Canyoneering Route Description
Illusions Canyon - 4B III
Coconino National Forest, Arizona.
09-06-15, 5 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 7.4 hours)
Time Required - 6 to 9 hours
Distance - 2 miles Total, 0.6 miles Technical
Rappels - 12 Rappels, Longest Rappel 90 feet.
Elevation Range - 6970 - 5860 Feet
Shuttle Required - Optional 0.3 miles Vehicle - High Clearance
recommended, 4WD if bad road conditions
Permit Required - No
Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up
to 90 feet and 80 feet of 1 inch webbing for sling placement. Wet
suits should always be worn in Illusions Canyon. 4mm minimum
recommended and will likely require a little more in cool weather.
Also have a happy hooker or a hooking kit with a drill to get out of
the final pothole which is a keeper where potshots will likely prove
ineffective.
Illusions, what can I say......... fun and pretty! Of
course I did not get to see the dark side of the final pothole so I got to see
this place in easy mode. Due to recent rains we got to see Illusions with
low flow all the way through the canyon.
Note / Warning:
On my visit here the keeper at the final rappel was
full of water and was an easy swim and escape. There have been times
when that pothole has been measured at 19 feet deep and a difficult keeper
to escape. There have also been reports of dead animals (even bears)
floating in the pothole when in keeper mode making this a very unpleasant
experience to cross. You can not see the condition of the pothole from
the top of the final rappel and will need to rappel down a ways before you
can see what needs to be done. Tossing a potshot is difficult while on
rappel and may not productive anyway since the down canyon side of the
pothole is just sand sloping back toward the pothole. A happy hooker
(a large hook on the end of a tent pole) should be on hand to assist getting
out of this pothole if the water is low. This pothole and a few anchor
challenges within the canyon are why I have rated this a 4. If you
find the canyon flowing with water and anchors are well placed during your
visit you may wonder why this canyon was rated a 4. Remember things
change and the final pothole can be very difficult to get out of.
This route describes the Sneak Exit for Illusions
Canyon. In the past the traditional route for Illusions was to
complete the technical section of the canyon then follow the remainder of
the water course all the way to where it joins into the West Fork of Oak
Creek then going down the West Fork of Oak Creek down to The Call of the
Canyon parking area to exit. Doing this long version is a very long day on
foot, makes for a route that takes a long time and requires a very long car
shuttle.
The route described here is a sneak route for an exit
which completes the technical section of the canyon, travels a few hundred
feet down to a side ravine on the RDC (east) side and goes up the exit
ravine then over a ridge back to the car. This sneak route greatly reduces
the time for the route, makes a shuttle optional and greatly reduces the
miles traveled on foot.
The exit ravine is about 0.4 miles long with a few dry
falls to bypass and has an elevation gain of about 840 feet so it is steep
but not overly difficult to travel. The last 150 feet of the exit ravine
are very steep and as you get closer to the top it is clay like mud. If you
are there when it is dry, this top portion of the exit ravine should still
be pretty easy travel, just steep. If you are there when it is raining the
clay like mud is very slippery making this a little scary to get up the
final part of the ravine. If it is raining, be prepared to use your hands
to claw the dirt and grab a bush here and there to keep yourself from
slipping. Ask me how I know this!. :)
Watch out for poison ivy near the bottom of the exit
ravine!!!
To get to the Trailhead
From Flagstaff Arizona:
From I-40 on the
west end of Flagstaff Arizona take exit 192 for Flagstaff Ranch
Road then travel south on Flagstaff Ranch Road. About 0.3 miles
south of I-40 turn left (east) onto W Kiltie Lane. Drive east
for about 0.83 miles and turn right onto S Woody Mountain Road.
From the junction of S Woody Mountain Road and W Kiltie Lane
(ext231-Woody) drive south on S Woody Mountain Road. Note that S
Woody Mountain Road will turn into FsRd231 and the transition
happens at varying places depending on what map you look at.
About 450 feet south of this intersection S Woody Mountain Road
turns into a dirt road.
From the junction, drive south on S Woody Mountain Road /
FsRd231 for about 26.7 miles to a signed turn off onto the road
labeled 0918M (ext0918M). FsRd231 is well maintained, easy to
follow and there are a LOT of side roads along the 26.7 mile
drive.
Note: The turn off to the Insomnia route is on
road 778 which is about 1.7 miles before reaching road 0918M.
At the turn off for the road signed as 0918M (ext0918M) turn
left to travel northeast on 0918M.
About 0.8 miles down road 0918M will be a fork in the road
(IlusionsDP01) where you will want to stay left to travel
northwest staying on 0918M.
About 0.28 miles after passing the fork in the road pull over
and park (pkIlusionBeg). There are a few clearings here to park
at so pick one.
From Sedona Arizona:
From Sedona Arizona
drive north on Highway 89-Alt for about 16 miles to a turn of on
the left (west) to a forest road FsRd535 (extFsRd535-89).
Turn left (west) onto FsRd535 and drive about 7.1 miles to a
3-way junction (ext535-236A) where roads 535, 536A and 236A come
together. Continue west on FsRd236A. Of note 536A travels to
the south.
Follow FsRd236A for about 2.8 miles to a junction where you get
to FsRd231.
Turn left (south) on FsRd231 and drive about 13.2 miles to the
turn off for the road signed as 0918M (ext0918M) turn left to
travel northeast on 0918M.
About 0.8 miles down road 0918M will be a fork in the road
(IlusionsDP01) where you will want to stay left to travel
northwest staying on 0918M.
About 0.28 miles after passing the fork in the road pull over
and park (pkIlusionBeg). There are a few clearings here to park
at so pick one.
To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod
Optionally you can set an exit car to avoid walking 0.3 miles of
dirt road after your route. Setting a shuttle for Illusions is
optional and may not be worth the trouble of bringing two
vehicles in, as it only saves 0.3 miles of walking on a dirt
road.
From the parking spot to start the route (pkIlusionBeg),
continue driving northish on 0918M for about 0.3 miles to where
the road ends and park your picture there (pkIlusionEnd).
GPS coordinate information listed at the bottom. For information about waypoint naming and map symbols, refer to the
Glossary page.
Click the links for maps of the route.
Map of the drive into the route.
Map of the entire route.
Map of the technical section.
The Approach:
From the parking spot (pkIlusionBeg)
leave the road and walk
southwest. As you leave
the road the terrain
will begin to start
dropping down a slope
toward a large side
drainage that will
eventually go down into
Illusions.
When you are about 150
feet above the floor of
the large drainage below
(wIlusionRP01) look for
some game trails going
right (northwest) that
traverse along the
slopes roughly parallel
to the large drainage
below. The trails are
not well traveled and
may be easily missed.
From here you have 2
options.
Option 1: Follow the
faint trails as they
traverse northwest along
the drainage slowly
dropping down to the
drainage about 600 feet
down canyon.
If you follow these
trails you may find your
way down a slope and
into the drainage where
you will be right below
a large dry fall in the
drainage. This is what
we did on my first visit
here but the trails are
faint and you may or may
not easily find the
correct spot.
Option 2: Ignore the
trails and continue 150
feet down to the floor
of the drainage then
turn right to walk
northwest down the
drainage about 600 feet
to to top of the dry
fall. I have not
personally done this but
have been told you can
easily bypass the
dry fall by going up and
over on the RDC side and
down a slope to the
canyon floor. On my
first visit here there
were obvious tracks
indicating a path around
the dry fall may be
forming.
When you get to the
dry fall (wIlusionRP02),
if you found your way to
the bottom using the
faint trails on the side
slopes of the drainage,
continue down canyon. If
you found yourself at
the top of the dry fall
you can bypass by going
up and over on the RDC
side then working your
way down steep dirt to
the canyon floor below.
Alternately you can
rappel from a tree just
above the dry fall and
rappel down.
About 0.2 miles down
canyon of the dry fall is
a wide open area where
you get to the main
Illusions drainage. In
this wide open area
there are two side
drainages, the one you
just came down from the
east
and another coming in
from the west. The
main Illusion drainage
runs down to north from
here. Just down canyon
of these two wide side
drainages is a drop in
the canyon of about 40
or 50 feet (yIlusionsTp).
The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
When you get to
the large drop in the
canyon (yIlusionsTp),
look for a use trail
going up around the drop
on the RDC side.
The use trails started
just up canyon of the
actual drop here.
About 100 feet down
canyon of the drop you
are bypassing is the top
(wIlusionRP03) of a
chute / ravine you can
walk / scramble down to
get back to the canyon
floor. There are
other chutes dropping
down to the canyon floor
near here but they will
be sketchy looking and
may require a rappel to
get in. This chute
is an easy walk /
scramble down a dirt
slope of about 35 feet
back down to the canyon
floor.
Once back on the canyon
floor continue north
down canyon about 0.13
miles to the top of rap
1. On the way down
to rap 1 you may find
water to walk / wade
through in a couple
spots. If you get
to water you can not
avoid, it is a good time
to get your wet suits on
since you will rappel
into water at rap 1 a
short distance down
canyon anyway.
Rap 1 (dIlusionR1-2) is
anchored from a tree on
the LDC side and drops
about 20 feet down over
a large boulder.
Rap 1 can be downclimbed
but the slick moss
covered walls make this
a little sketchy making
a rappel the safer
option.
Rap 2 is about 50 feet
down canyon of rap 1, is
anchored from a single
bolted hanger on the RDC
side about head high and
drops about 15 feet down
to a pool which can be a
swimmer when full with
an easy walk out on the
down canyon side.
Down canyon of rap 2 is
easy walking and a short
downclimb of about 3 or
4 feet into a pool of
water before reaching
rap 3.
Rap 3 (dIlusionR3 ) is
about 250 feet down
canyon of rap 2, is
anchored from a tree up
on a ledge about 10 feet
up on the LDC side,
drops about 25 feet down
from the tree into a
narrow section where you
will swim a short
distance with an easy
walk out of the pool on
the down canyon side.
Just after rap 3 is a
deep sculpted section of
canyon (wIllusionRP04)
that is very pretty and
about 500 feet long
between raps 3 and 4.
This section has
multiple short easy
downclimbs and has a lot
of water that can be
chest deep and maybe a
swim for a couple of
feet here and there.
There are also a couple
of downclimbs of about
15 feet each down
corkscrew like flutes,
one of these goes next
to an arch. In the
last 100 feet of this
section are a couple of
very large room size
potholes to cross before
getting to rap 4.
On my first visit here
these were sand filled
and easy to walk through
potholes in deep chamber
like spots, if flooding
washes debris out this
may change a bit.
The point marked on the
maps with the waypoint
(wIlusionRP04) is
approximately where
there is a tree filled
ravine on the LDC side
about 150 feet before
reaching rap 4.
Rap 4 (dIlusionR4) is
about 500 feet down
canyon of rap 3, is
anchored LDC from a
single bolted hanger and
drops about 25 feet to a
waist deep pool below
that may become deeper
since it was sand filled
and looked like it could
blow out with a flood.
Part way down rap 4 is
an arch you can rappel
through if you take your
pack off or you can step
over and rappel over the
arch. If you
happen to be in here
with low flow the water
somehow grabs the rock
and flows out the top of
the arch which is very
interesting from the
bottom of the rappel.
To avoid rope grooving
at rap 4, please set the
pull rope so it is over
the arch then step down
canyon a few feet to
pull the rope keeping
the rope away from the
rock as much as
possible. Pulling
the ropes through the
arch will create rope
grooves.
Just down canyon
of rap 4 is an arch that
you can sometimes swim
under but was filled
with gravel on my first
visit so we walked
around it.
About 100 feet down
canyon of rap 4 is a
cross joint
(wIlusionRP05) where
ravines drop down to the
canyon on both sides.
Just before getting to
this ravine is a
corkscrew downclimb of
about 35 feet tall that
is easy to downclimb /
slide down. There
was an anchor set to
rappel this corkscrew on
our visit here but the
downclimb is much easier
than it looks.
The section after the
corkscrew downclimb has
a few short easy
downclimbs and one
downclimb of about 15
feet to a pool that is a
little difficult the
last 6 feet. There
are also multiple pools
in this section that can
be chest deep or
swimmers for a couple
feet all with easy walk
outs on the down canyon
side. As you get
closer to rap 5 the
canyon begins to get
deeper and more
sculpted.
Rap 5 (dIlusionR5-7) is
about 450 feet down
canyon of the 35 foot
corkscrew downclimb, is
anchored from 2 very odd
glue in style anchors on
the LDC side, drops
about 25 feet down a
chute next to a fin then
down a wall to a waist
deep pool. The
anchors for rap 5 used
to be standard bolted
hangers which
disappeared and the
anchor became the logs
at the top of the drop.
On my first visit there
we found two anchors on
the LDC side that look
like they had been put
in very sloppily with JB
Weld.
Rap 6 is on the other
side of the pool below
rap 5, is anchored from
a log jam and drops down
20 feet to a pothole
that can be a keeper
when water levels are
low but an easy out when
full with a solid edge
to grab to pull yourself
out. Just before
getting down to the
pothole is a sloped
ledge you can stand on
and make an easy pack
toss of about 8 feet
across the pot hole.
In years past rap 5 used
to be anchored from
bolted hangers as well.
Rap 7 is on the other
side of the pool below
rap 6, is anchored from
logs at the top of the
drop and drops about 15
feet to a pool that is a
swimmer and easy to get
out of.
On the other side of the
pool below rap 7 is a
downclimb of about 15
feet where you can
downclimb / slide down a
slope on the LDC side
but it is a little
precarious getting over
to the start of the
slide. At the
bottom of the down climb
is a pool that is a
swimmer for about 8
feet.
Rap 8 (dIlusionR8)
anchored on the LDC side
from a hole feature on
the wall that almost
looks like a knot chalk
and drops about 10 feet.
Rap 8 can be downclimbed
and can easily be
partner assisted.
Just past rap 8 is a
pool to swim across then
a corkscrew downclimb of
about 15 feet down a
chute then over a
vertical drop with the
last 4 feet being a
little difficult where
you will likely just
drop the last few feet
into the pool below and
swim away.
Rap 9 (dIlusionR9-10) is
anchored from 2 bolted
hangers on the LDC side
about head high and
drops about 15 feet to a
pool at the bottom.
Swim across the pool and
around the corner to the
right to climb out the
other side. When
you climb out of the
pool to the lip of the
pool you will be greeted
with the anchors for rap
10.
Rap 10 is anchored LDC
from 2 bolted hangers
about head high while
sitting at the lip and
drops about 80 feet down
to a huge sand filled
pothole / pool.
Just on the other side
of the pool below rap 10
is a downclimb of about
5 feet that is undercut
and a bit awkward and is
best done with a partner
assist. Just after
this downclimb the
canyon opens up to a
short wide vegetated
wash (wIlusionRP06).
On the down canyon side
of the open vegetated
area another slot starts
where you can downclimb
into and through a
pothole (or taller
people can stem over it)
then downclimb over a
drop of about 6 feet
with a small tube in the
rock on the downclimb
that make for a solid
hand hold to lower
yourself over the drop.
Rap 11 (dIlusionR11-12)
anchored from rocks at
the top of the drop and
drops about 40 feet to a
pool. Around the
corner from the bottom
of rap 11 is rap 12.
Rap 12 is anchored RDC
from 2 bolted hangers
and drops about 90 feet
to a pothole about 20
feet across. The
pothole at the bottom of
rap 12 can be a swim
across if full or a 19
foot deep keeper with a
sand slope on the down
canyon side making a
potshot ineffective.
A happy hooker or
hooking kit and drill
may be needed to get out
of the pothole if it is
low.
Note / Warning:
At the bottom of rap 12
is a large pothole with
a history of being
difficult to get out of.
If the canyon is full of
water this is an easy
swim across and a walk
out. But if the
pothole is low it can be
very difficult to get
out of. The
pothole has been
measured at 19 feet deep
in the past. The
down canyon side of the
pothole has a sand slope
that ramps back down to
the pothole making a
potshot or backpack toss
in effective. A
happy hooker (a large
hook on a tent pole with
an etrier attached) can
be used to reach up and
hook the sharp lip or
you can use your hooking
kit to hook out with
drilled holes in the
wall. Rumor has it
some of the holes have
been blown out and may
need to be re-drilled.
On my first visit here
we swam right over the
pothole and walked out.
Keep in mind it may not
always be that way.
There have been trip
reports where people
have had to swim with
dead and rotting animals
in that pothole and
climb out.
Just after the final
rappel and the huge
pothole the canyon opens
up (wIlusionRP07) to a
wide vegetated wash.
Walk about 300 feet down
canyon to the bottom of
a ravine (jIlusionSneak)
on the RDC (east) side.
This ravine is the
Illusions Sneak Exit.
By going up this ravine
you can get back to your
entry vehicle at the
start of the route.
The traditional route
used to be traveling all
the way down to the West
Fork of Oak Creek then
down the West Fork of
Oak Creek to the Call of
the Canyon parking area.
This sneak exit saves a
lot of time, travel on
foot and removes the
need for a long car
shuttle.
The Exit:
From the
bottom of the exit
ravine (jIlusionSneak)
route find your way
southeast up the ravine.
Going up this ravine is
steep and gets steeper
near the top. The
ravine is about 0.4
miles in length and has
an elevation gain of
about 840 feet.
Travel up the ravine has
a few dry fall like
features where you will
need to upclimb them or
go up and around but it
is all pretty easy.
You may find social
trails along the way on
the sides of the ravine
/ drainage which may
lead you to steep side
sloping terrain.
Travel is pretty
straight forward and not
difficult to just stay
in the drainage all the
way up only bypassing a
dry fall if needed.
Watch out for poison ivy
near the bottom of this
ravine!
Near the bottom of this
ravine it is two
drainages traveling up
parallel to one another
but you may not notice
this with all the trees
and vegetation. It
doesn't matter which
drainage you are going
up since they join into
one (wIlusionRP08) about
375 feet up the ravine
near a dry fall that can
be bypassed LUC or on
use trails along the RUC
side.
Continuing up the ravine
will be a few dryfall /
boulder piles to
scramble up and or
bypass.
As you get closer to the
top the ravine seems to
widen out (wIlusionRP09)
where you could go left
or right. Stay in
the ravine to the right
as it parallels the
cliff band on the right.
About 150 feet before
reaching the top of the
ravine the the slope
gets steeper and the
dirt is clay like mud
when wet. If it is
dry this should be
pretty easy to stomp
your way up to the
saddle at the top of the
ravine. If it is
raining while you go up
this steep clay section
it is a little scary
since it is difficult to
keep from sliding (ask
me how I know this).
If it is wet from rain
be prepared to kind of
claw your way up in dirt
and grabbing the
vegetation to keep you
going.
When you get to the top
of the ravine
(wIlusionRP10) you will
be about 250 feet to the
right (south) of a
saddle. Look for a
use trail going
southeast away from the
saddle and traversing
around the cliff band on
your right (south).
The use trail will
travel southeast for
about 150 feet then
switch back up to the
right to go west and
work its way up to above
the cliff band.
About 250 feet after the
switchback the trail
will fade away just as
it gets to the side of a
deep ravine
(wIlusionRP11).
When the trail reaches
the side of the deep
ravine and fades away,
turn left and walk south
up the steep forested
slope.
About 300 feet up from
where the trail faded
away by the side of the
large ravine the slope
will get more gentle as
you reach the crest
(wIlusionRP12) of the
very wide ridge.
From the crest of the
ridge walk west
following up the crest
of the ridge about 450
feet to the end of a
road (pkIlusionEnd).
If you ran a shuttle
your car should be
parked here at the end
of the road. If
you parked at the entry
parking spot then walk
the road south for about
0.3 miles to your car (pkIlusionBeg).
Downloadable GPX files
available at
BG-Gear Store
(easier than manual entry and a great way to support
Bluugnome).
Waypoint naming convention and map symbol information can be found on the Glossary page.
Elevations are approximate.
BEFORE
manually entering coordinates set your system to WGS84 datum and Lat/Lon hddd.ddddd° coordinate format.
Inconsistent datum's and coordinate formats will result in location errors.
Click to show / expand the list of waypoints below........
Illusions (1) - Drive in from Flagstaff |
- ext231-Woody
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 35.17891
W -111.69761
Elev: NaN Feet
This is the junction of W Kiltie Lane and S Woody Mountain Raod. Travel south on S Woody Mountian Road. S Woody Road will turn into FsRd231 and the transition happens at varying places depending on what map you look at. About 450 feet south of this intersection S Woody Mountain Road turns into a dirt road.
- Ext236A-231
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 35.07506
W -111.84248
Elev: 7,710 Feet
Intersection.
To the east and west here is FsRd231. To the south is FsRD236A. To the northwest is 538.
- extFR778
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98493
W -111.80572
Elev: NaN Feet
Exit off of Forest service raod 231 onto Forest Service road 778. FR231 continues east and FR778 travels northeast. To go to Illusions continue east on FR231. To go to Insomnia turn left (northeast) ontp FR778.
- ext0918M
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.97780
W -111.77889
Elev: NaN Feet
Signed turn off of 231 onto 0918M. 0918M branches off to the left to travel northwest. To drive into Illusions turn left (northeast) on 0918M.
- IlusionsDP01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98223
W -111.76712
Elev: NaN Feet
Fork in the road on the drive into Illusions. Stay left at the fork to travel north.
- pkIlusionBeg
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98557
W -111.76949
Elev: 6,950 Feet
Park here in one of a few clearings on the side of the road to start the Illusions route. This is about 0.28 miles after passing a fork in the road where you stayed left on the drive in. If you are setting a shuttle for Illusions exit continue north down this road about 0.3 miles to where the road ends to set the exit vehicle. Walk southwest leaving the road to walk down the slopes.
|
Illusions (2) - Drive in from Sedona |
- extFsRd535-89
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 35.04681
W -111.73326
Elev: 6,530 Feet
Drive west on CoRd535 leaving highway 89 Alt.
- ext535-236A
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 35.05846
W -111.80498
Elev: NaN Feet
3 way junction.
To the east is 535, to the west is 236A and to the south is 536A.
- Ext236A-231
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 35.07506
W -111.84248
Elev: 7,710 Feet
Intersection.
To the east and west here is FsRd231. To the south is FsRD236A. To the northwest is 538.
- extFR778
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98493
W -111.80572
Elev: NaN Feet
Exit off of Forest service raod 231 onto Forest Service road 778. FR231 continues east and FR778 travels northeast. To go to Illusions continue east on FR231. To go to Insomnia turn left (northeast) ontp FR778.
- ext0918M
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.97780
W -111.77889
Elev: NaN Feet
Signed turn off of 231 onto 0918M. 0918M branches off to the left to travel northwest. To drive into Illusions turn left (northeast) on 0918M.
- IlusionsDP01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98223
W -111.76712
Elev: NaN Feet
Fork in the road on the drive into Illusions. Stay left at the fork to travel north.
- pkIlusionBeg
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98557
W -111.76949
Elev: 6,950 Feet
Park here in one of a few clearings on the side of the road to start the Illusions route. This is about 0.28 miles after passing a fork in the road where you stayed left on the drive in. If you are setting a shuttle for Illusions exit continue north down this road about 0.3 miles to where the road ends to set the exit vehicle. Walk southwest leaving the road to walk down the slopes.
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Illusions (3) - Approach and Canyon |
- pkIlusionBeg
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98557
W -111.76949
Elev: 6,950 Feet
Park here in one of a few clearings on the side of the road to start the Illusions route. This is about 0.28 miles after passing a fork in the road where you stayed left on the drive in. If you are setting a shuttle for Illusions exit continue north down this road about 0.3 miles to where the road ends to set the exit vehicle. Walk southwest leaving the road to walk down the slopes.
- wIlusionRP01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98463
W -111.77089
Elev: NaN Feet
You are about 150 feet above the floor of the large drainage below look for some game trails going right (northwest) that traverse along the slopes roughly parallel to the large drainage below. The trails are not well traveled and may be easily missed.
From here you have 2 options.
Option 1: Follow the faint trails as they traverse northwest along the drainage slowly dropping down to the drainage about 600 feet down canyon. If you follow these trails you may find your way down a slope and into the drainage where you will be right below a large dry fall in the drainage. This is what we did on my first visit here but the trails are faint and you may or may not easily find the correct spot.
Option 2: Ignore the trails and continue 150 feet down to the floor of the drainage then turn right to walk northwest down the drainage about 600 feet to to top of the dry fall. I have not personally done this but have been told you can easily bypass the dryfall by going up and over on the RDC side and down a slope to the canyon floor. On my first visit here there were obvious tracks indicating a path around the dryfall may be forming.
- wIlusionRP02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98563
W -111.77286
Elev: NaN Feet
Dry fall. When you get to the dryfall, if you found your way to the bottom using the faint trails on the side slopes of the drainage, continue down canyon.
If you found yourself at the top of the dryfall you can bypass by going up and over on the RDC side then working your way down steep dirt to the canyon floor below. Alternately you can rappel from a tree just above the dry fall and rappel down.
- yIlusionsTp
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98747
W -111.77545
Elev: 6,420 Feet
Illusions Canyon top entry. There is a drop of about 40 or 50 feet in the canyon here that is bypassed RDC using use trails to get over to a chute about 100 feet down canyon where you can walk / scramble down a dirt slope to the canyon floor.
- wIlusionRP03
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98767
W -111.77540
Elev: NaN Feet
Top of a chute / ravine you can walk / scramble down to get back to the canyon floor. There are other chutes dropping down to the canyon floor near here but they will be sketchy looking and may require a rappel to get in. This chute is an easy walk / scramble down a dirt slope of about 35 feet back down to the canyon floor.
- dIlusionR1-2
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98932
W -111.77423
Elev: NaN Feet
Raps 1 and 2 - Illusions.
Rap 1 is anchored from a tree on the LDC side and drops about 20 feet down over a large boulder. Rap 1 can be downclimbed but the slick moss covered walls make this a little sketchy making a rappel the safer option.
Rap 2 is about 50 feet down canyon of rap 1, is anchored from a single bolted hanger on the RDC side about head high and drops about 15 feet down to a pool which can be a swimmer when full with an easy walk out on the down canyon side.
- dIlusionR3
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99011
W -111.77386
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 3 - Illusions is about 250 feet down canyon of rap 2, is anchored from a tree up on a ledge about 10 feet up on the LDC side, drops about 25 feet down from the tree into a narrow section where you will swim a short distance with an easy walk out of the pool on the down canyon side.
- wIlusionRP04
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99107
W -111.77336
Elev: NaN Feet
Deep sculpted section of canyon, very pretty and about 500 feet long between raps 3 and 4. This point is approximately where a tree filled ravine drops down from the LDC side and about 150 feet before reaching rap 4. This section has multiple short easy downclimbs and has a lot of water that can be chest deep and maybe a swim for a couple of feet here and there. There are also a couple of downclimbs of about 15 feet each down corkscrew like flutes, one of these goes next to an arch. In the last 100 feet of this section are a couple of very large room size potholes to cross before getting to rap 4. On my first visit here these were sand filled and easy to walk through potholes in deep chamber like spots, if flooding washes debris out this may change a bit.
- dIlusionR4
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99137
W -111.77302
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 4 Illusions, is about 500 feet down canyon of rap 3, is anchored LDC from a single bolted hanger and drops about 25 feet to a waist deep pool below that may become deeper since it was sand filled and looked like it could blow out with a flood. Part way down rap 4 is an arch you can rappel through if you take your pack off or you can step over and rappel over the arch.
To avoid rope grooving at rap 4, please set the pull rope so it is over the arch then step down canyon a few feet to pull the rope keeping the rope away from the rock as much as possible. Pulling the ropes through the arch will create rope grooves.
- wIlusionRP05
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99158
W -111.77280
Elev: NaN Feet
Cross joint where ravines drop down to the canyon on both sides. Just before getting to this ravine is a corkscrew downclimb of about 35 feet tall that is easy to downclimb / slide down. There was an anchor set to rappel this corkscrew on our visit here but the downclimb is much easier than it looks.
- dIlusionR5-7
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99240
W -111.77174
Elev: NaN Feet
Raps 5, 6, 7 - Illusions
Rap 5 is about 450 feet down canyon of the 35 foot corkscrew downclimb, is anchored from 2 very odd glue in style anchors on the LDC side, drops about 25 feet down a chute next to a fin then down a wall to a waist deep pool. The anchors for rap 5 used to be standard bolted hangers which disappeared and the anchor became the logs at the top of the drop. On my first visit there we found two anchors on the LDC side that look like they had been put in very sloppily with JB Weld.
Rap 6 is on the other side of the pool below rap 5, is anchored from a log jam and drops down 20 feet to a pothole that can be a keeper when water levels are low but an easy out when full with a solid edge to grab to pull yourself out. Just before getting down to the pothole is a sloped ledge you can stand on and make an easy pack toss of about 8 feet across the pot hole. In years past rap 5 used to be anchored from bolted hangers as well.
Rap 7 is on the other side of the pool below rap 6, is anchored from logs at the top of the drop and drops about 15 feet to a pool that is a swimmer and easy to get out of.
On the other side of the pool below rap 7 is a downclimb of about 15 feet where you can downclimb / slide down a slope on the LDC side but it is a little precarious getting over to the start of the slide. At the bottom of the down climb is a pool that is a swimmer for about 8 feet.
- dIlusionR8
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99275
W -111.77154
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 8 Illusions - Anchored on the LDC side from a hole feature on the wall that almost looks like a knot chalk and drops about 10 feet. Rap 8 can be downclimbed and can easily be partner assisted.
Just past rap 8 is a pool to swim across then a corkscrew downclimb of about 15 feet down a chute then over a vertical drop with the last 4 feet being a little difficult where you will likely just drop the last few feet into the pool below and swim away.
- dIlusionR9-10
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99293
W -111.77142
Elev: 6,100 Feet
Raps 9, 1o - Illusions.
Rap 9 anchored from 2 bolted hangers on the LDC side about head high and drops about 15 feet to a pool at the bottom. Swim across the pool and around the corner to the right to climb out the other side. When you climb out of the pool to the lip of the pool you will be greeted with the anchors for rap 10.
Rap 10 is anchored LDC from 2 bolted hangers about head high while sitting at the lip and drops about 80 feet down to a huge sand filled pothole / pool.
- wIlusionRP06
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99309
W -111.77133
Elev: NaN Feet
Short wide vegetated wash just down canyon of rap 10.
On the down canyon side of the open vegetated area another slot starts where you can downclimb into and through a pothole (or taller people can stem over it) then downclimb over a drop of about 6 feet with a small tube in the rock on the downclimb that make for a solid hand hold to lower yourself over the drop.
- dIlusionR11-12
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99334
W -111.77122
Elev: NaN Feet
Raps 11, 12 - Illusions
Rap 11 anchored from rocks at the top of the drop and drops about 40 feet to a pool. Around the corner from the bottom of rap 11 is rap 12.
Rap 12 is anchored RDC from 2 bolted hangers and drops about 90 feet to a pothole about 20 feet across. The pothole at the bottom of rap 12 can be a swim across if full or a 19 foot deep keeper with a sand slope on the down canyon side making a potshot ineffective. A happy hooker or hooking kit and drill may be needed to get out of the pothole if it is low.
- wIlusionRP07
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99355
W -111.77118
Elev: NaN Feet
Wide vegetated wash below the last rappel and the huge pothole. Walk down canyon about 300 feet down canyon to the bottom of a ravine on the RDC (east) side. Going up that ravine is the sneak exit for Illusions.
- jIlusionSneak
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99433
W -111.77086
Elev: 5,860 Feet
Bottom of the Illusions Sneak Exit ravine. Watch out for poison ivy near the bottom of this ravine!
Route find your way southeast up the ravine. Going up this ravine is steep and gets steeper near the top. The ravine is about 0.4 miles in length and has an elevation gain of about 840 feet. Travel up the ravine has a few dryfall like features where you will need to upclimb them or go up and around but it is all pretty easy. You may find social trails along the way on the sides of the ravine / drainage which may lead you to steep side sloping terrain. Travel is pretty straight forward and not difficult to just stay in the drainage all the way up only bypassing a dryfall if needed.
Note that if traveling up Illusions to this point you will first go through a large boulder debris field then be presented with what appears to be 3 ravines. The one to the right (west) looking up canyon is a side ravine. The one in the middle is the main Illusions draiange. The one to the left (more eastish) is the Illusions shortcut exit.
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Illusions (4) - Sneak Exit |
- jIlusionSneak
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99433
W -111.77086
Elev: 5,860 Feet
Bottom of the Illusions Sneak Exit ravine. Watch out for poison ivy near the bottom of this ravine!
Route find your way southeast up the ravine. Going up this ravine is steep and gets steeper near the top. The ravine is about 0.4 miles in length and has an elevation gain of about 840 feet. Travel up the ravine has a few dryfall like features where you will need to upclimb them or go up and around but it is all pretty easy. You may find social trails along the way on the sides of the ravine / drainage which may lead you to steep side sloping terrain. Travel is pretty straight forward and not difficult to just stay in the drainage all the way up only bypassing a dryfall if needed.
Note that if traveling up Illusions to this point you will first go through a large boulder debris field then be presented with what appears to be 3 ravines. The one to the right (west) looking up canyon is a side ravine. The one in the middle is the main Illusions draiange. The one to the left (more eastish) is the Illusions shortcut exit.
- wIlusionRP08
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99348
W -111.77019
Elev: NaN Feet
Dry fall that can be bypassed LUC or on use trails along the RUC side. At this dry fall the two parallel drianages join into one.
Continuing up the ravine will be a few dryfall / boulder piles to scramble up and or bypass.
- wIlusionRP09
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.99094
W -111.76890
Elev: NaN Feet
As you get closer to the top the ravine seems to widen out where you could go left or right. Stay in the ravine to the right as it parallels the cliff band on the right.
- wIlusionRP10
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98999
W -111.76767
Elev: 6,700 Feet
Top out of the ravine. You will be about 250 feet to the right (south) of a saddle. Look for a use trail going southeast away from the saddle and traversing around the cliff band on your right (south).
The use trail will travel southeast for about 150 feet then switch back up to the right to go west and work its way up to above the cliff band.
- wIlusionRP11
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98986
W -111.76806
Elev: NaN Feet
This point is about 250 feet after the switchback in the trail. The trail fades away just as it gets to the side of a deep ravine. When the trail reaches the side of the deep ravine and fades away, turn left and walk south up the steep forested slope. to the crest of the ridge about 300 feet away.
- wIlusionRP12
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98931
W -111.76865
Elev: NaN Feet
Crest of the ridge. Walk west following up the crest of the ridge about 450 feet to the end of a road (pkIlusionEnd).
- pkIlusionEnd
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 34.98922
W -111.77011
Elev: 6,970 Feet
Park car here if you are running a shuttle for Illusions or Insomnia. If you are doing Illusions and did not run a shuttle this is where you get to the end of a road on the hike out. Walk the road south to get to the top parking spot for Illusions about 0.3 miles away.
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