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Canyoneering Route Description

Eaton Canyon (lower) - 3B IV
Angeles National Forest, California.
San Gabriel Mountains

Pictures 06-19-10

Quick Facts

06-19-10, 6 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 11 hours)

Distance - 8.8 miles Total, 2.8 miles Technical
Rappels - 9 Rappels, Longest Rappel 50 feet.
Elevation Range - 1120 - 3450 Feet
Shuttle Required - No Vehicle Passenger Permit Required - No

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 75 feet (this accounts for largest drop and extra rope length back to an anchor) and 60 feet of 1” webbing for sling placement.

General Comments

Eaton Canyon is very lush and scenic.  There are a lot of drops where sliding and jumping are required rather than rappelling making this canyon a lot of fun.  Eaton Canyon is high on the must do list.  

Be careful walking and rappelling in this canyon.  Some of the rocks on the walk and the walls of some rappels are insanely slippery.  Some things that look slippery are not and some that do not look slippery are!  Take your time with footing in here to avoid a twisting an ankle or falling and hurting yourself.

The next to last rappel drops about 50 feet.  Rappelling it is optional though.  You have the choice to sit and slide for about 10 feet, picking up a lot of speed, before shooting off the end and dropping an additional 40 feet or so down to a huge pool.  It is common to find locals hiking up a bypass trail to get to the top and slide over the edge.  

Unfortunately on my first visit here (June, 2010), recent rains had washed a LOT of sediment into the canyon filling in a lot of the pools with sand and gravel.  This made the slides and jumps something to be cautious of or simply turned them into a rappel.  I was told about what the pools looked like previously and I could see this canyon would be a whole heap of fun if things were not filled in.  We were not sure if the sediment was a result of the recent fires in the area or not.  Hopefully the sediment washes out some day so the fun can return.  With that said Eaton is still a very fun canyon even when filled in.

There is hope to see Eaton Canyon with teh gravel washed out.  Gannon later passed on to me what he was told from someone who had been canyoning the area for a long time.  Eaton Canyon always fills in after a big rain season (which this winter certainly was) and takes about a year to blow out the gravel.

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

To get to the Trailhead

From the junction of Interstate 210 and Highway 134 in Pasadena, drive East on interstate 210 about 3.3 miles to the exit for Altadena Drive.   Drive 1.7 miles north on Altadena Drive to the entrance for the Eaton Canyon Natural Area Park.  Continue north on Altadena Drive another 0.6 miles to a dirt pull out on the right (east) side of the road (PkEaton).  This dirt pull out is where you will park to start the route.  The pull out is where Midwick Dr. and Roosevelt Dr. both meet Altadena Drive.  

The pull out to start the route is a very popular spot for people to hike or take their dog for a walk.  This parking spot can get VERY busy.  When parking try to park so you take up as little room as possible to be courteous to others.  Think about it getting crowded by the time you return.  You might find yourself blocked in.  Do yourself a favor and park in such a way that will allow you to get out even if the place gets crowded with a lot of cars.

To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod

No exit vehicle needed.  This is done as a loop route.

Maps

Map showing entire route.

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GPS Waypoint Information

Details

The Approach:
From the parking spot (PkEaton), hike down into the wash below following a well used path leaving the north end of the parking area.  The trail drops down to the wash below (wEatonRP-01) about 450 feet after leaving the parking area.  

In the wide open wash of Eaton Canyon Creek are many use trails.  Follow which ever use trail you like in the direction you need to go.  

Once at the bottom of the drop in trail (wEatonRP-01), follow use trails north about 0.2 miles to get up onto a fire service road on the other side of the creek (wEatonRP-02).  There are many use trails here so follow whichever one feels good to you.  You should be traveling mostly north and soon crossing the creek up to the fire road (wEatonRP-02).  

About 350 feet up the fire road is a fork in the road (wEatonRP-03).  To the left is a smaller path.  Stay right to follow the larger obvious main road.  

About 0.25 miles further up the fire service road is another turn off (wEatonRP-04).  A sign points left for a trail going to the Lower Falls.  Stay right here to continue along the main fire service road.  

About 350 feet further up, the fire service road joins in with a larger dirt road near a bridge (wEatonRP-05).  To the left is a bridge that crosses over Eaton Canyon Creek.  Turn right (south east) and start up the road as it climbs up out of Eaton Canyon Creek.  

From the bridge the road does a slow steady climb of about 1200 feet over about 2.3 miles.  Along the side of the road on the way up are 3 park benches at various points to sit and look over Pasadena and Eaton Canyon Creek below.  At the top of the slow steady climb is a sign for the entrance to the Henninger Flats Camp area (wHenningrFlts).  

Henninger Flats has a lower and an upper camp area and quite a few buildings.  The Fire Lookout tower (lHenngrFltsLwr) is one of the few left in the area and is worth a quick stop to look at.  

Continuing past the lower camp and passing a few buildings the road comes to a tee (wEatonRP-06) about 1000 feet from the fire lookout tower.  Turn right at the tee (wEatonRP-06) and continue up the road.  

A short distance up the road will be two turn offs to the right, each of which go to the upper camp area for Henninger Flats.  Shortly after that will be a turn off to the left which drops down to some water tanks.   

0.5 miles from the tee in the road will be a turn off to the left to a helipad (wEatonRP-07).  Continue right to stay on the main road.  

About 0.4 miles past the turn off to the heliport the road makes a sharp right turn making a switch back.  At the corner of this switch back is a trail leaving the left (north) side of the road.  The path is narrow and easily missed.  This trail is the Idlehour Trail leading to Idlehour camp.  Next to the trail where it leaves the road is a sign (tIdleHour) saying pack it in pack it out.  The sign at a glance looks like a warning sign and may be mistaken to tell you to stay out so pay attention.  Leave the road and start down the Idlehour Trail.  

A few feet down the trail is a wooden bridge crossing a drainage.  

About 0.3 miles after leaving the road, the Idlehour Trail tops out (wEatonRP-08) shortly after passing over a small rock and cement retainer wall.  

From the top out of the trail it is about 0.9 miles to the Idlehour camp area where the trail meets Eaton Canyon Creek (yEatonCanyonTp).  The descent down the Idlehour trail can be bad with flies to the point of frustration but seems to be limited to pockets.

The Canyon / Technical Section:
When the Idlehour Trail meets Eaton Canyon Creek, drop into the creek and start to follow it down stream.  The walk down the wash is a mix of wash walking and boulder hopping and has a lot of lush vegetation to add to the scenery already present witht eh flowing water.  

Rap 1 (dEatonR1) is about 0.5 miles down canyon of the drop in by the Idlehour Camp.  Rap 1 is anchored from a tree LDC and drops about 15 feet next to a water fall.  If not full of sediment, this drop is descended by sliding down the water fall and dropping about 10 feet to a deep pool.  

Just below rap 1 is another slide of about 8 feet down a fall.  It is possible to bypass the fall by traversing right next to it RDC but it is sketchy.  Even with a significant amount of sediment this drop can be slid down.  

A little over 200 feet down canyon is a drop of about 12 feet (wEatonRP-09).  There is a bypass route to get below this drop RDC.  Extreme RDC is a tunnel type passage between the canyon wall and a huge boulder.  You will need to down climb about 15 feet in a crevice under the boulder then walk under the boulder into the wash below the drop.  

Shortly after the bypass climb is another slide down a water fall of about 10 feet and is sloped enough that sliding is ok even when a lot of sediment is present.  If you are careful you can bypass this slide by traversing RDC.  Then shortly after is another slide of about 6 feet with a gentle slope.  

Rap 2 (dEatonR2-4) is a little over 500 feet down canyon of the bypass climb under a boulder.  Rap 2 is anchored from a large tree LDC about 20 feet back from the drop and drops about 30 feet down a water fall.  The wall on the water fall is VERY slippery so be careful.  The first person down should offer a fireman belay for those that follow.  

Rap 3 is shortly after rap 2 with a quick easy down climb between.  Rap 3 is anchored LDC from a small tree and drops about 25 feet.  If not full of sediment, this drop is descended by sliding down the water fall and dropping about 25 feet to a deep pool.  If sliding is an option in the canyon, this is the first slide that really builds up speed and gets your attention.  

Rap 4 is about 100 feet down canyon of rap 3.  Rap 4 is anchored from some rock wedge to along the canyon wall RDC.  There is a single bolt anchor for this drop but you need to down climb part way down the rap to find it so it is easily missed.  Rap 4 drops about 40 feet.  

Just down canyon of rap 4 is a drop over 2 stages of about 10 or 8 feet each.  This section can be down climbed but is pretty slippery so use caution getting down these stages.  If you have the time, it may be a good idea to set a rope anchored form one of the large rocks in the wash and use is as a hand line to help get down safely.  

Next is a walk down the creek for about 0.3 miles with a few easy down climbs along the way.  About 0.3 miles down canyon of rap 4 is a drop of about 6 feet with water pouring over a log (wEatonRP-10).  Bypass this drop by climbing down a crevice RDC.  

Rap 5 (dEatonR5) is another 0.4 miles down canyon.  Rap 5 drops about 15 feet and is anchored from a fallen tree sitting above the wash.  Be careful if rappelling this drop, the slope in the water course leading to it is very slick.  The tree used as an anchor appears to have washed in about the same time all the sediment did in 2010 so it may or may not stay there in the future.  If not full of sediment, this drop is descended by sliding down the water fall and dropping about 15 feet to a deep pool.  If sliding, it might be a good idea to meat anchor the first person down to check out the pool.  Since it is not visible from the top, there may be a log or something floating below in the pool where you will land.  

Rap 6 (dEatonR6) is about 350 feet down canyon of rap 5.  Rap 6 is anchored from choke stones RDC at the top of the rap.  Rap 6 drops about 15 feet over a huge boulder.  It is possible to down climb Rap 6 down through a hole RDC of the boulder but is sketchy with a possible out of control slide.  

About 0.2 miles down canyon of rap 6 is a slide into a deep pool with a drop of about 5 feet (wEatonRP-11).  The sediment in 2010 had not made it down this far in the canyon.  In the future the sediment may wash down and change how you decide to descend this drop.  

Shortly down canyon is another pool with a small drop into it that is best bypassed.  There are rocks just below the surface and a slide would be dangerous.  Bypassing the drop in is a simple traverse RDC.  

Another 0.2 miles down canyon is what is left of a small dam that used to dam water up over a water intake tunnel that was used to collect water for the city in years past (wEatonRP-12).  

Rap 7 (dEatonR7) is about 700 feet down canyon of the water intake tunnel.   Rap 7 is anchored from a tree RDC and drops about 15 feet.  Rap 7 has a very awkward beginning with a large undercut near the top of the rap.  The undercut can make footing almost impossible as you lower yourself into the flowing water.  If you’re not so bright (er uh I mean brave) you can run and jump down to the pool below.  You will need to jump way out to avoid rocks below so get a run at it and do not slip at the last minute.  

Rap 8 (dEatonR8) is about 500 feet down canyon of rap 7.  Rap 8 is anchored from a rock in the wash about 30 feet back from the drop.  The drop for Rap 8 is about 45 feet.  On the way down the rappel you are in the water fall at various points.  With water flowing, you quickly gain respect of the power that little amount of water can generate.  The pool at the bottom is the size of a very large public pool and deep making it a good place to hang out when it is hot out.  You will likely see adventurous hikers hanging out at the bottom of this fall.  

Rap 8 is an optional slide and drop to the pool about 45 feet below rather than rappel.  There is a 15 foot slide at the top of the rap where the water is flowing over.  Sliding down that top part gets you moving pretty fast and sends you sailing through the air down to the pool below.  Locals frequently climb up from the bottom of the canyon to slide down this.  There are bypass trails RDC that allow access up to here but some of these falls.  On my first trip through here, a couple people in our group slid over the edge and enjoyed the rush.  The rest of us preferred to rappel.  

Rap 9 (wEatonRP-09) is about 0.3 miles down canyon of rap 8 and is anchored from 2 bolted hangers LDC.  Rap 9 drops about 40 feet to a large but shallow pool below.  Rap 9 travels through the water fall which gives a fun show for all the people that have hiked up to take photos of this water fall.  This water fall will get your attention just like the last one as you feel the force of the water pound on you.  This is the last rap and the last technical obstacle in the canyon, so don’t be surprised if you have quite a crowd waiting for you at the bottom.  

After rap 9 there are easy trails to follow down canyon.  About 0.5 miles after rap 9 the trials cross under the bridge you saw on the hike in (yEatonCanyonBt).

The Exit:
From where the trails and the creek cross under the bridge (yEatonCanyonBt), Follow the use trails and find your way back up to the fire service road.  About 0.5 miles after crossing under the bridge start looking for your ascent trail leading back up to the cars where you parked.  The bottom of the ascent trail (wEatonRP-01) is 0.6 miles after crossing under the bridge.  Follow up the trail about 400 feet back to the parking lot.

GPS Waypoint Information

Back to the Canyoneering Trip Report List page.

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