In pursuit of bliss
This was the trip I longed for! For only four miles of easy downhill forest hiking we got an action-packed day of 19.5 miles of Class II-III-IV packrafting bliss on four distinctly different stretches of river. We traversed some of the best scenery in the United States and had it all to ourselves. It was easily one of the best single day trips I've ever done. The perfect combination of challenge, adventure, and drop-dead gorgeous scenery.
It was three weeks after our first run through the Narrows and it was looking like there would be one last window of opportunity before the Zion headwaters melted out. The first trip was great but left us wanting so much more. The hydraulics in the Zion Narrows were much easier than we were expecting. After over five miles of hiking and boat dragging we found ourselves at the Deep Creek confluence, only to find Deep Creek had about four times the flow (boatable) and looked like much more fun compared to the approach we had just endured. We had been following the wrong river! The Deep Creek run is much less frequently done, but by the few accounts we could find, was the ideal packraft route. We would get many more miles of continuous Class III-IV, pushing the scenic wonder of Navajo Sandstone canyons into the challenging, long, and satisfying day we hoped. The appeal of the relative unknown, the rare alignment of conditions and availability, and having all the logistics in place to do a Deep Creek run made it too hard to pass up.
Jeff thankfully managed to efficiently drive to Zion to get the permit minutes before the backcountry desk closed, after initially miscalculating their hours of operation. He was packed and ready to go when we arrived (late) in Springdale. We drove up to Kolob Reservior with the last of the day's light. There was some sort of large Christian group camped on the south side of the reservoir, but fortunately we managed to find a quieter spot across the lake. It was a brisk night as expected!
Feeling well rested, we packed up and drove off at about 7am. The morning seemed surprisingly warmer than the previous night. Our target road was initially in great shape but soon became a challenge for the Prius' low clearance with a few bumps and scratches of hardened mud to the undercarriage. We managed to make it as far as we hoped we could, leaving us with just a few more miles of downhill walking to reach the river. Jeff and I said goodbye to Sara (who kindly provided the car shuttle and managed to tip-toe the car back out unscathed) and double checked our plans to meet her later in the park. Amazingly it was already warm enough to start hiking without a second layer at this point.
The walking on old roads was initially excellent going. At one point we veered off onto the wrong road and rather than backtrack went for the stubborn cross-country bushwhack option. While the roads would take us where we wanted, I really wanted to see the falls on Crystal Creek I saw on the aerial imagery. Although this detour probably ended up costing us about 45mins of bushwhacking turned sketchy slope traversing, it was certainly an impressive 10m waterfall with a young gorge below- like a scaled-down version of Yellowstone Falls. The roar was impressive, the creek below was looking great for paddling, if a little swift and challenging. We had to do some unpleasant traversing on loose scree slopes until we found a suitable put-in 300m downstream. I was happy it was only 9am at this point, which left us plenty of time for the adventure to come.
We took our time snacking, suiting up, and preparing the boats. I was surprised at the amount of basalt in the area, which must be a contributing factor influencing the steep and continuous style of the river here. After about an hour of puttering, we pushed off.
Wow this creek was fast and steep! The steep gradient was remarkably sustained, presenting few opportunities to eddy out. Adrenaline was pumping as the obstacles demanded quick
decisions and constant paddling. There was no respite in this cascade-style flooded creek. My movements felt rusty and labored
and I pretty quickly began
pinballing off the rocks until I managed to pin myself broadside, flip, and then
go for a bit of a swim. After righting myself I shortly set off on the same
pinball cycle resulting in another flip. Fortunately by this time I was
finally getting warmed up and could begin to read the language of the creek, responding in time to avoid any further flips or derailments. Every turn in the creek prompted an extra jolt of adrenaline as we tried to quickly scout ahead as we were propelled towards the unknown. We had no idea what unrunnable drops would would encounter, or even more likely and dangerous, low-lying logs across the creek which could strain us like a cheese grater. In about three locations overall we had to portage around logs. Many other logs required careful maneuvering to avoid but were passable. We quickly bumped and glided past the road crossing and confluence with Deep Creek where the flow seemed to double. This creek demanded my constant attention, leaving only brief moments to enjoy the scenery and almost none to take photos. Jeff and I took turns taking the lead. We were making quick time of the creek; I did my best to live in the moment. I remember smiling continuously while paddling the Narrows a few weeks prior and noticed I was a little more tense this time with the much more challenging nature of the creek. Jeff pointed out that this creek was a perfect example of his favorite type of creeking. I could not help but agree. The paddling was divine and greatly enhanced by the remote and wild scenery.
Before long the Navajo Sandstone began building walls around us, still with views of basalt capped cliffs. The canyon was lush, like what the Narrows would look like if it was not trampled by millions of tourists. The style of river continued as before a little further on, then began adjusting to more of a steep pool-drop style. It was now becoming possible to occasionally eddy out, though the size and challenge of the rapids was unabated. A couple features prompted scouting but generally speaking we boldly blasted on through any string of obstacles in our path, emerging from the bottom like giddy school girls. The fracture patterns in the sandstone began to take control as the
creek wrapped sinuously through many different orientations and as a
result we floated in and out of shadows and sun. What started as brain-freeze inducing waters earlier were turning to a comfortably cool temperature. The pictures do not do the creek or scenery justice.
After a prominent rapid where the flow was channeled to a narrow passage against sandstone we encountered two long established log strainers requiring portage. The nice sunny spot just beyond prompted a nice early lunch. My GPS struggled to locate us but eventually succeeded. Wow we still had a lot of this fun stuff to go! Many miles of some of the most fun and scenic narrows were still to follow.
Two more miles of paddling bliss brought us to a dramatic turn in the canyon, enormous boulders and a scoutworthy drop. This was actually a 100m-long rapid with three major drops that would require perfect performance to emerge unscathed: a 2m chute drop, careful positioning, a 2m slabby drop over uneven rocks, careful positioning, a 2m drop into a large rock. Impressive! Any one of the drops on its own we might have been excited to tackle, but the cascading probability of making it through all the obstacles combined with the rescue-free remoteness, added up to a risk that was tempting, but ultimately not worth taking. We portaged on river right and then I took the lead. While this would end being the only rapid we portaged, the sudden change of features renewed our caution and we paddled on with many miles to go.
The stunning scenery continued as the canyon grew taller and narrower, with monumental cliffs and even some sculpted sections of narrows. The day was getting on and I was starting to feel a little of the fatigue from the day's efforts. These feelings were mixed with the desire for this canyon to never end. It turned out to be a beautiful and warm day, perfect conditions for this liquid rollercoaster.
All too soon I was jolted out of our isolation when I noticed a person a couple hundred meters ahead and realized we had reached the confluence with the North Fork of the Virgin River. This meant for better and worse we were now through the terra incognita and into the known. We floated past three kayakers gearing up at the confluence who seemed less than thrilled to see our cheerful faces. I'll admit it was darkly satisfying floating past the kayakers just starting to suit up after their long boat-dragging adventure down the North Fork (we had been there, done that, and evolved) knowing we had already been paddling 4 hours on some of the remotest, least visited, and highest quality whitewater on the Colorado Plateau. I now felt redeemed from our trip weeks before and my curiosity satisfied. Deep Creek was everything I hoped it would be. By comparison to what we had just been through the Narrows run was just a victory lap.
The six miles through the Narrows went by remarkably fast this time as we passed landmark after landmark. Although the flow was now at its maximum, the channel adjusted to this and the rapids had a lot less of the bite and challenge that Deep Creek possessed. Water levels were noticeably higher than a few weeks prior which was certainly appreciated. After a couple quick stops at Kolob Creek and above Orderville, a couple irresistible photo opportunities in the Wall Street section, and passing a couple groups of near-hypothermic tourists illegally hiking upriver, we reached the tourist-clad platform at the end of the Narrows. This time I opted to run the log-drop in the Concrete Path rapid and was glad I did- it was a great feature.
A short distance above the rock weir at the Temple of Sinawava we ran into Sara relaxing in a hammock near the water's edge, a little before 5pm as according to plan. Jeff and I quickly sprung into action getting Sara's Alpacka up and running and Sara geared up. Sara was nervous about the rock weir she had seen but powered through with little difficulty. We paddled the slow but highly scenic Class II waters as clouds began to build overhead. No surprise, the views of the park's many landmarks were considerably better from the river instead of the bus. The Temple of Sinawava, Big Bend, Weeping Rock, Angel's Landing, the Grotto bridge, Great White Throne, Emerald Pools, the Lodge bridge, and finally the Court of the Patriarchs, our take-out. Below were the unrunnable landslide caused rapids.
Just as we finished packing up and entered the bus it began to lightly rain. Reports through the bus radio were of unexpected torrential downpours at the Temple of Sinawava. Good timing we thought! We celebrated over a tasty dinner in town. Not to be unnecessarily smug but for all the thousands of people visiting the park that day we could be assured we had the best day of all of them and it felt good. Very sore, tired, but good. Jeff decided to reduce the miles between him and Durango (another day, another adventure for him) so we parted ways. Sara and I had a comfortable night's sleep at a favorite local camping spot.
One of the last melt-pulse days of the year (estimated 220cfs).
Stats: 19.5mi, 220cfs
0.7mi Crystal Creek (III to IV)
6.7mi Deep Creek (III+ to IV+)
7.3mi Zion Narrows Class (III to III+)
4.8mi Temple of Sinawava-Court of Patriarchs (II)
4.8mi Temple of Sinawava-Court of Patriarchs (II)
Thanks to Jeff and Sara for a fantastic trip. It was amazing how well it worked out and everyone got exactly the trip they wanted. For every day I take off it seems to mean two more days of work but I am thankful I had this opportunity to fulfill a goal and to ride out the last of the season's snowmelt.
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