Canyoneering Route Description
Euphrates Canyon - 4B II (III)
Ticaboo Mesa, Utah.
03-14-12, 3 people, 1 Day (Descend upper half and scout lower half on rim
also scouted exits from Euphrates and Montezuma)
03-01-13, 3 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 5 hours)
11-28-14, 3 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 5.25 hours)
Time Required - 4 to 6 hours
Distance - 2.6 miles Total, 0.8 miles Technical
Rappels - 2 Rappels, Longest Rappel 150 feet.
Bring a 200 foot rope incase the last rap needs to be anchored
up canyon.
Elevation Range - 4900 - 4000 Feet
Shuttle Required - No Miles Vehicle - High Clearance
(4WD if roads are bad)
Permit Required - No
This route description provides minimal detail in the canyon section.
Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up
to 200 feet, Sandtrap (with 15 feet of protection from rope grooves)
and a couple potshots for possible pothole escapes. Depending
on sand levels and water levels there can be a few potholes that may
be keepers so have some gear on hand in the event that happens.
If the canyon is full of water a wet suit should also be brought.
First known descent was done on 11-12-12.
Euphrates has only one spot that is narrow and a larger
pack will be frustrating. That skinny spot is only about 50 feet long
and a large pack and or person will fit fine with a little effort. The
lower half of Euphrates Canyon is where the canyon gets technical.
Short sections of stemming / galumphing up to 15 feet above the deck,
Sandtrap anchors, possible keepers potholes if sand is washed out of
potholes.
Note / Warning - 1:
In March 2013 sand levels allowed most of the potholes to be easily escaped.
However the potholes have sand bottoms and if
sand washes out, some potholes could become keepers.
In November of 2014 we needed potshots to cross two potholes mid canyon.
Be prepared with some potshots incase conditions change.
Note / Warning - 2:
For the final drop a Sandtrap is required. The
rock here is soft and rope grooving will occur as this canyon sees use.
Please bring about 15 feet of something to protect the rock from rope
grooves for the last rappel. If the pothole is full of water the rap
can be anchored up canyon above a downclimb. If this is done a 200
foot rope may be needed.
What I have found to work well is using a round pull line of about 25 feet
on my Sandtrap. Then thread that pull line through a few 3 foot
sections of 1 inch webbing. This set up I leave permanently tied to my
Sandtrap. Each time you set up the Sandtrap, simply slide the pieces of webbing
into a position where they protect the the sandstone most. This
set up is very adjustable and is left permanently rigged as part of the sand
trap so there is no extra gear to worry about carrying. When the pull line
is pulled the cord slides through the webbing while the webbing stays in one
place on the rock. As the trap empties everything gets pulled over as one
piece. Just a hint that some may find useful in making rock protection
while using a Sandtrap almost
effortless.
To get to the Trailhead
Note:
There is a maze of roads on Ticaboo Mesa making it a good idea
to study the map ahead of time and keep a close eye on the map
as you drive.
From Hanksville, UT., drive south on highway 95 for 26 miles to
the junction of highways 95 and 276.
From the junction, drive south on HWY-276 for 25.6 miles then
turn left (east) onto BLM dirt-road 13400 between mile markers
25 and 26 (extTicaboo1).
About 1.5 miles from the highway is a junction (TicabooDP-01)
of BLM roads, 13400 continues east and 13410 branches off to the
south. Continue east on BLM road 13400. Note: If you were headed
to the Smith Fork area you would turn south onto BLM road 13410.
About 2 miles farther is another junction
(TicabooDP-02) of BLM roads, 13400 continues east and 13420
branches off to the south. Continue east on BLM road 13400.
Note: BLM road 13420 to the south goes out to Cane Spring Well
about 1.25 miles south.
About 0.2 miles farther is short side road (TicabooDP-03) on the
left (north) that goes to a camp area.
Stay right to
continue on BLM road 13400. Beyond this point the roads
will have intermittent rough sections.
About 0.37
miles past here is a fork in the road where the two roads rejoin
a short distance later. The low road is typically the
smoothest.
About 1.7 miles farther is another junction (TicabooDP-04) of
BLM roads (13400 continues north-ish and 13430 branches off to
the south).
Continue north on BLM road 13400.
Note: If you were going to the roads between Warm Springs Creek
and Sevenmile Creek, you would turn south onto BLM road 13430.
About 0.3 miles farther is another junction (TicabooDP-05) of
BLM roads (13400 continues northeast and 13440 branches off to
the north).
Continue straight northeast on BLM road 13400.
Note: BLM road 13440 to the south goes out to Colt Spring Well
about 0.4 miles north.
About 0.5 miles farther is a junction (TicabooDP-06) of BLM
roads (13400 continues northeast and 13450 branches off to the
north).
Continue straight northeast on BLM road 13400.
About 0.9 miles farther is a junction (TicabooDP-07) of BLM
roads (13400 continues northeast and 13430 branches off to the
south).
Turn south onto BLM road 13430.
Note: If you were
going to Tough, SF Ticaboo or Sleepytime Trio Canyons you would
continue northeast on BLM road 13400.
About 700 feet farther is a fork in the road (extWarmSpring).
At this fork stay left to continue toward the East Branch of
Seven Mile Creek.
About 0.4 miles farther is another fork in the road
(ext7MileCkEB). Veer right (more south) to continue toward
the East Branch of 7 Mile Creek.
About 1.0 mile farther is a junction (7MileCkEBDP-01) where a
side road joins in from the left. Continue straight
(south) past the side road.
About 0.5 miles farther is a jog in the road (7MileCkEBDP-02)
near an old stock pond. Veer left to continue south.
About 1.1 miles farther will be a wide pull out on the left side
of the road (pkHardDayHarvy). Continue past this turnout
as the road winds and begins to travel more east.
About 0.8 miles past the turnout is road junction (pkEuphrates).
Park near this junction where you can get off the road.
Note:
Continuing left (north) at this junction goes over toward
FiddleStix and to the right is a short spur road to a wide area
to park.
To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod
No exit vehicle is needed. This is done as a loop route.
GPS coordinate information listed at the bottom. For information about waypoint naming and map symbols, refer to the
Glossary page.
Click the links for maps of the route.
Map of the drive into the route.
Map of the entire route.
The Approach:
From the parking spot (pkEuphrates)
walk southwest about 300
feet to where you can
start (wEuphrateRP-01)
scrambling down from the
level you parked on.
The terrain is very
forgiving here so route
find your way along
whatever is easiest.
Continue route finding
southwest about 600 feet
down toward the head of
Euphrates. As you
get closer to the head
contour west around the
cliff band a couple
hundred feet over to the
top of a rubble pile
(wEuphrateRP-02)
allowing access to drop
down off the rim down to
the head of Euphrates.
Drop down the rubble
pile to the shelf below.
At the bottom of the
rubble pile you will
find some crypto biotic
soils. Please try
to avoid stepping on the
crypto by keeping your
feet in the micro
drainages running
through the dirt as you
work your way over to
slick rock.
From the bottom of the
rubble pile walk about
350 feet southeast over
to the top of Euphrates
(yEuphatesTp).
The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
From the top of
Euphrates (yEuphatesTp)
there are a couple of
options to drop in.
One option is to
downclimb the chutes
directly down the water
course. This can
be a little spicy with
loose debris to keep an
eye on. Another
fun option is to walk
the rim LDC for about
100 feet to the top of
another downclimb
option. This
second downclimb option
(wEuphrateRP-03) is LDC
of the set of large
potholes. Start by
dropping down an 8 foot
down climb top a sand
filled pothole then
downclimb in a 40 foot
long crack to the canyon
floor. This second
option looks
intimidating but is
easier than it looks and
fun.
Down canyon after
climbing down into the
canyon there is easy
galumphing and stemming
where you may be off the
deck about 15 feet to
make travel easier.
About 450 feet down
canyon of the head is a
point where you can
escape either on either
side (wEuphrateRP-04).
About 150 feet down
canyon is an elevator
downclimb of about 20
feet down into a narrow
slot about shoulder
wide. One spot in
the narrow slot you may
need to stem up over if
you are a large or are
carrying a huge pack.
Travel continues with
light galumphing and
waling in the narrow
slot for a little over
400 feet to where the
canyon opens again
briefly. On the
other side of the short
open spot is the start
of another narrows
(wEuphrateRP-05).
Drop down into this next
slot with a stemming
down climb of about 8
feet then continue down
canyon with easy
galumphing for about 200
feet with one pothole
that most people can
stem over that would be
about waist deep if
full. The slot
opens up where there is
a large pothole
(wEuphrateRP-06).
This large pothole is
easily walked around on
the RDC side.
After the large pothole
is a long wide trough
like section with a lot
of small potholes that
are all easily bypassed
on the RDC side.
At the end of the wide
trough like area is the
start of the next slot
(wEuphrateRP-07) and the
canyon can be escaped on
either side.
The next 500 feet of
canyon has easy stemming
/ galumphing about 15
feet up off the deck,
moderate downclimbing
and multiple potholes
that may or may not be
swimmers depending on
water and sand levels.
Some of these potholes
are currently or can
become keepers if sand
washes out. You
will likely need a
couple potshots to help
get past some of these.
A couple of the potholes
are quite long.
After this pothole
section is a short
downclimb to the start
of a wide walking
section
(wEuphrateRP-08).
The next 600 feet of
canyon is a mix of
walking, galumphing and
small shallow potholes
to cross down to a spot
where the LDC rim drops
down low enough to climb
out of (wEuphrateRP-09)
with a little effort to
get started.
Note:
If you want
to take a walk over on
the LDC rim to look at
the final drop you can
escape here, rim walk
over to within about 20
feet of the final drop
for a look in. You
could partner assist
down into the canyon
just above the final rap
pretty easily.
Getting back out would
be more difficult and
sketchy. With some
work you could farm
material and set an
escape rope from the
canyon if you prefered
that over doing the
final drop.
The next 200 feet of
canyon has light
galumphing over sections
that would be waist to
deep if full easy to get
over. Another long
pothole to cross that
would be a swimmer if
full which was easy to
get out of with sand
levels as they were in
March 2013 but this is a
very big sand filled
pothole so it could
easily go keeper one day
when flows move sand
around. On the
other side of the
pothole is Rap 1
(dEuphrateR1). Rap
1 is anchored using a
sandtrap and drops about
20 feet slightly
overhung over a small
hanging garden area.
After the rappel is a
long walking section
with a wide patio
section and subway like
walls for about 350 feet
down to the final rap.
Just before the last
rappel is a drop of
about 30 feet that looks
like it should be
rappelled. This
drop is an easier down
climb than it looks but
you should lower packs
since the lower part of
the downclimb forces you
out a little.
At the bottom of the
downclimb is a large
sand filled pothole and
is the top of the last
rap.
The last rappel (dEuphrateRlst)
is anchored using a sandtrap down in the
pothole at the top of
the drop and drops about
150 feet. If dry there is lots of
sand for the sand trap
and a nice hanging
placement for it.
If the pothole is full
of water an alternate
anchor can be set at the
top of the downclimb
just before the last
rap. Anchoring
from the top of the
downclimb adds about 60
feet of rope travel to
the final rappel giving
a rope travel of about
210 feet. The last
15 feet of the rappel
can be easily
downclimbed so a 200
foot rope will just
barely make it if the
optional up canyon
anchor is used.
Warning:
The depth of the pothole
at the top of the last
rap changes as sand is
flushed in and out via
flooding. In 2013
it was about chest deep
and at times in 2014 it
was over 8 feet deep
requiring partner assist
to get out of and still
sand filled so it can be
deeper. This
pothole can turn to a
keeper if scoured out
deeper.
The last rap in
Euphrates (dEuphrateRlst)
drops about 150 feet to
the bottom.
Optionally you could
stop on a ledge on the
LDC side with a rappel
height of approximately
100 feet.
The Exit:
After the final rappel
walk down canyon down
canyon about 300 feet
through a rock fall
area. After the rock
fall area scramble up
onto the ledge on the
RDC (west ) side of the
rim (wEuphrateRP-10).
Walking this ledge will
make the exit shorter.
Once up on the shelf
(wEuphrateRP-10) follow
the shelf south for
about 0.2 miles. As you
walk a tall wall will
come into view with a
saddle that looks like
you can climb up to it.
That ridge can be used
as an exit but it is
longer than the one
described here. As you
round the corner and see
the large ridge come
into view, note a small
ridge and point between
you and the large
ridge. Walk up to the
small saddle on the
north side of the small
point (wEuphrateRP-11).
From the small saddle
wrap around the small
ridge and work your way
up into the small
drainage / ramp
following north along
the bottom side of a
very tall vertical
wall. few hundred feet
up the ramp will be a
rock fall area to
scramble up
(wEuphrateRP-12).
About 0.2 miles farther
up the ramp is a wide
open area that briefly
feels like a top out
(wEuphrateRP-13).
From this top out wide
area continue northwest
roughly following the
vertical wall you have
been following. About
0.4 miles northwest you
will top out on a
sandstone ridge
(wEuphrateRP-14). To
continue the exit of
Euphrates follow the
sandstone ridge up and
to the northeast about
0.2 miles to a prominent
point on the rim
(wEuphrateRP-15).
After reaching the point
(wEuphrateRP-15) turn
right and walk more east
and contour around the
bottom of the cliff band
for about 0.2 miles back
to the bottom of the
rubble pile used to get
down off the rim on the
approach
(wEuphrateRP-02).
Scramble up the rubble
pile to the top of the
rim then route find your
way about 0.2 miles
northeast to your
vehicles (pkEuphrates).
Downloadable GPX files
available at
BG-Gear Store
(easier than manual entry and a great way to support
Bluugnome).
Waypoint naming convention and map symbol information can be found on the Glossary page.
Elevations are approximate.
BEFORE
manually entering coordinates set your system to WGS84 datum and Lat/Lon hddd.ddddd° coordinate format.
Inconsistent datum's and coordinate formats will result in location errors.
Click to show / expand the list of waypoints below........
| Euphrates (1) - Drive in to Trailhead |
- extTicaboo1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.69720
W -110.67138
Elev: 4,520 Feet
Exit off of highway 276 to get to the Ticaboo Mesa area. Turn east and leave the highway on a dirt road. Near Mile post 25.
- TicabooDP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.68607
W -110.65188
Elev: NaN Feet
Continue straight for the main area of Ticaboo Mesa. Or Turn right (south) here for an alternate route over toward the Smith Fork Canyons.
- TicabooDP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.67981
W -110.62886
Elev: NaN Feet
Road junction with faint road running to the south. Continue straight (east).
Road to the south is about 1.25 miles long and goes down toward Cane Spring Well.
- TicabooDP-03
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.68038
W -110.62628
Elev: 4,565 Feet
Exit to a spot to camp if the roads ahead are too rough.
- TicabooDP-04
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.67963
W -110.60429
Elev: NaN Feet
Junction for a road going south. Continue straiaght (north east) to continue toward Ticaboo Measa. This road junction is near Wild Horse Springs.
- TicabooDP-05
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.68389
W -110.60153
Elev: NaN Feet
Junction for a side road on the left going north. Continue north east toward Ticaboo Mesa.
The road going north is BLM Road 13440 aobut 0.4 miles long and goes over toward Colt Spring.
- TicabooDP-06
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.68667
W -110.59547
Elev: NaN Feet
Junction for a side road going north.
The Road north is BLM Road 13540 and goes out toward Upper South Fork Ticaboo.
- TicabooDP-07
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.69529
W -110.58385
Elev: NaN Feet
Turn off for a side road on the right. Turn right onto the side road and drive southwest.
- extWarmSpring
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.69362
W -110.58484
Elev: NaN Feet
Stay right to go toward the main drainage of Seven Mile Creek and Warm Springs Canyon. Or Stay left to go toward the East Branch of Seven Mile Creek and Ticaboo Mesa.
- ext7MileCkEB
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.69147
W -110.58014
Elev: NaN Feet
Turn right (more south) to continue toward the East Branch of Seven Mile Creek. Or veer left to continue toward Ticaboo Mesa.
- 7MileCkEBDP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.68044
W -110.56997
Elev: NaN Feet
Continuestraight (south) past a side road joining from the left. This road is not shown on all maps.
- 7MileCkEBDP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.67443
W -110.56735
Elev: NaN Feet
Jog in the road near a stock pond. Veer right and continue south. Turning left leads to a berm with a survey marker on it.
- pkHardDayHarvy
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66329
W -110.55625
Elev: 4,855 Feet
Park here for Hard Day Harvey. Hard Day Harvey is the East Fork of the East Branch of Seven Mile Creek.
- pkEuphrates
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66296
W -110.54411
Elev: 4,900 Feet
Park hear at a tee in the road to begin the route over to Euphrates.
|
| Euphrates (2) - Approach and Canyon |
- pkEuphrates
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66296
W -110.54411
Elev: 4,900 Feet
Park hear at a tee in the road to begin the route over to Euphrates.
- wEuphrateRP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66247
W -110.54494
Elev: NaN Feet
Point to start droping down from the level you poarked on to start the Euphrates route.
- wEuphrateRP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66066
W -110.54656
Elev: 4,840 Feet
Top of a rubble pile allowing a way up or down from the rim here.
- yEuphatesTp
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66006
W -110.54525
Elev: 4,680 Feet
Top of Euphrates Canyon where the watercourse drops abruptly into the slickrock.
- wEuphrateRP-03
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65988
W -110.54489
Elev: NaN Feet
Top of a down climb sequence down into the canyon near some potholes then down a crack about 40 feet tall. Looks intimidating but is actually not bad.
- wEuphrateRP-04
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65877
W -110.54494
Elev: NaN Feet
Spot where you can escape from the canyon on either side.
- wEuphrateRP-05
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65742
W -110.54530
Elev: NaN Feet
Start of another narrows after a short open spot.
- wEuphrateRP-06
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65666
W -110.54558
Elev: NaN Feet
Slot opens up where there is a large pothole that is easily bypassed on the RDC side. This is also the start of a long trough like area with small potholes that are all easily bypassed on the RDC side.
- wEuphrateRP-07
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65593
W -110.54510
Elev: 4,390 Feet
Start of a slot after a wide troughlike area. Canyon escapable on either side. The next 500 feet of canyon has multiple potholes that are currently or can become keepers if sand level changes. Be prepared with potshots to help cross these potholes.
- wEuphrateRP-08
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65460
W -110.54514
Elev: NaN Feet
End of the first pothole section. The next 600 feet of canyon is a mix of easy galumphing and walking with some shallow potholes to waist deep.
- wEuphrateRP-09
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65316
W -110.54417
Elev: NaN Feet
The canyon can be escaped here on the LDC side but the first few feet are steep and difficult to get started.
- dEuphrateR1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65270
W -110.54363
Elev: 4,220 Feet
Rap 1 - Euphrates Canyon. Is on the down canyon side of a large sand filled pothole and anchored using a sand trap. Rap 1 drops about 20 feet over a slightly overhung hanging garden. Down canyon of rap 1 is a walking section for a short distance.
- dEuphrateRlst
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65155
W -110.54298
Elev: NaN Feet
Final drop in Euphrates Canyon. Anchored using a sandtrap down in the pothole at the top of the drop and drops about 150 feet. If dry there is lots of sand for the sand trap and a nice hanging placement for it.
If the pothole is full of water an alternate anchor can be set at the top of the downclimb just before the last rap. Anchoring from the top of the downclimb adds about 60 feet of rope travel to the final rappel giving a rope travel of about 210 feet. The last 15 feet of the rappel can be easily downclimbed so a 200 foot rope will just barely make it if the optional up canyon anchor is used.
Optionally you can rap approximately 100 feet down to a shelf on the LDC side and scramble down from there.
- wEuphrateRP-10
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65076
W -110.54273
Elev: 4,000 Feet
After the final rap in Euphrates walk down canyon about 300 feet to a rock fall area and near the end of that rock fall area work your way up onto the ledge system on the RDC (west) side. This makes the exit route shorter and easier travel.
- yEuphatesBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65051
W -110.54073
Elev: 0 Feet
Intermittent Stream
|
| Euphrates (3) - Exit |
- wEuphrateRP-10
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65076
W -110.54273
Elev: 4,000 Feet
After the final rap in Euphrates walk down canyon about 300 feet to a rock fall area and near the end of that rock fall area work your way up onto the ledge system on the RDC (west) side. This makes the exit route shorter and easier travel.
- wEuphrateRP-11
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.64890
W -110.54136
Elev: 4,045 Feet
Small saddle on a small ridge. This is not the huge ridge line that is most obvious to the southwest.
- wEuphrateRP-12
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.64942
W -110.54288
Elev: NaN Feet
Rock fall area to scramble up.
- wEuphrateRP-13
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65175
W -110.54467
Elev: 4,350 Feet
Ramp up from the bottom of Euphrates has a brief top out here and opens up to a wide area.
- wEuphrateRP-14
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65657
W -110.54973
Elev: 4,660 Feet
Top out on a prominent sandstone ridge on the exit from Euphrates. If you travel west you can drop down to a point where it is easy to cross Tripoli Canyon about 500 feet away. To continue the exit of Euphrates follow the sandstone ridge up and to the northeast.
- wEuphrateRP-15
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.65895
W -110.54836
Elev: 4,770 Feet
The exit from Euphrates comes next to a point on the rim and is just east of the Tripoli drainage. To follow the exit from Tripoli, Montezuma or Euphrates Canyons, follow along the base of the cliff band about 800 feet east toward the rubble pile where you can climb up to the top of the rim.
On the approach into Tripoli Canyon follow the slickrock along the bottom of the cliff band out to the end of this point. To continue to Tripoli Canyon continue west contouring along the slickrock about 150 feet over to the Tripoli Drainage.
Of note there is a chute on the west side of this point that can be downclimbed as an alternate access route to this area below the rim.
- wEuphrateRP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66066
W -110.54656
Elev: 4,840 Feet
Top of a rubble pile allowing a way up or down from the rim here.
- wEuphrateRP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66247
W -110.54494
Elev: NaN Feet
Point to start droping down from the level you poarked on to start the Euphrates route.
- pkEuphrates
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.66296
W -110.54411
Elev: 4,900 Feet
Park hear at a tee in the road to begin the route over to Euphrates.
|