Canyoneering Route Description
Blarney Canyon - Right (east) Fork - 3B I
North Wash, Utah.
Pictures 05-28-10
Quick Facts
05-28-09, 1 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 2 hours)
Distance - 2.5 miles Total, 0.7 miles Technical
Rappels - 2 Rappels, Longest Rappel 40 feet.
(Arguably only 1 rappel.)
See the
Canyoneer Trip Report Explanation Notes page
for an explanation of how the technical mileage or the gear used
list is determined.
Gear Used for Canyon
Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up
to 40 feet and 30 feet of 1†webbing for sling placement.
General Comments
The approach to the Right Fork uses that same approach as used for
the Left Fork of Blarney. Once at the left fork you will continue
roughly south east over the desert to the Right Fork. The route
description will refer to both the Right and Left Forks. It is easy
to mix things up so keep that in mind while reading.
If you plan on doing only one fork of Blarney Canyon this is not
it. Do the Left (west Fork if you are only planning to do one fork
as it offers a much better experience.
Getting to the Trailhead and Exit Vehicle (Escape Pod) Parking
To get to the Trailhead
From the junction of Utah highways 276 and 95, drive South on
highway 95 about 1.5 miles to a turn off to a short dirt road (extBlarney).
The road drives straight back from the highway about 300 feet
then turns left to drop down into the wash. Park after the 300
feet of straight road before it turns (pkBlarney). Optionally
you can park out on the road and walk the 300 feet in.
To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod
No exit vehicle required. This is done as a loop route.
Maps
Map showing entire route.
Click for High-Res version.
Right Click then select "Save Target As" to save the Hi-Res version.
GPS Waypoint Information
Approach Waypoints
extBlarney
Exit for the dirt road into the bottom of Blarney Canyon.
N38 01.226 W110 32.696
pkBlarney
Park here on the dirt road a short distance from the highway to
start and finish Blarney Canyon.
N38 01.272 W110 32.687, Elevation 4503 ft.
wBlarneyRP-01
Base of a sand stone slope leading up to the ridge between two
drainages.
N38 01.316 W110 32.723
wBlarneyRP-02
Smooth sand stone high point on the ridge.
N38 01.438 W110 32.659
wBlarneyRP-03
Another high point along the ridge that looks more like a rock
out cropping.
NN38 01.491 W110 32.664
wBlarneyRP-04
At the base of a huge rock face. Travel around the left (west)
side of the rock face following a well worn trail.
N38 01.525 W110 32.664
wBlarneyRP-05
Scramble up a section of slick rock to find where the trail
continues.
N38 01.598 W110 32.647
wBlarneyRP-06
Another slick rock slope to scramble up to find where the trail
continues again.
N38 01.647 W110 32.639
jBlarnyShilela
Junction where the trail forks for either the West Fork of
Blarney to the right (north east) or the East Fork of Shillelagh
to the left (north west).
N38 01.851 W110 32.561, Elevation 4838 ft.
wBlarneyRP-07
Another trail junction. Left is a fain path not well travelled.
To the right (east) is a still well used path following the rim
of the West Fork of Blarney.
N38 01.983 W110 32.400
yBlarneyLtFkTp
Top entry for the left(west) fork of Blarney Canyon. This is a
side entry near the actual head of the canyon. The trail crosses
the wash here.
N38 02.046 W110 32.321, Elevation 4857 ft.
wBlarneyRP-11
Alternate entry down into the Left Fork of Blarney Canyon. The
drop at the head of this drainage can be down climbed starting
down the a slope LDC then working back into the drainage as you
down climb. Contue down the drainage to drop to the canyon
floor.
N38 02.030 W110 32.281
wBlarneyRP-12
Top of a saddle just south of a sandstone out cropping. Trails
here lead south east toward the head of the Right Fork of
Blarney Canyon.
N38 02.013 W110 32.167
wBlarneyRP-13
In the large drainage that leads down to the Right Fork of
Blarney Canyon.
N38 01.937 W110 32.148
yBlarneyRtFkTp
Top entry for the Right (east) Fork of Blarney Canyon. This is
at the top of a sloped down climb of about 30 feet down to a
shelf where Rap 1 is located.
N38 01.897 W110 32.174
Canyon / Technical Section Waypoints
yBlarneyRtFkTp
Top entry for the Right (east) Fork of Blarney Canyon. This is
at the top of a sloped down climb of about 30 feet down to a
shelf where Rap 1 is located.
N38 01.897 W110 32.174
dBlarneyRtFkR1
Rap 1 - Blarney Right Fork. Anchored from a cairn anchor and
drops about 40 feet.
N38 01.890 W110 32.173
wBlarneyRP-14
Start of a narrow section that is not deep but is just obvious.
There is a down climb of about 10 feet to get down into the
narrows.
N38 01.808 W110 32.223
wBlarneyRP-15
Start of the next narrow section.
N38 01.742 W110 32.315
dBlarneyRtFkR2
Rap 2 - Blarney Right Fork. Anchored from one of a couple large
choke stones and drops about 15 feet to a ledge. This will be
easily down climbed by some people but not so easy for shorter
people.
N38 01.721 W110 32.345
wBlarneyRP-16
Rock fall debris with a large boulder to down climb under to
continue down canyon.
N38 01.699 W110 32.396
jBlarneyLtRt
Junction where the left and right forks of Blarney join.
N38 01.701 W110 32.445
wBlarneyRP-09
A short side drainages joins in from RDC.
N38 01.690 W110 32.499
wBlarneyRP-10
Side drainage that joins in from LDC.
N38 01.578 W110 32.523
yBlarneyBt
Bottom exit of Blarney Canyon. This is just after a short tight
narrows of about 100 feet long.
N38 01.504 W110 32.571
Exit Route Waypoints
yBlarneyBt
Bottom exit of Blarney Canyon. This is just after a short tight
narrows of about 100 feet long.
N38 01.504 W110 32.571
pkBlarney
Park here on the dirt road a short distance from the highway to
start and finish Blarney Canyon.
N38 01.272 W110 32.687
Details
The Approach:
From where you parked on the dirt road (pkBlarney) you will see the
dirt road continue on into the wash that leads up into Blarney.
Walk north west across the road and follow a faint path up out of
the wash the road was going up. You will find yourself on a high
spot between the wash the road was following and another drainage on
the right (south west).
Continue north west between these two drainages. About 350 feet
from the car will be the base of a slick rock slope
(wBlarneyRP-01). Scramble north up the sandstone slope to gain
access to the ridge running between the two drainages. After about
375 feet the slope levels off a little but still continues
climbing.
After another 450 feet is a smooth sandstone high point along the
ridge (wBlarneyRP-02). From this smooth high point is a view of a
huge rock face ahead about 500 feet away.
Then another 300 feet is another high point that has more of a rock
out cropping look (wBlarneyRP-03). Skirt around the left (west)
side of the high point and continue toward the huge rock face.
After another 200 feet you will be at the base of the huge rock face
(wBlarneyRP-04). Follow a well worn trail around the left (west)
side of the rock face.
Another 550 feet will be a scramble up a section of slick rock
(wBlarneyRP-05). At the top of the slick rock the trail continues
north and is still easy to follow. The trail here is following the
rim of the canyon on your right which is a side drainage of Blarney.
About another 350 feet will be another slick rock slope
(wBlarneyRP-06) to scramble up about 50 or 60 feet high. A cairn
may be at the top to help guide you. At the top the trail continues
still roughly following the rim on the right (east) side.
After the last slick rock scramble follow the well worn path about
0.3 miles to a junction in the trail (jBlarnyShilela). To the left
(north west) leads to the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon. To the
right (north east) leads to the Left Fork of Blarney Canyon.
From the junction continue right toward the Left Fork of Blarney.
About 0.3 miles along the still easy to follow trail is another
trail junction (wBlarneyRP-07). The left is faint and not well
traveled. Instead continue right (east) on the still well worn
trail following the rim of the Left Fork of Blarney. You will have
good views down into Blarney shortly before reaching this trail
junction.
About 650 feet after the trail junction the trail crosses over a
drainage (yBlarneyLtFkTp). This is the drainage you would drop into
to start down the Left Fork of Blarney. This route description is
for the Right Fork of Blarney so continue with the approach
directions to get over to the top of the Right Fork.
After crossing the drainage (yBlarneyLtFkTp), continue east along
the rim about 250 feet to the head of another drainage dropping into
the Left Fork (wBlarneyRP-11). This drainage is an alternate down
climb to drop into the Left Fork.
From the head of this drainage (wBlarneyRP-11) look east. The
desert in that direction is all red dirt. You should notice a
sandstone out cropping about 500 feet way. Travel toward the out
cropping and follow a drainage that leads up to a saddle to the
right (south) of the out cropping.
From the top of the saddle just south of the out cropping
(wBlarneyRP-12) there will be a path leading south east toward the
head of the Right Fork of Blarney Canyon. The path quickly becomes
a small shallow drainage running down toward the Right Fork as it
winds down along the desert.
About 500 feet down from the saddle after following the shallow
drainage you will drop into a very wide open large wash
(wBlarneyRP-13). This wash leads down to the head of the Right Fork
of Blarney.
About 275 feet south down the wash is a drop of about 30 feet with a
slope that can be down climbed. The top of this slope is marked as
the top entry for the Right Fork of Blarney Canyon (yBlarneyRtFkTp).
The Canyon / Technical Section:
From the top of the 30 foot drop at the head of the Right Fork of
Blarney (yBlarneyRtFkTp) scramble down the slope to a large shelf
below where you will find a cairn anchor for rap 1.
Rap 1 (dBlarneyRtFkR1) is anchored from a cairn anchor and drops
down a vertical wall. At the base of the rappel is a 3 foot section
where the wall is under cut. A quick hop down will get you to the
floor. Rap 1 drops 40 feet total.
There is another option for rap 1. Instead of scrambling down the
slope to rap 1, walk south along the RDC rim of the canyon about 150
feet. There you will find a large rock used as an anchor to rap
down a sloped wall to the canyon floor (dBlarnRtFkR1a). The drop
down to the canyon floor from the lip is right at 60 feet. If the
webbing from the anchor is not extended to the lip of the rap more
than 60 feet of rope will be needed. Using this option for rap 1
will increase the length of rope needed for the canyon. Keep this
in mind if you plan on using this option.
Down canyon of rap 1 is easy walking on the flat sandy floor of the
canyon.
About 600 feet down canyon of rap 1 is the start of a narrow section
(wBlarneyRP-14). The drop down into the narrow section is about 10
feet. The narrow section is not deep here but is very obviously
different than the flat sandy wash you have been walking.
About
150 feet down the narrows it begins to drop more aggressively with a
few down climbs along the way. The down climbs are short and simple
stemming style. This part of the slot is also very twisty and
winding adding to the fun of feeling like being in a maze. After
the twisting down climbing stuff the narrows starts to drop a little
less aggressively and opens up a little but only briefly.
Next is
a drop of about 12 feet down a narrow section of about 2 feet wide.
This is an easy stem down and is made a little easier if you stem up
high and work down canyon about 20 feet then drop back down where it
is a little wider.
Shortly after this down climb the slot widens
out a little and provides easy walking in the sand for about 400
feet to that start of another narrow section (wBlarneyRP-15).
About 150 feet into this next narrow section is a down climb of
about 8 feet over a wedged boulder. Just after the 8 foot down
climb is another drop of about 20 feet total which is arguably a
rappel. This will be called a rappel but a lot of people will find
this a down climb.
Rap 2 (dBlarneyRtFkR2) is anchored from one of
a couple large choke stones at the top of the rap. Rap 2 drops
about 15 feet to a ledge. It is an easy scramble 5 feet down the
ledge to the canyon floor. The top part of rap 2 is easily down
climbed. The bottom part is a little more difficult but not too
hard for taller people since it widens out. Shorter people or those
not comfortable with this style of down climbing, will likely desire
to rappel.
Just after rap 2 is a down climb of about 10 feet. The
down climb is a very easy stemming style climb with lots of features
on the wall to make things easy.
Another 30 feet down canyon is
another down climb of about 10 feet which is also an easy chimney
down.
Another 60 or 70 feet down canyon is a drop of about 10
feet. The RDC wall is sloped enough to almost walk on. An easy way
down this drop is to walk with your feet on the RDC wall and lean
out over the drop with your hands on the LDC wall. Work your way
down canyon and follow the RDC wall down to the floor.
A little
over 100 feet farther down canyon is some rock fall debris
(wBlarneyRP-16). A huge boulder appears to block passage down
canyon. As you get closer you will see a large hole under the
boulder with a down climb of about 8 feet to the canyon floor below.
After climbing under the boulder it is easy walking in the sand
about 250 feet to the confluence of the Left and Right Forks (jBlarneyLtRt).
Down canyon of the junction the canyon stays wide and is easy
walking along sand and slick rock.
About 275 feet down canyon of
the junction is a side drainage that joins in from RDC
(wBlarneyRP-09).
Another 0.2 miles down canyon another drainage
joins in this time from LDC (wBlarneyRP-10).
Another 500 feet down
canyon is the start of another narrows that is only about 100 feet
long. At the lower end of the narrows is what I have marked as the
bottom exit for the Blarney Canyons (yBlarneyBt) since the rest of
the route is wide open easy walking in sand.
The Exit:
After exiting the 100 foot long narrows (yBlarneyBt) continue down
canyon about 0.3 miles back to your car.
GPS Waypoint Information
In the future I may start to have GPX
files for down load but not quite yet.
Most
GPS units and mapping software use the common gpx file format
including Google Earth.
National Geographic TOPO! hides the feature
to import GPX files. To find the feature........
1. Click on "Handhelds" in the menu at the top.
2. Select the option for "Import (from GPS or .txt)
Wizard..
3. Select "In a .gpx file....... and click
on Next
4. Use the window that opens to navigate to the GPX file
you wish to open.
Garmin MapSource will open a GPX file in
the same way it opens other formats by simply using the File
then Open.
If you wish to convert between formats to
get your data from one software title to another you can use the
free GPSBabel software.
Elevations are approximate. Waypoints with no elevation
data will display NaN in place of the elevation.
Elevations are in meters so multiplying by 3.28083 is necessary
to get elevations in feet.
The first letter of a waypoint denotes the type of point.
Rappels start with d. Technical top and bottom of canyons
start with y. the letter w denotes a generic point.
Scenic spots start with s. Trailheads start with t.
Junctions of trails or canyons start with j.
Notes for GPS information:
Waypoint coordinates are listed with
WGS84 datum and in Lat/Lon hddd.ddddd° format.
Waypoints are listed alphabetically by waypoint name
(not in order on the route).
BEFORE entering coordinates from this website, please ensure
your system (GPS or mapping software) is set to the same datum
used here (WGS84). Entering coordinate information with
inconsistent datum's can result in the waypoints being off by
hundreds of feet. It is important to keep this in mind
when entering waypoints from any source.
tStrike2Cyn |
- Place to start up the wash toward Strike 2 Canyon. Be sure to check out the incredible arches on the hills to the west. Walk up under them to see double arches and incredible views.
- N37.87477252073586 W-111.04432057589293
Elevation 1,776.98
Meters - (for feet multiply by 3.28083)
|
yStrike2Tp |
- Top entry for Strike 2 Canyon on a saddle. Rap 1 starts from here and is anchored from a rock about 15 feet back embedded in dirt at the base of the saddle. Rap 1 drops about 200 feet to the top of a down climbable slope IF the webbing is extended a minimum of 30 feet down from the anchor. A longer extension is recommended, see route description.
- N37.876566667109728 W-111.04138330556452
Elevation 1,812.34
Meters - (for feet multiply by 3.28083)
|
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