We Do Stuff: Robbers Roost with the Boyds

Robbers Roost

Chambers Canyon

Little Bull Canyon

Bluejohn Canyon with the Boyds

Back to canyons and this time with first time canyoneers, The Boyds. Hazel swims with Sierra and Laura and I get along great with the whole family, so after matching up our busy schedules, we finally got them to join us canyoneering in Utah.

The Boyd's in the desert

The canyoneering girls, Charlotte, Hazel, Sierra and Clementine

Laura and I had a head start as Nick had a flight home from Hawaii for a work trip, so we decided to camp a night in the Robbers Roost area. After driving from Colorado Springs, we descended the very narrow rappel and slot, Little Bull Canyon.

Hazel hiking into Little Bull

Little Bull is short but impressive

Hazel in Little Bull

A quick jaunt back to camp on the mesa above the Dirty Devil river and we enjoyed our evening, looking out toward the Henry mountains and a clear, starry sky.

Hazel and Justin at our camp on the mesa

The following morning, Laura talked me into Chambers - a very narrow canyon with a few technical up climbs to go along with the amazing rooms encountered as you move through the canyon.

Hazel loved the skinny parts and she is much faster through them than we are

Hazel is proficient at stemming in canyons as long as she can reach both sides

It's too skinny to go low, stem up and go high

Hazel in one of the namesake chambers

Hazel's helmet even got stuck one time; she escaped by just unclipping it and continuing through

We moved swiftly and Hazel did great, only needing assistance a few times to upclimb tight areas. We exited and hiked back to the Jeep before heading to a set meeting spot on the road to meet the rest of the crew.

Hazel at the exit of the skinny part, just a short distance down to the river from here

Broader view of the exit of the slot section. Yep, we just came out of there.

The hike back up was scenic. It's interesting how many springs we can find in the desert.

After meeting up, we chose a camp spot just down the road from the Granary spring and at the entrance to West Bluejohn canyon. We set up camp and then proceeded to hike down the canyon a few miles before turning back and enjoying the evening at camp. The kids had a good time goofing off in the sand and just exploring.

Sharon testing her downclimbing skills

Camp in the desert.

Exploring Bluejohn

Saturday was the big day. Time to explore a real slot and have a bit of fun rappelling and climbing. Laura and I had completed the suggested loop in the past, and as usual, thought it was quite straightforward.

Justin talking to the girls about safety, listening and leave no trace

We determined that these kids were competent and tough and Sharon and Nick didn't want to just hike, so we opted for a descent of Little Bluejohn. After setting a shuttle at Granary Spring, we set off from the main trailhead near camp. Rather than hiking back to the cars, we would ascend the main fork of Bluejohn Canyon. The descent went smoothly and all of the kids had a great time. We stopped at the wide junction for lunch and chatted while the kids played in the sand.

Sharon on one of her first rappels.

Nick cruising down the rappel

Girls having fun in the desert

Sierra smiling while rappelling

Sharon, Charlotte and Clementine in awe of the canyon

Clementine on rappel

Bluejohn is a great canyon for practicing stemming techniques

After lunch, things became interesting. I would lead up the canyon with a rope trailed and as the climbs became longer, the kids would shuffle one by one, adults following and squeezing up in sequence and often times roped in as well. Canyoneering is a physical sport, and no matter what anyone (even me) will tell you, you're going to get your ass handed to you unexpectedly. Just be prepared for the battle and enjoy the fun.

Sharon and Nick struggling up a skinny climb

Sierra making it look easy

Making our way up one of the deep corridors in Bluejohn

The motley crew

People always remind me that I tell them they will do just fine, and truth is is that I'm pretty good at gauging others abilities. Even though it might be difficult, I'd bet that most of those, including Nick and Sharon, don't recall the difficulties, but rather remember the reward of completing the canyon and the joy had with the kids on the long hike out the sandy wash to Granary.

Enjoying time together

We were back at camp in time to relax before cooking dinner. The kids still had plenty of energy, so while they played, Sharon proceeded to fall asleep while brushing her teeth. After awakening, a nice camp dinner was had while chatting around a circle of cars that blocked the wind.

Sharon taking a power nap before dinner

Hazel making short work of her dinner

We crashed for the night with the intention of another canyon before heading home Sunday, but the morning clouds were not good and with rain comes zero slot canyons.

We packed up and headed home, just beating the rain, having had an excellent series of adventures with The Boyds.