Canyoneering Route Description

Short End of the Stick - 2A I
North Wash, Utah.

Quick Facts

10-21-2012, 2 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route unknown)  Downclimbed and upclimbed this as an addition to the day.
03-27-2016, 4 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 2.1 hours) - Includes a side trip into lower Shillelagh Canyon

Time Required - 1.5 to 2.5 hours
Distance - 2 miles Total, 0.2 miles Technical
Rappels - 0 Rappels, Longest Rappel N/A feet.  Downclimbs to 20 feet.
Elevation Range - 4510 - 4895 Feet
Shuttle Required - No Vehicle - Passenger Permit Required - No

Gear Used for Canyon

There is no rappelling for the Short End of the Stick route.  However it is recommended to bring a short rope to assist those not comfortable with the down climbs. A 30 foot rope or webbing should be plenty.

General Comments

Short End of the Stick is a side drainage leading down into the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon.  There are a few noteworthy downclimbs in the canyon and no rappelling.  While this is a very short route and does not require rappelling it is suggested that a short rope be brought along to assist those not comfortable with the down climbs.

The downclimbs in Short End of the Stick can be challenging even for experienced canyoneers.  If you are new to the sport, keep in mind that descending this route may be difficult.  A friend with good downclimbing skills can be a great tool to have along.  Do bring rope or webbing with you jut incase.  Just because the rating says 2, does not mean it will be an easy route.

The upclimbs are more difficult and most people will not be able to upclimb this route alone and will need a rope set for them.  Those with very good upclimbing skills can ascend this route with no ropes but it will require substantial effort.

Depending on your climbing skills, Short End of the Stick can be upclimbed as well.  This can make a good addition to a day in one of the Shillelaghs since it can be upclimbed or downclimbed allowing more route options.  If you want some fun and very challenging upclimbing added to your day, try using this route as the approach to get to one of the Shillelagh Forks.

Adam Anderson was looking around one day and stumbled upon this drainage and was excited to go back to look it over some day.  When we were out playing in the area he talked me into going down it with him to go see what was there.  Short End of the Stick is the name Adam gave to the route.  Since Shillelagh is a stick and this route is short with no rappels, I found the name fitting. 

Arguably this route may be a little contrived as a canyon route.  But considering how little technical difficulty both forks of Shillelagh offer, this makes a nice addition to go enjoy some down climbing for a short outing when the mood hits.

Driving Directions

To get to the Trailhead

Short End of the Stick uses part of the same approach as the Shillelagh Canyons.  

From the junction of Utah highways 276 and 95, drive South on highway 95 about 1.5 miles to a turn off to a short dirt road (extBlarney).  The road drives straight back from the highway about 300 feet then turns left to drop down into the wash.  Park after the 300 feet of straight road before it turns (pkBlarney).  Optionally you can park out on the road and walk the 300 feet in.

To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod

No exit vehicle is needed.  This is done as a loop route.

Maps

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 entire route.

Details

The Approach:
From where you parked on the dirt road (pkBlarney) you will see the dirt road continue on into the wash that leads up into Blarney.  Walk north west across the road and follow a faint path up out of the wash the road was going up.  You will find yourself on a high spot between the wash the road was following and another drainage on the right (south west).   

Continue north west between these two drainages.  About 350 feet from the car will be the base of a slick rock slope (wBlarneyRP-01).  Scramble north up the sandstone slope to gain access to the ridge running between the two drainages. After about 375 feet the slope levels off a little but still continues climbing.   

After another 450 feet is a smooth sandstone high point along the ridge (wBlarneyRP-02).  From this smooth high point is a view of a huge rock face ahead about 500 feet away.  

Then another 300 feet is another high point that has more of a rock out cropping look (wBlarneyRP-03).  Skirt around the left (west) side of the high point and continue toward the huge rock face.  

After another 200 feet you will be at the base of the huge rock face (wBlarneyRP-04).  Follow a well worn trail around the left (west) side of the rock face.  

Another 550 feet will be a scramble up a section of slick rock (wBlarneyRP-05).  At the top of the slick rock the trail continues north and is still easy to follow.  The trail here is following the rim of the canyon on your right which is a side drainage of Blarney.  

About another 350 feet will be another slick rock slope (wBlarneyRP-06) to scramble up about 50 or 60 feet high.  A cairn may be at the top to help guide you.  At the top the trail continues still roughly following the rim on the right (east) side.  

After the last slick rock scramble follow the well worn path about 0.3 miles to a junction in the trail (jBlarnyShilela).  To the left (north west) leads to the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon.  To the right (north east) leads to the Left Fork of Blarney Canyon.  

From the junction veer left (north west) and follow the path toward the head of the Right (east) Fork of Shillelagh Canyon. 

About 700 feet from the junction there is a faint spur trail branching off left (northwest) leading down into the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon. Stay on the more well worn path and continue north another 200 feet where the trail turns left and heads northwest to an easy walk down into the Right (east) Fork of Shillelagh (jShillelaghRF).

To continue to the Left Fork of Shillelagh or to the Short End of the Stick Route continue west crossing over the wash and walk up the slope on the other side.  There is no well defined trail leaving the north side of the wash heading to Short End of the Stick or the Right Fork of Shillelagh.  The remainder of the route to the head of Short End of the Stick is route finding through rolling desert.

A little more the 300 feet after leaving the Right Fork of Shillelagh (jShrtEnd ), veer left and start heading southwest.  Walk southwest about about 0.13 miles on a bearing of 250 degrees to a drainage (yShrtEndRP-01) that travels down to the south.

Note:
At this point you should be about 600 feet west of the rim of the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon.  There is a smaller drainage between this drainage and the Right Fork.  If you are too close to the Right Fork you may find yourself at the wrong slot.

After dropping into the drainage for Short End of the Stick follow it south down canyon about 700 feet to the head of Short End of the Stick (yShrtEndTp).

Note:
When you get down to what you think is the correct slot take a look around.  If you are at the wrong slot you will only be about 150 feet from the rim of Shillelagh Right Fork and you will be able to see down the slot and tell that it is only about 600 feet long to where it joins the Right Fork.

If you get to the top  of the correct slot and are at Short End of the Stick, you will be at the top of a large drop down a shelf in the canyon with a wide open flat easy walking section visible below you few hundred feet.  You will not be able to see directly down the drainage all the way to the Right Fork of Shillelagh since it is about 1200 feet away.  But you will be able to the wide open flat part of the very end of Shillelagh in the distance.

The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
At the head of Short End of the Stick (yShrtEndTp) is a slotted downclimb of about 20 feet that is a little challenging near the bottom few feet. 

After the downclimb continue down the wash about 300 feet to an overhanging drop over another shelf (yShrtEndRP-02).  Bypass this drop by downclimbing the ledges to the left (east) side of the drop.  Be careful here.  The start of the downclimb is a bit awkward and has a lot of loose rocks.  The rest of the downclimb is pretty easy after getting past the first part.

About 275 feet down canyon is the start of the slotted section where the down climbing fun begins (yShrtEndRP-03).  There are a couple short downclimbs in twisted walls and a pothole to stem over if muddy as well as the drops described here.

At the start of this section (yShrtEndRP-03) is a drop of about 12 feet and is a moderate stem style downclimb.  Some people will be able to upclimb this with no partner assist.

About 300 feet farther down canyon is a drop of about 25 feet and is a more challenging down climb.  If you don't get it right the last 5 feet or so will be a fast slide into soft sand at the bottom.  Most people will need a partner assist to get back up this drop but a few will be able to do this with no assistance.

About 100 feet farther down canyon is another drop of about 12 feet (yShrtEndRP-04).  This drop is narrow more protected feeling drop but is steep and a little difficult.  Most people will want / need a handline to upclimb this one.

About 175 feet farther down canyon is the bottom of Short End of the Stick (yShrtEndSticBt) where it drops into the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon.

Turn right and continue south down the Right Fork of Shillelagh.  Follow down a narrow section with a series of small potholes.  

Another 900 feet down canyon is a huge drainage joining in from RDC (yShillelaghBt).  This drainage is the Left (west) Fork of Shillelagh Canyon.  This is marked as the bottom exit for both forks of Shillelagh Canyon.

The Exit:
From the Junction of the 2 forks of Shillelagh Canyon walk the wash 0.4 miles back to the road (tShillelaghBt).  Next walk south 0.2 miles back to where you parked near the bottom of Blarney Canyon.

GPS Waypoint Information

Click to show / expand the list of waypoints below........

Short End of the Stick (1) - Approach

extBlarney          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02044   W -110.54493        Elev: 4,510 Feet Exit for the dirt road into the bottom of Blarney Canyon. pkBlarney          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02120   W -110.54479        Elev: 4,530 Feet Park here on the dirt road a short distance from the highway to start Blarney Canyon or Shillelagh Canyon. wBlarneyRP-01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02194   W -110.54538        Elev: NaN Feet Base of a sand stone slope leading up to the ridge between two drainages. wBlarneyRP-02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02397   W -110.54431        Elev: NaN Feet Smooth sand stone high point on the ridge. wBlarneyRP-03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02484   W -110.54440        Elev: NaN Feet Another high point along the ridge that looks more like a rock out cropping. wBlarneyRP-04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02542   W -110.54441        Elev: NaN Feet At the base of a huge rock face. Travel around the left (west) side of the rock face following a well worn trail. wBlarneyRP-05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02664   W -110.54412        Elev: NaN Feet Scramble up a section of slick rock to find where the trail continues. wBlarneyRP-06          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02745   W -110.54399        Elev: 4,830 Feet Another slick rock slope to scramble up to find where the trail continues again. jBlarnyShilela          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03085   W -110.54269        Elev: 4,855 Feet Junction where the trail forks for either the West Fork of Blarney to the right (north east) or the East Fork of Shillelagh to the left (north west). jShillelaghRF          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03326   W -110.54193        Elev: 4,875 Feet Trail drops down into the Right Fork of Shillelagh here. Turn south and walk down the wash to drop into the Right Fork of Shillelagh. Or continue west accross the wash and up the otehr side to continue over to the Left (west) Fork of Shillelagh Canyon or the Short End of the Stick route. jShrtEnd          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03327   W -110.54314        Elev: 4,895 Feet Leave the route to Left Fork of Shillelagh aproximately here and head southwest down to Short End of the Stick. yShrtEndRP-01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03256   W -110.54527        Elev: 4,880 Feet Route drops into the draiange leading down to Short End of the Stick. yShrtEndTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03031   W -110.54639        Elev: 4,810 Feet Down climb a slot like feature to drop down the 20 foot shelf to a wide open walking section below.

Short End of the Stick (2) - Canyon and Exit

yShrtEndTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.03031   W -110.54639        Elev: 4,810 Feet Down climb a slot like feature to drop down the 20 foot shelf to a wide open walking section below. yShrtEndRP-02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02954   W -110.54671        Elev: 4,780 Feet Large overhanging drop over a shelf. Bypass this drop by downclimbing along the ledges to the left (east) side. Be careful since the downclimb has an awkward start and has a lot of loose rock. THe rest of the downclimb is pretty easy after getting past the start. yShrtEndRP-03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02887   W -110.54715        Elev: NaN Feet This is where the downclimbing fun starts. This spot is a 12 foot moderatly challenging stem style downclimb. Down canyon of here is a drop of about 20 feet that is a little more challenging. Next is another downclimb of about 15 feet which is also moderately challenging. yShrtEndRP-04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02772   W -110.54749        Elev: NaN Feet Last downclimb in Short End of the Stick. This one is about 15 feet. yShrtEndBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02726   W -110.54751        Elev: 4,590 Feet Bottom of the Short End of the Stick route where it drops into the Right Fork of Shillelagh Canyon. yShillelaghBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02573   W -110.54944        Elev: 4,560 Feet Bottom exit for both fork of Shillelagh Canyon. Junction of the right and left forks of Shillelagh Canyon. tShillelaghBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.02088   W -110.54842        Elev: 4,510 Feet Bottom trailhead for Shillelagh Canyon where the wash meets the road.