I had the opportunity this weekend to do a quick
solo run through a canyon that I’ve wanted to do for a very long time.
James Canyon was one of the first technical canyons I ever heard of. At
a time when many canyons were kept secret, James was known and
published. So this one’s been on my list for about a decade and a half.
James
Canyon gets neglected by many modern canyoneers who started post-2009
(when Todd Martin published his book, and when most AZ canyoneers really
got their start). It’s a fairly long canyon, with an even longer exit,
and its not technically very challenging. In a world where dozens of
high-quality technical canyons are published and beta is widely
available, James doesn’t get much attention. But for a solo trip,
technically easy is desireable. And while many canyoneers I’ve met have
climber syndrome and grouse endlessly about any kind of lengthy
approach or exit, sometimes a lengthy canyon can be a good thing as
well, as it lets you immerse yourself in the canyon environment for an
extended period. So all of that to say, James Canyon was just what I
was looking for for this trip.
Thanks
to recent monsoon rains, the canyon was at full flow. The water was
flowing brown and murky, which meant I had to proceed slowly and
carefully as I couldn’t see where I was putting my foot underwater. On
the bright side, this meant that every drop in the canyon was a
waterfall.
The
canyon features several sections of very nice narrows. They’re not
quite on par with say Bear Canyon or Illusions, but they are extremely
nice. The first set of narrows was the most interesting, as it involved
a short 15 foot rappel, and then a series of drops through interlinked
pools. Each of these drops required a short (2-3 foot) slide into the
next pool, which was a little nerve wracking without being able to see
below the surface of the water. Needless to say, everything went fine.
James
effort- to-reward skew showed itself as the day continued. While the
canyon features several sets of nice narrows, there’s a lot of slogging
between narrow sections. There was a significant amount of swimming
required as well. With a 4:3 wetsuit, the swimming was pleasant and
refreshing.
After
a few hours, I reached the second rappel, this one a 40 footer rigged
from trees on creek left. Thanks to the high flow, a gorgeous waterfall
was flowing right next to the rappel wall. Had I been with a group,
this waterfall would have been perfect to rig and rappel down the
middle, but I had to content myself with rappelling the mossy wall next
to it.
Below the second rappel, the canyon passes through a long narrow hallway. This featured the coldest swim of the trip.
