Salmon Creek Falls [Archive] - Canyon Forums

rcwild

10-30-2009, 04:17 PM

Trip report from Matt Maxon:

Salmon Creek 10/17/2009 *

*Our hiking time*: 12½ hours
*Our Hiking distance*: 4.7 (est)
*Elevation loss:* 3529 ft (point to point)

*Elevation gain*: ? (mostly downhill)
*Our rope:* 1, 230-ish ft 8mm Cyn Pro DS, 1 248-ish ft 8mm Cyn eXtreme , 1 9mm 220 ft Cyn DS, 150ft webbing 10 quicklinks
*Other gear:* Hammer drill, 3 complete anchor stations, 6 pitons
*Rappels*: 9 (that we did) the largest about 670ft multi-pitch rappel in 4 stages

*Hazard*s: high water, hydraulics, very slippery slickrock
*USGS TOPO map(s)* Sirretta Peak, CA, Fairview, CA

*General description:*
One in our group said a hiking guide described Salmon Creek Falls as the “highest waterfall in the Southern Sierra ” When I did Seven Tea Cups (Dry Meadow Creek) 8/24/2007 I got looking for other potential canyons in the area. Salmon Creek Falls popped out as the most obvious. Most estimates I saw along with map data suggested the main falls to be in the 600ft range

(Note: all coordinates are WGS84 datum)

*Trailheads: *
Upper trailhead: End of Forest Road 23S08 (35.90706,118.39957, 7217) , curiously labeled “*Spur 5*” on the sign at junction with 22S12 (35.90984, 118.3661, 7711)

Lower trailhead: End of dirt road at old prospect 35.89361, 118.45642. Most carefully driven 2 wd vehicles should be able to make it here, your results may vary.

*The Trip:*
We arrived at the upper trailhead at about 8:15 am and got going about 8:30am on the second weekend of deer season. Our group is a strong one with lots of experience. Though not much exploring Sierra canyons. Earlier in the year we'd scouted the top of the falls and knew the route in well. At the end of the trail there are use trails and ducks leading down to nice swimming holes. Though we used these to get to the falls...Ignore them take the drainage just to the west, cross the slickrock to canyon left and follow the use trail(s) to the edge.
Here are impressive airy halfdome like views of the canyon below, the Sierras to the north and Greenhorn Mtns to the south and west.

We setup our anchor on canyon right low around a bomber boulder, Jason went first, this used about 180 ft (Rap 1) or so of rope to a relatively large sloping area on a ledge overlooking the remainder of the big drop. Jason called me down to bring the bolting kit.

I agreed to go down to a ledge about 165ft below (Rap 2) and evaluate the anchor possibilities. I rappelled down and found a better ledge we couldn't see from above. But there are no natural anchor options. I placed two 3/8x6” stainless steel Power-Stud (Powers Fasteners) and stainless steel Metolius hangers. This ledge is about 18-24” wide and slopes at about 30°, so a “dance hall” it isn't. There is enough space for 2 people comfortably

Jason rappelled down with our third rope and I setup the next drop hoping it would reach the bottom, nope it was about 50-100 ft short. I rappelled down to another much smaller ledge (the width of my shoe) about 110 feet below (Rap 3) , again it was smooth nearly vertical rock. I setup another anchor station. By now the remainder of our group had made it down the first drop and pulled our rope committing us to going down.

Jason came down with the rope from the first rappel and I setup this rappel. This rope made it to the “bottom” of the main falls making this our 4th rappel (215-220ft) in the main falls complex for a total of about 670ft . All of this rope was needed to reach an area where it was “safe” to walk without the chance of slipping and careening down the very steep slick rock creek. It maybe possible to use a TRUE 200ft rope here and down climb canyon right but we didn't.

A check of my watch floored me as it was 2pm Oh man well I guess I was concentrating on what I was doing and not on the time... Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Jason came next, then Alisse, Bernd, then Kirk had the joy of pulling the ropes (thanx Kirk!)
The pull of the first rope was difficult, but Johanna who was not doing the canyon made it a breeze by releasing the rope and removing our anchor lest some bonehead with a clothes line thinks you can go down here... Wow wow wow thanks Johanna!

The second rope pull was also difficult, requiring two strong canyoneers, one using an ascender to help grab the rope. Extending the second anchor beyond the edge is suggested for LAMAR - there's lots of rope pulling over the rock face, and the friction is substantial on the 1st and 2nd rappels.

Below the main falls complex there is substantial scrambling, our discussions rated it as “Pine Creek” on steroids....

We started down and immediately came to another rappel canyon right, in a “slot” that seldom sees any flow. The anchor was high in the slot around a boulder. This was our 5th rappel, and drops into a 2-3ft deep pool.

Just below here we went far canyon left, Jason negotiated, the slickrock below a massive boulder but the anchor possibilities where few, we slung a large boulder and rappelled on the 230ft rope (rap 6), down the crack, several cascades and 2 pools to an vertigo inducing perch . One of the pools had/has some hydraulic potential so Jason stood by with a rescue line midway down .Looking at this from below it would probably be easier, faster, and safer to setup an anchor canyon right just below the 2-3ft deep pool.

Another bit of hiking brought us to a small but stout tree (about wrist diameter of an average man) after we cliffed out canyon left. (Rap 7 ), We downclimbed some more, keeping canyon left, and chose a short overhanging rappel 8th rappel into a brushy nook I discovered some “Canyon Booty” below here, a bit of gear lost by a hiker some time in the past (Identify it and I'll try to get it to you). There where a total of 9 rappels and the details seem to escape me on the last one.

We where getting pressed for time and where moving as quickly as possible, I wanted to conserve what anchor material we had, later discussion revealed we lots more than I thought we had.
These facts caused us to look for every opportunity to downclimb whatever we could even if it took longer, as a result we bypassed untold rappel opportunities. The largest being about 160ft “Lower Salmon Creek Falls” as I have seen them referred to in various hiker reports.

We passed here (Lwr Salmon Crk Falls) just as the sun went down over the mountains to the west and darkness quickly descended on the canyon... Everybody was tired after 11 hours but since the GPS indicated 6/10 mile to the Rincon Trail
We ate some energy snacks , broke out the headlamps and pressed on, determined to reach our exit. We'd been in contact with Johanna by GMRS radio throughout the day and she knew we would be out late, I estimated 9-9:30pm to the trailhead.

There was no moon but all the headlamps did a good job of illuminating our path, we all took turns leading the way but Alisse seemed to have a real 6th sense about which way to go, so we settled in to a pattern with Alisse in the lead.

We where getting tired, and tempers a bit short and as we approached the trail as indicated on the GPS. I insisted on staying close to the creek so we didn't miss the trail in the dark, and though we where supposedly close we didn't really have a clue and where out of water and needed another break, so the water filter was brought out and water supplies replenished. Energy stores and spirits refreshed. We continued.

We arrived at the stock bridge at 8:15pm 11hrs 45min from our start time, this really lifted our spirits though we couldn't get Johanna on the radio. I stumbled a few times (as did the others) and every one was a little slow. I was getting better and better communications but I really didn't have a clue how close we where getting. I had Johanna blow the horn but we could not hear a thing “friggin great”! "That was encouraging"... Some question arose as to weather we where going the right way, I insisted we where going the right way even though I was a bit foggy headed I had loaded our route into the saved track library in my GPS and was 100% certain we where headed the right way...

While Alisse and Jason waited for Kirk and Bernd to catch up I decided to contact Johanna again and get the elevation of where she was as a gauge to how far away we where when I saw the light!

WAHOO! We've made it it to the truck! HA HA we've made it! It was 9:05 pm on my watch for a total of 12½ hours. The GPS odometer indicated 9.21 miles but that value is suspect at best

I would say I was more tired than I thought, and the effects became apparent when I was trying to relate technical details of the trip to Johanna... After I had some food and a bit of rest the old brain started working again.... (note to self: food = energy, brain needs energy too)

Alisse said she was "going of instinct" when picking our route in the dark...Good instinct I say! Thanx

This IMO is one of the better canyons I've done and want to return to further explore the parts we missed / by passed, and just to experience it again! (in the daylight ;-) )

Thanks to Bernd, Kirk, Alisse, & Jason we all made it through with only bumps, and scrapes, possibly a bit of poison oak.. But we saw something few have ever seen up close

My most sincere thanks goes to Johanna for driving and waiting for us. This would have been much harder without you, you where an important part of our team in this difficult canyon exploration

This excellent photo shows the main falls complex from the Rincon Trail
https://docs.google.com/File?id=ddzp9pgk_7c5rrrxcx_b
Photo by Nathan of the Kern River Hiking Club (used with permission)