Dwayne27
11-12-2008, 05:49 PM
A beautiful, narrow and exciting canyon. Not too long and would combine nicely with a shorter North Wash canyon to make a full day of canyoneering
Rating: 3A III
Time Required: ~4-5 hours
Longest Rappel: ~40 ft
Permit Information
None required
Camping/Lodging
Plenty of primitive camping near the trailhead. Sandthrax campground is just south of mile marker 28
Preferred Season
Any- summer can be hot
Water Concerns
North Wash canyons tend to drain extremely fast. Unless you are doing this immediately after rain storms, you shouldn’t run in to much water here
Special Challenges
Natural anchor skills will be required. Lots of downclimbing
Equipment Suggestions
Standard Technical Gear (harness, descending device, helmet, multiple locking carabineers, slings, etc), 100’ rope, ~ 50 feet of webbing, rap rings/links, ascenders, bring as small of a pack as possible
Topographic Maps
USGS 7.5 ‘Turkey Knob’
Directions to Trailhead
From Hanksville UT, head south on UT 95 towards Hite. Just south of mile marker 28 there is a small dirt road heading to the east. This is the first drainage north of Sandthrax campground, and just before the Blarney drainage. Drive up this dirt road a short distance and find somewhere to park. You should be fairly close to some sandstone on the right side of the road as you are driving in.
Trailhead UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Approach
From where you park- head of the sandstone ramps on the right. You will be heading up, with the Leprechaun canyon system on your left, and other drainages on the right. Keep heading up keeping the Leprechaun canyons on your immediate left. Eventually you will reach a rim towards the very top of the sandstone and will have a fairly clear hiking trail through the dirt. Follow this in towards the head of the canyon. This dirt trail seems to keep going and going back to the head of the canyon. The approach will take approx 1 hour. The head of the Right Fork is very clearly the top of a narrow slot.
Alternative Approach
If you can set up a car shuttle, you can drive behind the head of Leprechaun, and the other North Wash canyons, to significantly reduce your approach, and make it a down hill hike to the head of the slot. Turn east on the dirt road about a half mile north of the 276 turn off. After about 1.5 miles there is a left hand turn, but stay to the right. Drive till you find a spot to park that is close to your canyon.
For Right Leprechaun, make sure you are paying close attention to your topo or GPS as it is critical to make sure you are not dropping in to an incorrect drainage. When you reach pt 5268 on the map, the road veers left, but turn right as far as you can drive. From this entrance you can either rappel from the very top of the narrows, or to avoid carrying a longer rope, traverse along the east rim to pt 5003 and make your way down some slabs to the south, then head to the head of the slot.
Canyon Entry UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Description: Standard Route
From the head of the canyon, downclimb to set up a short rappel. Continue downclimbing, stemming, chimneying and enjoy some outstanding, deep and beautiful narrows. The canyon will open up occasionally and then tighten up again quickly. There may be some potholes but should be avoidable. After lots of good narrows, you will see the canyon drop below you and will see a huge wall. There is a rappel and a few down climbs and you will reach Leprechaun junction. Turn to your right and head up the Main fork for just a few feet to get a taste of how deep and narrow that route gets.
Exit
When you have had your fill of the extreme narrows, turn around and head down canyon. You will have a few more cool narrow sections until you reach an open wash. You will have to bushwack through this section, but a hiker made trail makes this a little easier, and it wont be too long until you reach the cars from here.
Canyon Exit UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Alternative Route
Another way to access this canyon is to start by heading up the main wash until you reach a side canyon coming in on the left. You will make your way up the canyon, route finding your way up slick rock to the canyon rim, then navigate across the top of the Left Fork, and the Main Fork until finally reaching the Right Fork. As these other canyons are significantly more difficult, and dangerous for larger canyoneers, the approach detailed above seems to be a much better option. There is nothing difficult, and the first obvious slot encounter is the Right Fork. The Right Fork does not have extreme narrows and can be completed by any size of canyoneer.
Rating: 3A III
Time Required: ~4-5 hours
Longest Rappel: ~40 ft
Permit Information
None required
Camping/Lodging
Plenty of primitive camping near the trailhead. Sandthrax campground is just south of mile marker 28
Preferred Season
Any- summer can be hot
Water Concerns
North Wash canyons tend to drain extremely fast. Unless you are doing this immediately after rain storms, you shouldn’t run in to much water here
Special Challenges
Natural anchor skills will be required. Lots of downclimbing
Equipment Suggestions
Standard Technical Gear (harness, descending device, helmet, multiple locking carabineers, slings, etc), 100’ rope, ~ 50 feet of webbing, rap rings/links, ascenders, bring as small of a pack as possible
Topographic Maps
USGS 7.5 ‘Turkey Knob’
Directions to Trailhead
From Hanksville UT, head south on UT 95 towards Hite. Just south of mile marker 28 there is a small dirt road heading to the east. This is the first drainage north of Sandthrax campground, and just before the Blarney drainage. Drive up this dirt road a short distance and find somewhere to park. You should be fairly close to some sandstone on the right side of the road as you are driving in.
Trailhead UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Approach
From where you park- head of the sandstone ramps on the right. You will be heading up, with the Leprechaun canyon system on your left, and other drainages on the right. Keep heading up keeping the Leprechaun canyons on your immediate left. Eventually you will reach a rim towards the very top of the sandstone and will have a fairly clear hiking trail through the dirt. Follow this in towards the head of the canyon. This dirt trail seems to keep going and going back to the head of the canyon. The approach will take approx 1 hour. The head of the Right Fork is very clearly the top of a narrow slot.
Alternative Approach
If you can set up a car shuttle, you can drive behind the head of Leprechaun, and the other North Wash canyons, to significantly reduce your approach, and make it a down hill hike to the head of the slot. Turn east on the dirt road about a half mile north of the 276 turn off. After about 1.5 miles there is a left hand turn, but stay to the right. Drive till you find a spot to park that is close to your canyon.
For Right Leprechaun, make sure you are paying close attention to your topo or GPS as it is critical to make sure you are not dropping in to an incorrect drainage. When you reach pt 5268 on the map, the road veers left, but turn right as far as you can drive. From this entrance you can either rappel from the very top of the narrows, or to avoid carrying a longer rope, traverse along the east rim to pt 5003 and make your way down some slabs to the south, then head to the head of the slot.
Canyon Entry UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Description: Standard Route
From the head of the canyon, downclimb to set up a short rappel. Continue downclimbing, stemming, chimneying and enjoy some outstanding, deep and beautiful narrows. The canyon will open up occasionally and then tighten up again quickly. There may be some potholes but should be avoidable. After lots of good narrows, you will see the canyon drop below you and will see a huge wall. There is a rappel and a few down climbs and you will reach Leprechaun junction. Turn to your right and head up the Main fork for just a few feet to get a taste of how deep and narrow that route gets.
Exit
When you have had your fill of the extreme narrows, turn around and head down canyon. You will have a few more cool narrow sections until you reach an open wash. You will have to bushwack through this section, but a hiker made trail makes this a little easier, and it wont be too long until you reach the cars from here.
Canyon Exit UTM Grid Coordinate
- -
Alternative Route
Another way to access this canyon is to start by heading up the main wash until you reach a side canyon coming in on the left. You will make your way up the canyon, route finding your way up slick rock to the canyon rim, then navigate across the top of the Left Fork, and the Main Fork until finally reaching the Right Fork. As these other canyons are significantly more difficult, and dangerous for larger canyoneers, the approach detailed above seems to be a much better option. There is nothing difficult, and the first obvious slot encounter is the Right Fork. The Right Fork does not have extreme narrows and can be completed by any size of canyoneer.