Alden and I were brainstorming a trip to the Kern River area. Once we nailed the weekend down as Memorial Day weekend I became even more excited by the prospect of checking out two accessible but likely undescended canyons, Needlerock and Freeman. I knew these would be our best chance to disappear from the crowds and enjoy a beautiful day with a few friends. I knew it would be a bit of a push but had pretty high hopes that we could fit both canyons in a single day. Alden and I had both researched the canyons separately using aerial photos and topo maps, but interestingly came to different conclusions: Alden had much higher hopes for Needlerock while I had much higher hopes for Freeman to be good. Needlerock being the shorter canyon, we decided it should be first up. Alden, Scott, Pete and Celia met Sara and I bright and early at the turnout above Needlerock. Soon we were ready and heading downhill.
We climbed down and skirted around several slabs, not quite steep or enclosed enough to justify rappels. We had nice views of the Needles high above us. A small trickle in the creek meant little chance of using the wetsuits we were carrying. Unfortunately the "canyon" was quite choked with wild rose and poison oak and slippery pine needle-coated slabs. At some point we made an unnotable rappel- probably bypassable but we were eager for something other than bushwhacking. More bushwhacking led to something better, a pleasant 100 ft slabby waterfall.
Beyond we found another rappel down an interesting wet slot which ended
in a waist deep pool. I was the only one of the group the decided to
engage in some creative acrobatics to sacrifice only my feet and ankles
to the water. A short distance on we reached a nice granite patio area
with twin waterfalls plunging over a vertical cliff. Here we debated anchor choices for a while, ultimately deciding on a bomber rock chock equalized with a small rock thread (considerably better than my hastily chosen first descent-style rigging). Once down we enjoyed a snack on the rock above the river.
From here we had a steep and punishing 1100 ft vertical ascent back to the cars. Fortunately we soon intersected the trail and found it to be surprisingly good travel. We made it back to the cars a little after noon, later than anticipated which made our decision of what to do next a little bit harder. It would never reach classic status but as for as a first descent goes it made an enjoyable trip that I am sure will be repeated by others. And it was good to just get out and explore! Thanks to Alden, Scott, Sara, Pete, and Celia.
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