Canyoneering Route Description

Bluejohn Canyon - Squeeze Fork - 3A(B) III
Robbers Roost, Utah.

Quick Facts

10-12-13, 10 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 8 hours) Pictures Icon

Time Required - 7 to 9 hours
Distance (exit option 2 - up the Main Fork - 9.7 miles Total, 2.2 miles Technical
Distance (exit option 1 - using the East Fork Exit - 8.7 miles Total, 1.7 miles Technical
Rappels - 3 Rappels, Longest Rappel 25 feet. (all rappels can be downclimbed with moderate downclimbing skill)
Elevation Range - 5940 - 5230 Feet
Shuttle Required - No Miles Vehicle - High Clearance recommended, 4WD if bad road conditions Permit Required - No

Gear Used for Canyon

Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up to 25 feet and 35 feet of 1 inch webbing for sling placement. 

Wet suits are a good idea if the canyon has seen recent rains and has water in it.  There are a couple spots that might go to chest deep but most of the water will be waist deep at most.  A farmer john style suit will work well.  Very hot days may be a good time to go without the wet suit.  Moderate temperature days can still see cold water in the canyon as parts of the canyon are deep, narrow and see little to no sunlight.

General Comments

The Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon is a more technical entry for the East Fork of Bluejohn.  The Squeeze Fork drops into the East Fork then the remainder of the route is down the East Fork and selecting an exit option.

The East Fork and the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn canyon is sometimes completely dry allowing for easy travel.  Other times the canyon fills with water and you can expect long sections of wading through waist deep water.  This is why the water rating is A (B) rating.

The Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon is less than 0.75 miles long before dumping into the less technical East Fork.  In that 0.75 miles of the Squeeze Fork you get a lot of bang for your buck with some anchor challenges, deep dark sections with challenging downclimbs and some narrow spots that large people will have issues getting through.  If you want an easy day out or are a large person consider dropping down through the East Fork of Bluejohn and skip the Squeeze Fork.

None of the drops in the Squeeze Fork are mandatory rappels.  The three raps listed may be safer as a rappel depending on how slick the walls are and what your downclimbing ability is.  While you may think you want to downclimb everything, bring some rope and webbing anyway in case you decide rapping is a good idea.

Note - How Skinny?:
The last 500 feet of the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon is awesome as it gets deep, very narrow!  This is also where large people may have issues.  If you are sort of large you can just battle your way through with no problem.  If you are very large or have one of those huge barrel chests you may have a lot of work getting through the last 500 feet.  The help of a couple of smaller friends can help transport your pack and help find the wide spots you can squeeze your big parts through.

The narrowest spots are just before getting to the end of the Squeeze Fork and the narrowest parts are down by the canyon floor.  They feel comparable to how skinny Middle Leprechaun Canyon is.  If you have never done skinny canyons go check out Middle Leprechaun first to see how you like them.  The good news is the skinniest spots get wider about 3 or 4 feet up.  If you find you are too large for the skinny spots you can stem up a few feet to go over them.  If you do not have the skills to do that have a couple smaller friends along who can get under you and help you stem up and over the very skinny spots.

Navigation Warning:
The terrain here is very forgiving which means two things.  1. you can find lots of different ways and trails to get where you want to be.  2. You can very easily get lost if you do not pay attention to your navigation.

On the approach to the East Fork and the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon you will encounter many use trails.  Some go where you want them to, others do not.  You may have been shown or found on your own a route you prefer.  The route described here seems to be one of the more direct and easy to travel routes.  Do not get careless with your navigation here which could easily lead to dropping into the wrong canyon.  Keep a close eye on your map and or GPS and be sure you are where you need / want to be.

Exit options 1 and 2.
If using Exit Option 1 and climbing up out of the East Fork of Bluejohn, note that there are few easily identifiable landmark to get you to the correct location.  Good map reading skills and or GPS will be helpful locating the start of the route described here.  There are likely multiple spots to walk / scramble to the mesa top above so you can also wing it and find a slightly different way up to the mesa top to use this exit option.

If using Exit Option 2 and climbing up the Main Fork you will enjoy the Cathedral.  The Cathedral is a section of the corridor that is wide at the bottom but the walls close in at the top nearly touching. If you are there at just the right time of day you can see the sun creating a wall of light beaming into the canyon and watch slowly drifting sand float down in the light looking like rain.  Exit option 2 also has a series of about 6 drops to upclimb in the upper 700 feet of the slot in the Main Fork ranging from 6 to 25 feet.  Moderate to a little difficult upclimbing skills will get you up the drops.  Most of the upclimbing or downclimbing is stem style with back on one wall and feet on the other wall.  A rope is likely not needed but should be on hand incase someone needs assistance.

Driving Directions

To get to the Trailhead

From the junction of Highways 24 and 95 in Hanksville Utah, drive north on Highway 24 about 16.2 miles to a turn off for a dirt road on the right (east) side of the road (ExtRobRoost).  This turn off is just across the highway from the Little Gilson Butte.

Drive east on the un-named dirt road continuing past a small building with a water tank about 0.5 miles from the highway.  This small building and tank is close to what some maps label as Gilson Butte Well (wGilsonButeWel).  

About 2.0 miles from the highway will be an intersection with a major dirt road (extFlintTrail1).  Some maps have this road labeled as the Flint Trail and other have it labeled as the Lower San Rafael Road.  Turn right (south) on to this large dirt road.  

After turning onto the Lower San Rafael Road, drive 4.1 miles to where the road turns left (east) and passes by a large corral (wJefferyWell).  This turn in the road is next to what is labeled as Jeffery Well on some maps.

After passing Jeffery Well drive east about 2.8 miles and pass through a gate which is on the south side of the Little Flat Top (wLittleFltTpGt).  This gate is also at the top out of the road.

Continue beyond the gate following the road east then slowly turning toward the south and passing along the south side of The Big Flat Tops.  About 6.0 miles after the gate will be a turn off to a road on the right (extFlintTrail2).  Stay left and continue east on the Lower San Rafael Road.

Continuing east, stay on the very obvious main road ignoring small occasional un-signed side roads for about 9.4 miles to a major junction (extHansFlat).  At this junction are signs for Hans Flat to the right (south).  This is where you will leave the Lower San Rafael Road by turning right (south) onto the Hans Flat Road towards Hans Flat Ranger station.

Drive south on the Hans Flat Road for 7.1 miles to another large junction with signage at it (extBurrEkker).  This is a junction of 3 roads (Hans Flat Road continuing south, Burr Pass Road going west and Ekker Ranch Road going southwest).  Stay on the Hans Flat road by staying straight to continue south.

Drive the Hans Flat road another 2.6 miles to an unmarked side road (extGranarySpng) joining in from the left (east).  Turn left and follow this road east for about 0.2 miles to the Motel 6 area near Granary Spring (pkMotel6)

Note:
The roads appear to be well maintained and should be easily traveled by passenger cars all the way to Motel 6 / Granary Spring unless recent rains have messed stuff up.

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.

Map Link Icon
Click the links for maps of the route. Map of the drive into the route.
Map of the entire route.
Map of the approach.
Map zoomed in 1.
Map zoomed in 2.

Details

The Approach:
Note:
The terrain here is very forgiving for travel so there are a lot of social and animal trails all over.  The entry described here seems to be one of the most direct and easy to follow routes to the canyon.  Keep in mind there are many ways to get to the canyon in this area since travel is easy on this forgiving terrain you may have been shown or personally found a route you like better.

From the parking spot at Motel 6 / Granary Spring (pkMotel6) walk due east a little over 500 feet to drop down into the bottom of a large drainage.  The large drainage is the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork. 

Note:
Remember there are a lot of social trails around here and you will find a lot of them.  Down in the drainage are a couple man made items that make for good landmarks.  One of the land marks is a fenced off area on the RDC side of the drainage (wBJC-MF-RP01).  About 450 feet down canyon of the fenced in area is a spring that has been piped up to the surface into watering containers for cattle (wBJC-MF-Spring). 

As you walk due east from Motel 6 you may find various paths leading down into the drainage.  Depending on which path you followed you may drop in up canyon or down canyon of the fenced in landmark (wBJC-MF-RP01).

After dropping down into the large Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork drainage turn left to walk north downstream.  Walk down canyon passing a fenced in area on the RDC side (wBJC-MF-RP01).  Remember you may not see this fenced in spot if you dropped in down canyon of it.

Walk down canyon about 350 feet past the fenced in area to where there is a sandstone wall on the RDC side of the canyon near a spring piped up into water containers for cattle.  Look for a use trail starting (jBJC-EF-Jct) up the RDC (east) side of the drainage.  The trail travels up the a steep dirt slope on the up canyon side of the slick rock.  The use trail is about 140 feet up canyon of the spring and water containers (wBJC-MF-Spring) so you should be able to see these from the start of the use trail.

Follow east up the use trail about 450 feet to where is tops out (wBJC-EF-RP01). 

After topping out continue east for a little over 400 feet to drop down into a minor drainage (wBJC-EF-RP02). 

Walk down the minor drainage about 250 feet and look for the start of a use trail (wBJC-EF-RP03) that goes up the east side up out of the drainage. 

Note:
Remember there are use trails all over the place out here.  Keep a close eye on your map and or GPS so you know where you are.  It is easy to drop into the wrong canyon here if you become careless about your navigation.

Follow the use trail about 350 feet up to where it tops out (wBJC-EF-RP04) on a ridge that runs down to the north.  From this top out continue almost due east for about 0.22 miles over to the next ridge (wBJC-EF-RP05).  The route from one ridge to the other will drop about 50 feet then regain that 50 feet to get to the other ridge.

From the ridge (wBJC-EF-RP05) continue east about 900 feet to drop down the other side and down into the next drainage below (wBJC-EF-RP06).

Once in the drainage (wBJC-EF-RP06) turn left to walk north down the drainage for about 0.35 miles to where the ridge on both sides drops down very low and you have passed some sandstone outcroppings near the end of the RDC side ridge (jBJC-SQF-Jct).  This is where you decide to go to Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon or over to the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.

Note:
If you were going to the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon, you would leave the drainage after passing the outcroppings at the end of the RDC ridge (jBJC-SQF-Jct) and route find your way about 0.5 miles east over to the East Fork drainage.

To go to the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon do not leave this drainage.  Stay in this drainage and follow it north down to the Squeeze Fork.

About 0.4 miles down the wash is a short drop (wBJC-SQF-RP01) of about 8 to 10 feet that can be easily walked around.

About 400 feet farther down the wash is a confluence where two forks join (yBJC-SQF-Tp).  Down stream of this confluence is where the canyon gets deeper and narrow and is the start of the technical section for the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.

The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
From top of the Squeeze Fork (yBJC-SQF-Tp) travel down canyon in a narrow V slot shape with a mix of walking, easy downclimbs and galumphing where it is too narrow to go to the ground.

About 0.2 miles down from the head is a drop of about 20 feet to downclimb (wBJC-SQF-RP02). The drop is a slightly sloped easy stem style downclimb.  About 50 feet down canyon of this drop is the top of rap 1.

Rap 1 (dBJC-SQF-R1) is anchored from choke stone at the top of the drop and drops about 25 feet down a narrow slot to a pool below.   Rap 1 can be downclimbed if desired but be aware the dirt is clay like in the area which could make the walls very slick.  The pool below rap 1 could be up to chest deep of the canyon were full of water.

After rap 1 is deep feeling narrow corridor for about 300 feet.  When the deep narrow corridor ends (wBJC-SQF-RP03) it gives way to a less deep feeling narrows as the walls V out creating the feel of space continue down the V slot walking / galumphing your way through. 

This V slot only lasts a short distance before you start through deep narrow feeling slot again.  As you start into the next narrow section you will need to stem up a few feet and galumph along down canyon a ways before being able to get back down to the floor to walk.  About 200 feet down canyon is a drop of about 15 feet which is the top of rap 2.

Rap 2 (dBJC-SQF-R2) is an easy to stem style downclimb to a pool below.  Optionally webbing rigged to choke stones here will allow one to rappel if you prefer not to downclimb. Moderate downclimbing skills will easily get you to the bottom of this drop.  Moderate downclimbing skills will easily get you to the bottom of this drop.  The pool at the bottom of the drop waist to chest deep depending on water levels.

The next 800 to 900 feet of canyon has multiple short downclimbs of no consequence as you walk, galumph and wade your way down canyon in a very beautiful, narrow winding slot with twisted walls before reaching a very brief open feeling spot (wBJC-SQF-RP04).  The brief open in the canyon is very short then you continue into more narrow slot.

The next narrow slot is about 300 feet long before getting to a brief open section with a bunch of boulder debris fallen into it (wBJC-SQF-RP05).

About 200 feet down canyon in the next slot, things are a little wider where walking is easy before you get to a drop of about 20 feet which is the top of rap 3.

Rap 3 (dBJC-SQF-R3) is downclimbable with moderate downclimbing skills but can also be set as a rappel if you prefer not to downclimb.  The anchor is a rock protruding out of the canyon floor a few feet back from the drop.  This drop is about 500 feet from the end of the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon where it drops into the East Fork.

The last 500 feet of the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon is awesome as it gets deep, very narrow!  This is also where large people may have issues.  If you are sort of large you can just battle your way through with no problem.  If you are very large or have one of those huge barrel chests you may have a lot of work getting through the last 500 feet.  The help of a couple of smaller friends can help transport your pack and help find the wide spots you can squeeze your big parts through.

As the Squeeze Fork ends it widens out into the East Fork.  After getting to the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon the skinny canyon experience has ended and travel is over all easy.

Down canyon of the confluence (yBJC-SQF-Bt) the canyon is narrow enough that most people will need to turn sideways in a few spots to pass.  Don't worry even large people can get through pretty easily.  The narrow walls widen out a bit to allow easy walking about 400 feet down canyon after the confluence of the Squeeze and East Forks.

The next 0.9 miles is mostly narrow canyon of shoulder width or wider, sculpted walls and easy walking in sand if dry.  This is a very scenic and easily traveled section and has a few short sections that widen out briefly.  However if the canyon is full of water from rains or flooding there will be long sections of water to wade through about waist deep.

About 0.9 miles down from the confluence of the East and Squeeze Forks of Bluejohn Canyon the narrow section widens out (wBJC-EF-RP11) giving way to very wide open sandy wash to walk.

After the canyon widens out to an open wash it is about 1.75 miles down to the end of the East Fork where it dumps into the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon (yBJC-EF-Bt).  Settle in for the sand slog and enjoy the quiet desert.

Exit Note:
If you plan to use Exit Option 2 and upclimb the Main Fork of Bluejohn, walk the 1.75 miles to the confluence then go up the main fork to to complete the route as described below in exit option 2.

If you plan to use Exit Option 1 and scramble up out of the East Fork of Bluejohn, please note that the exit described in exit option 1 is about 1.1 miles down canyon of where the East Fork widens (wBJC-EF-RP11) and about 0.6 miles before reaching the confluence with the Main Fork.  There are no distinctive landmarks to use to let you know you have arrived at the exit described below (jBJC-EF-Exit1).   Good map reading skills or GPS will be helpful locating this spot.  If you miss the exit spot you can likely find a few ways up to the rim since the slopes up the rim have multiple places where you could scramble up to the flat mesa above. 

The Exit:
There are a few ways to exit this area.  The two options here take you back to the Motel 6 / Granary Spring area.  Option 1 is to totally exit the canyon and walk back to Motel 6 / Granary Spring.  Option 2 is to upclimb the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon then walk up the wash back to Motel 6 / Granary Spring.  Option two is more work but you get the added bonus of seeing the upper portion of the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon and have some fun climbing up it.

Exit Option 1:  - Completely exit the canyon and walk back to Motel 6 / Granary Spring
The start of this exit up out of the East Fork does not have easy to identify landmarks so GPS or good map reading skills should get you to the correct spot. 

Note:
If you find you have mistakenly passed the start of the exit described here, it is likely you can find one of many ways to scramble up to the mesa top above on the northwest side of the East Fork.  To walk back to the start of the exit described here, turn around and walk south back up the East Fork about 0.33 miles to where you see a side drainage / ravine dropping down from the northwest.  Next continue up the East Fork about 0.28 miles farther to where you see another side drainage on the northwest that is much smaller.  The exit starts up along the up canyon side of this drainage (jBJC-EF-Exit1).

I have not confirmed from experience, but it should also be relatively easy to start the exit up to the mesa from the confluence (yBJC-EF-Bt).  If you wish to try this out start from the confluence and walk / scramble southwest up between the East and Main Forks of Bluejohn.  About 0.3 miles up the slope you will be up on the wide open spaces of the mesa top where it will be a flat easy walk about 0.5 miles over to where the exit described below gets up onto the mesa top (wBJC-EF-EXRP02).

The start of the scramble up out of the East Fork (jBJC-EF-Exit1) is next to a small side drainage / ravine.  Start by route finding your way west up out of the East Fork along dirt and sandstone about 200 feet to the start of a slickrock ramp (wBJC-EF-ExRP01).

Continue route finding your way west up the slickrock for about 650 feet where the route tops out (wBJC-EF-ExRP02) on the mesa top above.

Once up on the mesa top veer left to start walking south along wide open desert between the East and Main forks of Bluejohn Canyon.  Look for one of the use trails in the area.  As you start walking south along the mesa top stay in the easy flat desert but keep slightly left (east) and roughly follow the rim of the East Fork of Bluejohn.

About 0.7 miles along the mesa you will pass by the head of a drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP03) that drops down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

At this point you will no longer be trying to follow the rim of the East Fork but instead you will follow a pretty straight path southwest on a bearing of about 278 degrees toward the top of the Main Fork.  From this point forward a hillside begins to form on the left (east) side and the use trails follow in the flat-ish desert between the hillside on the left (east) and going around the heads of small drainages to the right (west). As you continue this route the use trails begin to get more defined and easier to follow.

About 900 feet farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP04) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

About 1100 feet farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP05) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

About 450 feet farther the route crosses over another drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP06) but at this point the drainage is just a shallow dirt wash. Continue south on use trails.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

About 600 feet farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP07) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

About 550 feet farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP08) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

Between this drainage and the next the route will pass by the right (west) side of a large rock outcropping that has been visible for a while now.

About 0.25 miles farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP09) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

About 400 feet farther the route passes by the top of another side drainage (wBJC-EF-ExRP10) dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn.  Pass by the drainage and continue south along the flat desert.

A little over 300 feet farther the use trail drops down into the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon just above the technical section (yBJC-MF-Tp)

About 100 feet up the wash is a short dry fall (wBJC-MF-RP17) with dirt slopes you can scramble up.  When you get to the top of the short fall continue walking south up the wide sandy wash.

Continue walking up the wide sandy wash ignoring little side washes here and there.  About 1.3 miles up the wash will be a wide fork (wBJC-MF-RP16) where you may wonder which is the main drainage to stay in.  Stay right at this fork to continue south.

Continue up the wash about 0.25 miles until you get to a spring piped up from the ground and into large water containers for local cattle (wBJC-MF-Spring).  From the spring you are about 800 feet from the Motel 6 / Granary Spring area.  Continue up the wash about 300 feet and look for any one of many social trails leaving up out of the wash to the right (west) and follow them up to the Motel 6 parking area (pkMotel6). 

Exit Option 2: - Up climb the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon then walk up the Main fork to Motel 6 / Granary Spring
When you reach the end of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon at the confluence with the Main Fork (yBJC-EF-Bt), turn left and begin to walk west up the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.

About 400 feet up the Main Fork is a the bottom of the West Fork of Bluejohn Canyon (yBJC-WF-BT) joining in from RUC (northwest).

Wash walk your way up the Main Fork for about 0.72 miles until you get to the down canyon end of a narrows section (wBJC-RP14).  This narrow section is shallow and only extends up canyon about 300 feet then the canyon widens out into wash walking again.

After getting to the up-canyon end of the short shallow narrows continue wash walking up canyon about 0.5 miles to a side drainage dropping in on the RUC (northwest) side (yBJC-LWF-Bt).  Stay left to continue up the Main Fork.  Just up canyon of here the Main Fork becomes more narrow creating a scenic narrows.

About 0.2 miles farther up the Main Fork the walls widen out briefly (wBJC-MF-RP12).

Continuing up the Main Fork from here is a deep semi wide and very tall walled corridor that continues up canyon about 1 mile. 

A section of the corridor known as the Cathedral is wide at the bottom but the walls close in at the top nearly touching. If you are there at just the right time of day you can see the sun creating a wall of light beaming into the canyon and watch slowly drifting sand float down in the light looking like rain.  Ok enough ramblings about a the Cathedral.

The upper 700 feet of the corridor has about 6 drops in it that need to be upclimbed.  The drops range from 6 feet to 25 feet. Moderate to a little difficult upclimbing skills will get you up the drops.  Most of the upclimbing or downclimbing is stem style with back on one wall and feet on the other wall.  A rope is likely not needed but should be on hand incase someone needs assistance.

At the top of the Upclimbs (wBJC-MF-RP10) continue up canyon in a shallow slot with a couple scrambles as it slowly widens out into a wider wash again.

About 0.25 miles up canyon is a dry fall of about 20 feet to bypass. Going up canyon bypass by going up the LUC (east) side then travers right to go up the second part bypassing up the RUC (west) side to get to the top of the dry fall (yBJC-MF-Tp).

You are now out of the technical part of the Main Fork so now its time to walk the drainage back to the cars at Motel 6.

About 100 feet up the wash is a short dry fall (wBJC-MF-RP08) with dirt slopes you can scramble up.  When you get to the top of the short fall continue walking south up the wide sandy wash.

Continue walking up the wide sandy wash ignoring little side washes here and there.  About 1.3 miles up the wash will be a wide fork (wBJC-MF-RP05) where you may wonder which is the main drainage to stay in.  Stay right at this fork to continue south.

Continue up the wash about 0.25 miles to a spring piped up from the ground and into large water containers for local cattle (wBJC-MF-Spring).  From the spring you are about 800 feet from the Motel 6 / Granary Spring area.  Continue up the wash about 300 feet and look for any one of many social trails leaving up out of the wash to the right (west) and follow them up to the Motel 6 parking area (pkMotel6).

GPS Waypoint Information

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........
Bluejohn Squeeze Fork (1) Drive to Trailhead
  1. ExtRobRoost          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.58715   W -110.59263        Elev: 5,120 Feet
    Exit for an un-named road used to access the Robbers Roost area.
  2. wGilsonButeWel          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.58688   W -110.58377        Elev: NaN Feet
    Building and small water tank near what is labeled on some maps as Gilso Butte Well.
  3. extFlintTrail          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.58822   W -110.55632        Elev: NaN Feet
    Turn off from an un-named dirt road onto the Lower San Rafeal Road.
  4. wJefferyWell          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.53010   W -110.54118        Elev: 5,280 Feet
    Road turns left here on the drive into Robbers Roost. There are corrals along side the road here.
  5. wLittleFltTpGt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.53837   W -110.49108        Elev: 5,520 Feet
    A gate the road passes by on the south side of The Little Flat Top.
  6. extFlintTrail2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.49947   W -110.41446        Elev: NaN Feet
    This is where you can turn left (south) to leave the Flint Trail and drive in towards Chambers. Or continue straight (east) to continue farther east into the Roost area for other canyons.
  7. extHansFlat          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.47252   W -110.28042        Elev: 5,521 Feet
    Exit off the Lower San Rafeal Road to the Hans Flat Road.
  8. extBurrEkker          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37664   W -110.30570        Elev: 5,840 Feet
    Junction where a few roads come together. A couple of the main roads are Burr Pass road going west from here, Ekker Ranch Road going south west from here and the Hans Flat Road continuing south from here.
  9. extGranarySpng          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34106   W -110.29500        Elev: 5,945 Feet
    Unmarked side road leaving Hans Flat road and traveling east over to the Motel 6 area by Granary Springs.
  10. pkMotel6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34123   W -110.29271        Elev: 5,920 Feet
    Parking and camping here with lots of room. There is a building here that has been spraypainted with teh logo of Motel 6. This spot shows as Granary Srping on maps but is known as Motel 6 in some circles.
Bluejohn Squeeze Fork (2) Approach
  1. pkMotel6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34123   W -110.29271        Elev: 5,920 Feet
    Parking and camping here with lots of room. There is a building here that has been spraypainted with teh logo of Motel 6. This spot shows as Granary Srping on maps but is known as Motel 6 in some circles.
  2. wBJC-MF-RP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34102   W -110.29087        Elev: 5,870 Feet
    Fenced in area on the RDC side of the draiange in the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork.
  3. jBJC-EF-Jct          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34173   W -110.29015        Elev: 5,860 Feet
    This is the start of a trail going up the south side of a slickrock section. The use trail travels east up out of Bluejohn Canyon Main fork up a dirt slope on the upcanyon side of a slickrock outcropping. Travel up this trail to leave the Main Fork and travel over to the East Fork or the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.
  4. wBJC-EF-RP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34152   W -110.28866        Elev: 5,910 Feet
    Top out of the trial up out of the Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork on the way to the East and Squeeze Forks.
  5. wBJC-EF-RP02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34192   W -110.28728        Elev: NaN Feet
    Drop down into a minor drainage here. Then travel north downstream for about 250 feet to a use trail where you can walk up out of this draainge up to the east.
  6. wBJC-EF-RP03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34265   W -110.28732        Elev: 5,820 Feet
    A use trail traveling up out of this draiange to the east to go over toward the East and Squeeze forks of Bluejohn Canyon. Remeber there are use trails everywhere out here.
  7. wBJC-EF-RP04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34269   W -110.28615        Elev: 5,940 Feet
    Top out of the use trail up out of a minor drainage. Continue roughly due east from here to go to the East Fork or the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Travel about 0.2 miles east dropping down about 50 feet then back up about 50 feet over to the next ridge.
  8. wBJC-EF-RP05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34328   W -110.28207        Elev: 5,940 Feet
    From this ridge continue east about 900 feet to drop down into the next draiange.
  9. wBJC-EF-RP06          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34360   W -110.27895        Elev: 5,845 Feet
    Trun and walk north down this draange to continue toward East Fork and Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.
  10. jBJC-SQF-Jct          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34834   W -110.27660        Elev: 5,775 Feet
    This is a spot in the draiange after you are downstream of some sandstone outcroppings on the RDC side and the ridges on both sides drop down low allowing travel in almost any direction. To go to the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon turn right (east) and travel up out of the wash and route find your way about 0.5 miles east to a large draiange that is the the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. To go to the Squeeze Fork of Blue John Canyon stay in this draiange and follow it down about 0.5 miles to the head of the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.
  11. wBJC-SQF-RP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35288   W -110.27392        Elev: 5,720 Feet
    Short drop in the wash of 8 to 10 feet that can easily be walked aound.
  12. yBJC-SQF-Tp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35388   W -110.27427        Elev: 5,690 Feet
    Top of the Squeeze Fork of Blue John Canyon. This is at a confluence of draianges and where the canyon gets deeper and narrow and begins the technical section of the Squeeze Fork.
Bluejohn Squeeze Fork (3) The Canyon
  1. yBJC-SQF-Tp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35388   W -110.27427        Elev: 5,690 Feet
    Top of the Squeeze Fork of Blue John Canyon. This is at a confluence of draianges and where the canyon gets deeper and narrow and begins the technical section of the Squeeze Fork.
  2. wBJC-SQF-RP02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35622   W -110.27247        Elev: NaN Feet
    Downclimb of about 20 feet that is an easy sloped stem style downclimb. Rap 1 is about 50 feet down canyon of this drop.
  3. dBJC-SQF-R1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35636   W -110.27242        Elev: NaN Feet
    Rap 1 - Squeeze Fork Bluejohn Canyon. Anchored from chokestones and drops about 25 feetdown a narrow slot to a pool about waist or chest deep depending on water levels.
  4. wBJC-SQF-RP03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35704   W -110.27195        Elev: NaN Feet
    Deep narrows gives way to a V sloted narrows to walk / galumph along. After a very short distance it gets deeper and narrow again where you will need to stem up a few feet and galumph down canyon a short ways to where you can get back down to the floor to walk.
  5. dBJC-SQF-R2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35749   W -110.27156        Elev: NaN Feet
    Drop of about 15 feet that is easy to stem style downclimb to a pool below. Optionally webbing rigged to choke stones here to set a rappel if you prefer not to downclimb. Moderate downclimbing skills will easily get you to the bottom of this drop. The pool at the bottom of the drop waist to chest deep depending on water levels.
  6. wBJC-SQF-RP04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35924   W -110.26969        Elev: NaN Feet
    Short break in the narrow section where it feels like the canyon may widen but then it goes back into deep narrow canyon again.
  7. wBJC-SQF-RP05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.35997   W -110.26931        Elev: NaN Feet
    Another brief open spot in the canyon with a bunch of boulder debris fallen down into it.
  8. dBJC-SQF-R3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36046   W -110.26900        Elev: NaN Feet
    Drop of about 20 feet that can be downclimbed or optionally set as a rappel anchored from a rock protruding out of the canyon floor.
  9. yBJC-SQF-Bt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36160   W -110.26830        Elev: NaN Feet
    This is the bottom of the Squeeze Fork of Bluejohn Canyon where it dumps into the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. If traveling down the Squeezefork you will downclimb to this confluence and walk down canyon. If traveling down the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon there is a downclimb here of about 10 feet. All but the last person can rappel on a meat anchor. The last person can easily slide down and catch themselves on the opposing wall to complete the downclimb. You may find a handline rigged here at times but the downclimb is easier than it looks and the hand line is generally not needed.
  10. wBJC-EF-RP11          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37317   W -110.27013        Elev: 5,300 Feet
    The narrow feel of the East Fork of Bluejohn ends here where it widens out to a wide sandy wash walk.
  11. jBJC-EF-Exit1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38700   W -110.26438        Elev: 5,250 Feet
    One of a few places to scramble up out of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon to get up on the mesa on the LDC (northwest) side of the East Fork. No easily identifiable landmarks for this spot. This spot is up the upcanyon side of a small side draiange / ravine and begins by route finding up dirt and sand about xx feet to get up to slick rock.
  12. yBJC-EF-Bt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.39471   W -110.26068        Elev: 5,230 Feet
    Bottom of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon where it dumps into the Main Fork of Blujohn Canyon. If traveling down the Main Fork this will be the first large sandy wash drainage that joins in from the RDC (east) side. With it being the only one to the right on the way down canyon it is easy to identify.
Bluejohn Squeeze Fork (4) The East Fork Exit
  1. jBJC-EF-Exit1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38700   W -110.26438        Elev: 5,250 Feet
    One of a few places to scramble up out of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon to get up on the mesa on the LDC (northwest) side of the East Fork. No easily identifiable landmarks for this spot. This spot is up the upcanyon side of a small side draiange / ravine and begins by route finding up dirt and sand about xx feet to get up to slick rock.
  2. wBJC-EF-ExRP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38722   W -110.26502        Elev: NaN Feet
    Start up a slickrock ramp here to continue west up out of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue route finding west up the slick rock for about 650 feet to the flat wide open mesa top.
  3. wBJC-EF-ExRP02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38725   W -110.26701        Elev: 5,430 Feet
    Exit from the East Fork tops out on the mesa top here. Veer left and walk south alonog the mesa top roughly following teh rim of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.
  4. wBJC-EF-ExRP03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37823   W -110.27392        Elev: 5,560 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  5. wBJC-EF-ExRP04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37602   W -110.27499        Elev: 5,610 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  6. wBJC-EF-ExRP05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37337   W -110.27671        Elev: 5,630 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  7. wBJC-EF-ExRP06          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37262   W -110.27784        Elev: NaN Feet
    Route crosses over another drainage but at this point the drainage is just a shallow dirt wash. Continue south on use trails.
  8. wBJC-EF-ExRP07          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37140   W -110.27904        Elev: 5,630 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  9. wBJC-EF-ExRP08          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37024   W -110.28016        Elev: 5,630 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  10. wBJC-EF-ExRP09          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36740   W -110.28118        Elev: 5,630 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  11. wBJC-EF-ExRP10          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36646   W -110.28167        Elev: 5,630 Feet
    Route basses by the head of a drainage dropping down to the right (west) down toward the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Continue south on use trails.
  12. yBJC-MF-Tp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36592   W -110.28239        Elev: 5,640 Feet
    Top entry for the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. This is at top of a dry fall of about 20 feet to bypass. Going up canyon bypass by going up the LUC side then travers right to go up the second part up the RUC side. Going down canyon bypass by going around the top of the fall on the LDC side then downclimb to the mid point and traverse over to the RDC to scramble down to the wash below.
  13. wBJC-MF-RP08          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36297   W -110.28359        Elev: 5,680 Feet
    A short dryfall to get up or down by walking up or down a dirt slope.
  14. wBJC-MF-RP05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34547   W -110.28865        Elev: 5,830 Feet
    Fork in the wide wash that may be confusing on the way up to Motel 6. When traveling up canyon to Motel 6 stay right at this fork. On the way down you will likely not even notice this fork.
  15. wBJC-MF-Spring          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34212   W -110.29018        Elev: 5,855 Feet
    A spring in the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Main Fork that has been piped up into watering containers for cattle.
  16. wBJC-MF-RP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34102   W -110.29087        Elev: 5,870 Feet
    Fenced in area on the RDC side of the draiange in the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork.
  17. pkMotel6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34123   W -110.29271        Elev: 5,920 Feet
    Parking and camping here with lots of room. There is a building here that has been spraypainted with teh logo of Motel 6. This spot shows as Granary Srping on maps but is known as Motel 6 in some circles.
Bluejohn Squeeze Fork (5) Exit by Upclimbing Main Fork
  1. yBJC-EF-Bt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.39471   W -110.26068        Elev: 5,230 Feet
    Bottom of the East Fork of Bluejohn Canyon where it dumps into the Main Fork of Blujohn Canyon. If traveling down the Main Fork this will be the first large sandy wash drainage that joins in from the RDC (east) side. With it being the only one to the right on the way down canyon it is easy to identify.
  2. yBJC-WF-BT          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.39465   W -110.26170        Elev: 5,235 Feet
    Bottom of the West Fork of Bluejohn Canyon where it dumps into the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon.
  3. wBJC-MF-RP14          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.39119   W -110.27106        Elev: 5,275 Feet
    This is the down canyon end of a narrows in the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. This narrows is shallow and is only about 300 feet long.
  4. yBJC-LWF-Bt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38528   W -110.27690        Elev: 5,340 Feet
    Bottom of The Little West Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. Some refer to this fork as Little Bluejohn Canyon. Down canyon of this spot is wash walking in kind of wide canyon. Up canyon in the Main Fork of this spot the walls become more narrow creating a scenic narrows..
  5. wBJC-MF-RP12          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38267   W -110.27713        Elev: NaN Feet
    Walls of the Main Fork widen out briefly.
  6. wBJC-MF-RP10          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36956   W -110.28157        Elev: 5,572 Feet
    Up canyon end of a series of upclimbs or downclimbs (depending on which direction you travel). The downclimb section is a series of about 6 drops ranging from 6 feet to 25 feet. Moderate downclimbing skills will get you down the drops with no need for webbing or rope. Moderate to a little difficult upclimbing skills will get you up the drops. Down canyon of the down climbs is the long narrow corridor (aka the Cathedral). Up canyon of the down climbs there is a shallow slot which slowly turns to wider wash up canyon.
  7. yBJC-MF-Tp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36592   W -110.28239        Elev: 5,640 Feet
    Top entry for the Main Fork of Bluejohn Canyon. This is at top of a dry fall of about 20 feet to bypass. Going up canyon bypass by going up the LUC side then travers right to go up the second part up the RUC side. Going down canyon bypass by going around the top of the fall on the LDC side then downclimb to the mid point and traverse over to the RDC to scramble down to the wash below.
  8. wBJC-MF-RP08          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36297   W -110.28359        Elev: 5,680 Feet
    A short dryfall to get up or down by walking up or down a dirt slope.
  9. wBJC-MF-RP05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34547   W -110.28865        Elev: 5,830 Feet
    Fork in the wide wash that may be confusing on the way up to Motel 6. When traveling up canyon to Motel 6 stay right at this fork. On the way down you will likely not even notice this fork.
  10. wBJC-MF-Spring          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34212   W -110.29018        Elev: 5,855 Feet
    A spring in the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Main Fork that has been piped up into watering containers for cattle.
  11. wBJC-MF-RP01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34102   W -110.29087        Elev: 5,870 Feet
    Fenced in area on the RDC side of the draiange in the upper non-technical portion of Bluejohn Canyon Main Fork.
  12. pkMotel6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.34123   W -110.29271        Elev: 5,920 Feet
    Parking and camping here with lots of room. There is a building here that has been spraypainted with teh logo of Motel 6. This spot shows as Granary Srping on maps but is known as Motel 6 in some circles.

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