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Canyoneering Route Description

Brimstone Canyon - 3A III
Death Valley National Park, California.

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Pictures 02-13-10

Quick Facts

02-13-10, 10 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 11.15 hours)

Distance - 8.5 miles Total, 2.5 miles Technical
Rappels - 12 Rappels, Longest Rappel 200 feet.

See the Canyoneer Trip Report Explanation Notes page for an explanation of how the technical mileage is determined.

Gear Used for Canyon

Rappelling and anchor gear, two 200 foot ropes and 70 feet of 1” webbing for sling placement.

See the Canyoneer Trip Report Explanation Notes page for an explanation of how the gear used list is determined.

General Comments

Special thanks to Rick Kent for an invitation to join for the First Descent.

Death Valley canyons typically have a variety of rock in them.  Brimstone has the largest variety of different rock types in one canyon I have seen.  The approach to the South Fork of Brimstone is fun and scenic since the route is actually ascending another canyon to get to the top of the drop in.  The South Fork of Brimstone Canyon offers a lot of fun spicy down climbs.  

The down side to Brimstone is everything (I do mean everything) is loose.  Lots and lots of loose rock in this canyon.

Getting to the Trailhead and Exit Vehicle (Escape Pod) Parking

To get to the Trailhead

From the junction of hwy 170 (Badwater road) and hwy 190, drive south east about 10.8 miles to the turn off to Dante’s View.  Turn right (south) toward Dante’s View.  Drive 1.4 miles to a large turn off on the right with a gate a little way up the road.  Park at this turn off which is the trailhead (tBrimstone).

To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod

From the junction of hwy 170 (Badwater road) and hwy 190, drive south on hwy 170 about 10.8 miles to the turn off for the Devil’s Golf Course.  This is where you will leave an exit vehicle (extDevilsGolf).

Maps

Map showing entire route.

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Map showing mostly the approach.

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Map showing mostly the Technical Section.

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GPS Waypoint Information

Waypoint coordinates are given with the WGS84 datum and in Lat/Lon hddd° mm.mmm' format unless otherwise noted.

Details

The Approach:
From the trailhead (tBrimstone) walk south west along the dirt road.  About 0.5 miles up the road is a large quarry on the right (west).  Do not go too close to the quarry as I believe this is why they have the road blocked to vehicular travel.  

About 0.6 miles from the trailhead is a fork in the road with the main road veering right.  At this fork (wBrimstonRP-01) follow the fork to the left.  This left fork is more of a pull out than a road and goes up a short hill.  At the top of the hill is a good view across the open desert toward the canyon you will ascend to get to the top of Brimstone Canyon.  

To the southwest you will be able to see the mouth of a canyon with some white walls.  The white walls of the canyon make a good landmark that can be seen from a distance.  Walk southwest about 0.7 miles to the mouth of this canyon.  As you get close to the wash leading out of that canyon you will find yourself on a ledge above the main wash.  Drop into the wash where ever it is convenient. Then continue up the wash and into the canyon.  A short distance up the wash you will see some hoodoos (wBrimstonRP-02).  

About 800 feet up canyon from the hoodoos will be a dry fall about 15 feet high ().  If you are there when there is some snow melt in the spring you will be treated with a running water fall here.  This entire lower section of this canyon is quite beautiful if you catch it with water in it.  

To get up over this dry fall, follow up a chute RDC.  About 60 feet up the chute look for a flat spot on the left with that overlooks the wash above the fall you are bypassing.  Look for a down climb on the right of the flat area of about 15 feet back down to the wash that is above the dry fall.  

Once back in the wash continue up canyon about 0.1 mile to a fork in the canyon (wBrimstonRP-04).  Follow the fork to the left (southish).   

Another 0.2 miles up canyon is another fork (wBrimstonRP-05).  This fork is a 3 way split.  The left side breaks into 2 forks.  Do not follow either of the forks to the left.  Follow the right most fork.  

About 150 feet up canyon from the last fork are a couple of up climbs that may give some a little trouble (wBrimstonRP-06).  The first climb is about 6 feet up rock that has been smoothed out from water flow and is pretty easy.  The next climb is about 9 feet and is a bit more challenging.  Weaker climbers may desire a belay from above.  

A little over 100 feet after the 2 up climbs is a small drainage dropping in from RDC.  Stay left in the main wash.  

About 0.3 miles up canyon of the 2 up climbs is a minor fork in the canyon (wBrimstonRP-07).  Stay left to follow the main wash.  

About 0.2 miles up is another fork in the canyon (wBrimstonRP-08).  The section of rock that divides the two forks is red with a yellowish white rock layer at the bottom.  Follow the left fork here to stay in the main wash.  

About 800 feet up canyon is another fork (wBrimstonRP-09).  The right fork is the smallest but is what the map shows as the main water course on a map.   

It is possible to continue travel up the right fork to complete the route.  If you decide to do this you will need to climb a dry fall that is about 20 feet tall.  The up climb looks intimidating but is very stair like and is not much of a problem.  Beyond that the obstacles are pretty easy to get by.  

Instead of taking the right or left forks at wBrimstonRP-09, travel along the top of the ridge that divides the 2 forks.  To access the ridge travel up the right fork about 50 feet and look left (west) for a slope leading up onto the ridge.  

Travel west up the ridge is a bit steep and has its first top out about 450 feet up the slope then down to a saddle (wBrimstonRP-10) about 650 feet up the slope.  

About 750 feet up the ridge from the saddle is a small peak with a white top.  Continue up the ridge then along the right (north) side of the white topped peak (wBrimstonRP-11) along what feels like a natural route around the peak on the right near the top.  

About 0.1 miles after getting around the white peak drop into the now shallow wash on the right (north).  The wash has a hard white rock bottom.  Follow up the wash another 0.2 miles to where the white rock starts to fade out and the wash begins to veer left (south westish).  Just before the white rock ends and the wash veers right, pop up onto the ridge (wBrimstonRP-12) on the right (north).   

Looking ahead as you are on this ridge you will see a slope of white gravel like debris on the hill side.  It is very light compared to what is around it and lies such that it almost looks like a steep snow bank.  

To the left (south) of the white slope that resembles snow, is a small peak then a saddle then a larger peak.  Travel up the ridge about 450 feet and around the right (north) side of the small peak.  Your route is above the white slope and just below the top of the small peak (wBrimstonRP-13).  Travel around right (north) side of the small peak.  

After getting around the slope, you can see a large saddle ahead to the west about 0.1 miles away.  This large saddle ahead is the head of the South Fork of Brimstone Canyon (yBrimstonSF-Tp).  Find your way around to the saddle to get to the head of the canyon.

The Canyon / Technical Section:
From the saddle at the top of the South Fork of Brimstone Canyon (yBrimstonSF-Tp), start down the steep slope on the west side.  The slope is very steep and easy to slide on.  If there have been recent rains be prepared to slip and slide a bit since there are a lot of patches of clay along the slope.  Further down the slope turns from wide open to a more ravine like feel.  As the slope turns to a more ravine feel there are multiple down climbs along the way but all are pretty simple to overcome.  

About 0.3 miles down the slope is a drop of about 25 feet (wBrimSF-RP-14).  After down climbing the drop a large hoodoo can be seen over head back up canyon.  

Rap 1 (dBrimSF-R1-2) is after a couple more down climbs and is about 250 feet down canyon of the hoodoo.  Rap 1 is anchored from a cairn anchor and drops about 30 feet with a sloped start.  

Rap 2 is a few feet down canyon of rap 1.  Rap 2 is anchored from a large rock and drops about 55 feet.  20 feet of the rap is free hanging.  

About 225 feet down canyon of rap 2 are 2 drops of about 30 feet each.  The drops are bypassed by climbing around them RDC.  At the bottom of the second drop it is a little sketchy getting back over to the top of another drop of about 115 feet.  The 115 foot drop is rap 3.  

Rap 3 (dBrimSF-R3-4) is anchored from a large boulder (About 4 feet in dia.) just above the drop.  Rap 3 drops about 115 feet down a slightly sloped wall with a few pocket features in it.  

Rap 4 is right below rap 3.  Rap 4 is anchored from a cairn anchor and drops about 125 feet down a mostly vertical wall.  At the bottom of rap 4 are a lot of large boulders with large amounts of white deposits on them.  

A little over 200 feet down canyon of rap 4 is a down climb into a narrow section.  The down climb is about 12 feet and can be a bit tricky for some.  About 50 feet down canyon of the down climb is a bridge between the canyon walls made up of dirt and rock.  Under this dirt bridge is a short but easy down climb to the top of rap 5.  

Rap 5 (dBrimSF-R5) is anchored from a choke stone about 15 feet from the top of the rap.  Rap 5 drops about 65 feet down a slightly sloped wall.  

 Rap 6 (dBrimSF-R6) is a little over 200 feet down canyon of rap 5.  Rap 6 is anchored from a large boulder about 50 feet up canyon of the rap.  Rap 6 drops only about 10 feet.  At the bottom of rap 6 is a ledge of about 4 feet to drop down to continue down canyon.  

Rap 7 (dBrimSF-R7-8) is a short distance down canyon of rap 6 in a rock fall area with some large pieces to navigate around.  Rap 7 is anchored from one of the large boulders in the rock fall debris and drops about 90 feet with most of the rap being free hanging down mostly yellowish white rock.  There is a ledge about 20 feet from the bottom of the rap to walk over before continuing down some red rock near the bottom.  

Rap 8 is about 70 feet down canyon of rap 7.  Rap 8 is anchored from a pinch point between a two med sized rocks embedded in the wash just above the rap.  Rap 8 drops a bit awkwardly over a ledge then has mostly free hanging rap after getting under a large boulder part way down the rappel.  The boulder you drop under along the way is embedded in the conglomerate wall and looks like it is ready to fall out.  Looking at it while on rap can be a bit nerve racking to think if it fell out while you were under it you would be done.  

Rap 9 (dBrimSF-R9) is a little over 200 feet down canyon of rap 9.  Rap is anchored from a cairn anchor and drops about 50 feet down a wall of very loose rock and dirt.  

Down canyon of rap 9 the canyon opens up a bit and provides some easy wash walking along the way.   

About 270 feet from rap 9 is a short drop that is easily bypassed by climbing around LDC.   

About 380 feet down canyon of rap 9 is a fork (wBrimSF-RP-15) that joins the canyon coming in from LDC.   

Almost 500 feet down canyon of the fork is another fork or canyon junction (wBrimSF-RP-16) coming in from LDC.  At this second junction are some large boulders on the canyon floor from a rock fall.  The boulders have fallen in a way that allows you to walk under them as you continue down canyon.  

Another 500 feet down canyon is another fork or canyon junction that joins in from RDC.  This is a very wide open area and is a major junction compared to the two previous junctions.  

Down canyon of the wide open fork the canyon stays mostly wide open with easy wash walking for travel.  About 0.2 miles down canyon is a drop that is easily bypassed by climbing around.  I forget if the climb around is LDC or RDC but it is pretty straight forward and easy down climb.  

Another 0.3 miles down canyon is a drop of about 17 feet down some dark grey rock (wBrimSF-RP-18).  This down climb looks a lot worse than it is.  Weaker down climbers may want a hand line here.  With a little thought the down climb is not nearly as hard as it looks.  It can be down climbed a little LDC of the water course.  Another down climb along dark grey rock is shortly after and drops about 20 feet down 2 stages.  A few people may want a hand line here as well.  

About 500 feet down canyon is another drop of about 35 feet and is down a rough loose area of yellowish white rock (wBrimSF-RP-19).  This drop is easily bypassed by climbing around and down the slope RDC of the drop.  After the down climb is a wide open area along yellow rock.  At the other end of the yellow rock is a drop which is rap 10.  

Rap 10 (dBrimSF-R10) is about 400 feet down canyon of the drop down the yellowish white rock.  Rap 10 is in a shallow ravine in a section of yellow rock.  Rap 10 is anchored from a cairn anchor a few feet back from the drop and drops mostly vertical with some intermittent free hang a total of about 175 feet.  The wall along the drop is loaded with loose stuff.  Those at the bottom of this rap should keep a safe distance while others are above.  About half way down is a ledge with some large rocks on it.  Care should be taken not to knock them off.  

A little over 200 feet down canyon of rap 10 is a drop of about 25 feet down some yellowish white rock (wBrimSF-RP-20).  There are multiple ways down this drop.  Most of the options down this drop have very loose rock.  The route with the most solid rock was to down climb slightly LDC of the center of the pour off.  

Shortly down canyon is a series of short easy down climbs leading to a drop of 35 feet down gray rock that is mostly solid.  There is good footing but the down climb is a bit intimidating so a hand line may be desirable for some.  

Rap 11 (dBrimSF-R11-12) is about 600 feet down canyon of the last down climb.  Rap 11 is anchored from a cairn anchor and drops about 35 feet down a vertical wall.  Below rap 11 is a good view down canyon and the top of rap 12 can be seen about 150 feet down canyon of rap 11.  

Rap 12 is anchored from a cairn anchor.  The view from the top of rap 12 is great, take your time to enjoy this one.  The drop is a little over 200 feet with a huge ledge half way down.  Even though the drop is a total of a little over 200 feet to flat ground, a 200 foot rope works good.  The ground near the bottom of rap 12 is sloped and a 200 foot rope will drop you to the part of the slope with an easy angle to walk down to flat ground.  While the vertical drop is a little over 200 feet a 200 foot rope is just enough to put you in a safe spot at the bottom.  

Shortly down canyon of rap 12 are a couple easy down climbs.  The canyon from is now easy wash walking for travel.  There is something I cannot put my finger on but the section of canyon for a ways below rap 12 is very serene and easy on the eyes.  It just makes you feel good.  

About 0.4 miles down canyon of rap 12 is a fork or junction joining in from RDC (wBrimSF-RP-21).  A few hundred feet down canyon of the fork is a small pile of boulders in the wash with space large enough for you to walk under as you continue down canyon.  There are a couple minor down climbs a little further down canyon.  

About 0.4 miles down canyon of the fork the canyon walls get lower and the canyon comes to an end (yBRimStoneBt).  The grooves in the alluvial fan are pretty deep here and it still feels like you are still IN the canyon.

The Exit:
After exiting Brimstone canyon, walk about 2.4 miles southwest across the alluvial fan to Bad Water Road were you left your exit vehicle parked at the turn off for the Devil’s Golf Course (extDevilsGolf).

Links to Pictures are at the top of the page.

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