Zion Canyoneering - Pine Creek, Keyhole and Spry canyons

March 28-29, 2021

Zion National Park, UT

Pine Creek, Keyhole and Spry canyons

Valley of Fire State Park, NV

Take advantage of babysitters no matter where they might go! Laura and I flew out to Las Vegas and met up with her mother who was visiting her sister who lives there. We figured that we could tack a few days onto the end of her vacation and hire ourselves a babysitter (and shuttle driver) for a few days in Zion, which is just two hours from Las Vegas. Big Momma agreed to our plan and so the rush for permits was on. I booked Pine Creek and Keyhole, along with Mystery. When we arrived, Mystery was closed because of cyanobacteria so we switched to Spry which ended up being fantastic in its own right. 

The first day, Laura's mom dropped us off at Keyhole canyon and found a nice spot off the road to hang out with Hazel and her pup, Leia while Laura and I spent and hour and a half enjoying Keyhole canyon. It was here that we realized things would be cold on this trip! 

Just a few years ago we descended the Narrows in March while it had ice in the water, but today would be cooler temperatures. After Keyhole, we headed over to Pine Creek and began our descent. While the canyon was beautiful, it was extremely cold, and even with wetsuits we were quite miserable a few times. When we exited the canyon, we stripped off the wetsuits and basked in the sun on the side of the road. The tourists must have wondered what the heck we were doing half naked with ropes and harnesses laying all around. I'd like to go back when it's warmer and do this canyon again. 

The next day we needed to adjust our permits since Mystery was closed so we decided on Spry, which was quite a bit of fun and significantly warmer than the previous days canyons. The hike in was enjoyable and when we made it to the descent we were happy with our choice. Spry turned out to be my favorite of the three canyons this weekend and as we exited, Big Momma and Hazel were right there to greet us. Perfect timing! 

We headed back toward Vegas and made a stop at Valley of Fire State Park and at Lake Mead. Hazel enjoyed playing in the silty sand and when we were back in the car she was fast asleep!

We're happy to have a great support group and people to help with Hazel when she can't go with us on our adventures. A quick weekend can be great if you just take advantage of the situation.