Canyon Extravaganza Day III - Keyhole but not Pine Creek

Finally getting around to posting pics of our trip down Keyhole on Saturday, July 26. Thanks to Roland for the photos. (He has a video on his blog too.)

Keyhole is two short slots in a row, up in east Zion. Dustin, Roland, and I had planned to hit it and Pine Creek (which is just down the road) in one fell swoop, but the clouds were getting pretty gray by the time we reached the trailhead. So we decided to go down Keyhole and see how things looked after.

The hardest part of the canyon was the approach. In reality, it was 100 times better than the approach to other slots, but me and Roland were still pretty wasted from the Subway the day before, so the hike straight up the slickrock about did us in. We changed into our wetsuits at the top and headed in.

Looking back down at the road.

"Hey guys, where's the dressing room?"

Roland had been down Keyhole a couple times, and right off the bat he commented that there was more water than he remembered. That pretty much set the tone for the rest of the canyon: wet wet wet. I had already been converted to wetsuits, but this time around I learned that neoprene socks are worth their weight in platinum, maybe even plutonium. There were a couple times I had to hang out in a pool of frigid water, waiting for the rope or something, and I hardly shivered. If you don't have a pair, drop what you're doing and run, don't walk, to the nearest sporting goods store. They come in very stylish black.

Our vain attempts early on to avoid getting wet.

Toasty warm despite the chilly agua.

Into the unknown.

I'm pleased to report that the canyon went without a hitch. A few rappels, a lot of downclimbing and stemming over pools, and a looooooooooong swim through a beautiful narrow section. At the end of the corridor, I was alone for a few minutes, and was genuinely awestruck by all the colors and swirls in the rock face. Just stunning.

Dustin with his long legs cheats himself of the once-in-a-lifetime swim down the dark corridor.

Roland embraces it. Gorgeous rock face.

Along the way, we were also reminded that we used to be pretty stupid. Maybe we overprepared for the easy canyon, but that's certainly better than the alternative. A guy and girl dropped in behind us, wearing shorts and tee-shirts, and we had to let them pass, cause they weren't looking too good. Then the girl (who was leading) kind of freaked out on a downclimb. When we got to it, it was a piece of cake and it must have just been her slight hypothermia making it hard. Not only was it dangerous for them, but they couldn't have enjoyed the canyon much.

When we got out, it was threatening rain, so we scratched Pine Creek, since we'd all done it before and have people who love us. Not worth the risk. So that's the takeaway lesson, kids: respect the canyon, and the canyon will respect you. And only you can prevent forest fires.

I look like a midget man.