that we were not sure about even getting to the canyon which was still over an hour away.  Trip aborted, clients taken back to town.  

As I began typing this out the other day, I sat here wondering if I was gonna be in a canyon the next day for the Annual FreezeFest Black Hole trip.  Due to the weather forecast it was predicting some snow fall. The day came and the snow was there.  Not only did I not go, but the rest of the crew that had been out camping also chose that the risk of attempting any canyon that day was far too high to make the venture worth anyone's safety.

This year several video's surfaced on YouTube outlining the question, do we sometimes risk too much in the outdoors.  Do we often push that envelope just a little to far?  Maybe with a little more training and some respect for our Mother things will look up this year.  I am hoping that the New Year will start off wonderful, that we may all be out in the back country enjoying our favorite activities, but that we head the call of Mother Nature in a way that will be able to bring us back again and again and again.  May the New Year bless you all with safety, entertainment, enjoyment, and fun.  The canyons will be there another day if only you will be too to enjoy them.  See ya in the Canyons.

WARNING NOTICE - SOME VIDEOS ATTACHED HERE CONTAIN STRONG LANGUAGE.  LISTENER BE WARNED!

Zion: Rock of Refuge from Eric Hanson on Vimeo.

Arches New Canyoneering and Climbing Management Plan

The inevitable has happened now in Arches.  With the growth of Canyoneering we will undoubtedly continue to see other areas and land management agencies start following suite, most especially if there is a continued rise in the the accidents and rescue calls for these activities in the future.  Here is the statement from the NPS regarding the permit system along with some links to more information:

Officially starting Friday March 7, free day use permits, required for canyoneering in Arches, will be available outside the visitor center at an information/permit kiosk. With the exception of canyoneering in the Fiery Furnace, all canyoneers must fill out a permit, drop the copy of the permit in the box provided and attach original to their person when canyoneering in the park. Group sizes for canyoneering in the park are a maxium of 10 persons per group, except in Lost Spring Canyon (6 persons or less are required). There are no day use limits on permits.  A kiosk will be placed out near Lost Spring Canyon on BLM land for canyoneers to acquire permits for these routes without having to go to the VC in the near future.

For those canyoneering in the Fiery Furnace, groups sizes are required to be 6 persons or less, and must obtain their permit for a fee through the front desk and normal Fiery Furnace process. There is no change to the Fiery Furnace process except canyoneers must be in groups of 6 or less. The canyoneering permit for the park is different than the one required for the Fiery Furnace. 

Rock climbers are not required to obtain permits but we are encouraging these users to stop by the VC at the outside kiosk to check on updates to route closures, read the new regulations and to fill out a permit for safety reasons and to help the park obtain better visitor use data. Rock climbers are now required to be in groups of 5 persons or less.

A free online permit system will be up and running by the beginning of summer for both activities. We will let everyone know when this goes live too.

The park website has now been updated with both a Canyoneering page and Rock Climbing page, both under "Plan Your Visit/Things to Do". 

http://www.nps.gov/arch/planyourvisit/canyoneer.htm

http://www.nps.gov/arch/planyourvisit/rock_climbing.htm

These pages list the new regulations, group size limits, permit process, established routes and new route establishment, updates on route closures and overall information on conducting these activities safely while practicing Leave No Trace ethics.

We are also compiling an email list of interested rock climbers and canyoneers to help the park review new route applications which require fixed gear. If you or someone you know would be interested in this process, please contact 435-719-2220. When the new route application process starts and applications are received by the park, I will post the applications online for your substantive comments. The park will then take these comments into consideration when completing the environmental analysis and approval process.

We appreciate your patience as we work through the phases and kinks of implementing these new requirements. If you have any questions please call 435-719-2220.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

"He who fails to plan is planning to fail"

Planning for the unknown is always, well, unknown.  When you head out into the back country we hope and anticipate for the adventure of a lifetime.  However, what do we do if that is not the case and the un-anticipated happens?  Were we too busy planning for the fun stuff to not want to think about the unthinkable?  Let’s face it, accidents happen.  This is why they are called accidents.  When we start putting our efforts in to create the ultimate trip, we should throw in some time to consider the plans and options available to us if something happens that would turn our world upside down.  

In Canyoneering and most back country excursions you are going to be miles from help and resources.  Heck, as hard as it may be to believe in this day and age, you will probably be out of cell phone range as well.  So what do you do now?

With each of our entry level Canyoneering courses we always touch on risk assessment and management, planning, first aid, and evacuation considerations.  These are all concerns that any back country explorer should contemplate in their trip planning process.  A couple years ago I wrote an article here on our blog with 10 steps/suggestions of things to consider when planning your trip.  Check it out for the full listing, I’m going to re-expound on a few of those items here.

As often times as it is overlooked, it is vitally important to let others know where you are going, when you plan to be back, and have a check in time/SAR call out deadline point.  Leave maps and GPS coordinates with your contacts as well as phone numbers to the authorities for the area you are travelling.  This will help to ensure that they can get help to you as fast as possible.  We have been in canyons where we were slower moving than we expected and getting out of the canyon was taking us longer than our check in time.  We had left a time we expected to get out of the canyon based on past trips, and had created a SAR buffer zone in there of 3 hours before the Posse’ was to be mobilized.  We pushed right up to the 3 hour mark and still hadn't quite made it out yet, but knew we had to check in.  Out comes the SPOT personal locator beacon to hit the home base and let them know we are still moving forward. 

Carry a PLB.  A Personal Locator Beacon costs a minimal amount and units like the SPOT come with an additional insurance plan for covering rescue costs.  A good PLB Unit will help ensure that rescuers can zero in on your exact location and get help to you faster. 

What if you do not need rescue, but just run out of daylight?  Plan for more time in there than what the route descriptions says.  Take extra food and water and have enough that you could go overnight if necessary.  Most Canyoneering routes are only day trips, so plan as if you may have to spend a night.  Carry an extra fleece jacket, an emergency bivvy sack or at least a space blanket.  For Christmas this year I gave all of our guys that work with us a headlamp, whistle, and fire starter set.  Two weeks later one of them ended up getting caught in a canyon with daylight weaning.   They ended up spending the night in there building a fire using brush they found and huddled up in an emergency blanket.  We located them at 3 am and communicated via whistles. We had located them by the GPS coordinates sent to us from their SPOT beacon.  Plan for the unexpected.

Know how to find your directions.  Know how to read a topographical map and carry one of the area with you.  You can print off maps on your computer and place these into your dry bag in case you need them.  Know how to use a GPS and understand the difference between Lat/Long and UTM coordinates.  Know how to use the GPS and Map in tandem to navigate into and out of a canyon environment.  Don’t forget to mark where you parked your car.  This will save some unwanted time wandering the area looking for your ride after you are tired and exhausted.

Planning for that unexpected then takes a turn into doing something when it does happen.  Are you prepared to be able to do something about your situation?  First thing to do is DON’T LOSE YOUR HEAD!  Stay as calm as possible - sometimes easier said than done.  Take stock of the situation, your surroundings – be sure no one else is in danger, that the victim(s) are done being in danger, your gear – what do you have to work with, and then move forward from there with your plan.  You better darn well have, at a minimum, a personal first aid kit with you.  You can never carry enough supplies to plan for all emergencies, but you had better plan for some.  With any kit that you carry, make sure you know what is in it, and how to use what is there.  While a kit from the store shelf is a great convenience and a really good place to start, it won't do you any good to go buy it and throw it in your pack if you don’t know what is in it and how to use it.  Don't buy anything that is over your personal skill level.  When I started Canyoneering many years ago with Dave Black, his first aid kit consisted of a couple packs of Ibuprofen and Duct Tape.  He could handle many tasks with those two items, but his skill level and experience had brought him to that point.

Here are a couple of examples of the emergency material I carry with me: 

GPS, SPOT, Headlamp, First Aid Kit, Chap stick/lip balm, eye drops (sucks to get sand into your contacts), Whistle, hand warmers, rain poncho, space blanket, duct tape (in Zip lock bag), Toilet paper (in zip lock bag).

Breaking down the first aid kit:  Manual, magnifying glass, personal prescriptions, ibuprofen, Imodium tablets, allergy and decongestant tablets, Ace bandage wrap, whistle, Tums, different sized Band-Aids, anti-biotic ointment, fire tinder packs, flint and steel, water purification drops, blister treatment patches, liquid/spray on bandage (awesome if your in and out of water), ointment cream (used for chapped lips to cuts and scrapes, etc.)  All of it in a water proof container (make sure the lid seals tight).

For the waterproof container I have seen everything from this type pelican case to Nalgene bottles to just a dry bag or keg used for containing these types of items in them. 

It is naturally a beneficial idea to improve the knowledge skills that you do have.  If you are not comfortable with First Aid then look into taking a Wilderness First Responder or First Aid course.  Don’t use the excuse that “I always have someone more experienced with me, they can handle it.”  What if it is that person that gets injured, what is your plan then?

I hope that these ideas and thoughts have helped to spark your ideas and thinking for this upcoming season.  I hope that we can mitigate problems and emergencies in the back country.  Most of us aren't willing to admit we may need help in this department, but most of us do know people we feel need help.  Share this article with your friends and family that periodically head out there in the hopes that there will be less problems this year.  With a little vigilance and forethought we can make this season the safest one yet.  Also give us some insight into what you carry with you.  What does your first aid/emergency essentials kit look like.