Canyoneering Route Description

Not Mindbender Canyon - 3A(B) III
Robbers Roost, Utah.

Quick Facts

03-24-12, 8 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 9 hours - includes time to hike in and leave an exit rope)

Time Required - 6 to 8 hours (add 45 min if hiking in to leave an exit rope at the climb out).
Distance - 7.3 miles Total, 2.6 miles Technical
Rappels - 3 Rappels, Longest Rappel 80 feet.
Elevation Range - 5280 - 4450 Feet
Shuttle Required -Optional 2 Miles Vehicle - High Clearance (4wd only if road conditions are bad) Permit Required - No

Gear Used for Canyon

Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up to 80 feet and 50 feet of 1 inch webbing for sling placement.  Rap 1 has no anchor so be prepared to use a pack or potshots as an anchor.  Wet suits should not be needed unless there have been recent rains.  Even with water in the canyon the water exposure will be in only a couple very short spots.

General Comments

The drive into Not Mindbender has about 38 miles of dirt roads from the highway out to the start of the route.  The dirt roads are well maintained and usually passable with a passenger vehicle.  Keep in mind that road conditions can change on these dirt roads from weather or ranching activity.  The last couple miles of the drive in have a couple of spots where high clearance will likely be needed.

Portions of Not Mindbender are skinny.  Larger people will need to stem up a few feet more often than smaller people but ultimately everyone will need to stem along the canyon.  With that said people up to 200 pounds fit through here but need to work a little more.  Those over 200 pounds will likely be fine as well but may not like the required effort.

Also of note rap 1 has no anchor or anchor material.  Rap 1 drops about 15 feet down a sloped wall.  A backpack, potshot or other dynamic anchor can be used.  Optionally the last person can slide down and partners can catch them at the bottom.  This would be a fast slide and need an aggressive capture from friends if this option is used.  Be prepared for this challenge if you enter the canyon.

On my first visit to Not Mindbender we found a single bat hanging on the wall near the top of rap 1.  If you encounter this, please be respectful and leave the bat alone.

A pothole just before the last rap could be a keeper if traveling solo.  The pothole is shallow enough that a partner assist should easily get you out the other side.

Navigation Warning:
The approach into Not Mindbender starts from a dirt road and meanders across rolling dessert and a convoluted mix of minor drainages.  It would be very easy to accidentally drop into the wrong drainage by mistake.  Dropping into the wrong canyon could be life threatening if you are not prepared for the challenges in it.  Verbal or written directions alone are not sufficient.  Bring your route finding skills, a map and compass with you.  A GPS may be useful for this approach as well.

Also of note the Mindbender system has 4 well known canyon routes, Mindbender, Almost Mindbender, Maybe Mindbender and Not Mindbender.  This approach route cuts across the upper drainages for each of these routes with Not Mindbender being the farthest out.  Keeping this in mind when reading the description for the approach route may help reduce confusion since the names are similar. 

This route can be done as a loop with no shuttle.  If doing this add 2 miles of road walking to your route to cover the shuttle section.

The exit route has a vertical climb section typically rated at 5.5 for about 30 feet.  Be prepared to have someone climb hauling a rope up with them to belay the rest of the group.  Or you can hike in before your route and leave a rope tied off at the top.

Warning (light rant):
The exit from the mindbender system is well known and commonly used for all 4 Mindbender routes, a few forks of Robbers Roost Canyon and other routes in the area.  The climb portion is not in a casual hiking area and will rarely if ever be seen by anyone other than your fellow canyoneers.  A fellow canyoneer should know the rope was placed as a safety for others exiting one of the many canyon routes in the area.  However some fellow canyoneers have taken it upon themselves to remove ropes from this climb out if left un-attended for a few hours (not days, hours).  While it is my opinion a note should not be needed, since this climb out is commonly used for multiple routes, it is a good idea to leave a note on the rope.  The note should have the date it was left and a date when you intend to retrieve the rope along with a comment about not removing it.  This note should be enough to inform others of the obvious fact that the rope was obviously placed for safety reasons.

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).  Leave the Hans Flat road by turning right (west) onto the Burr Pass Road traveling west.

Note:
Up to this point the roads appear to be well maintained and should be easily traveled by passenger cars unless recent rains have messed stuff up.  The Burr Pass Road continuing west from here is over all the same way but does have some rough sections that are not recommended for passenger cars.  Unless conditions are bad 4wd should not be needed but high clearance is recommended for portions of the Burr Pass Road.

Follow the Burr Pass Road as it winds across the mostly flat wide open desert with views down into lower areas along the way.  About 7.7 miles into the Burr Pass Road will be a section of road where the land on both sides of the road obviously drops down.  Up until this point any noticeable drops have been primarily to one side or the other.  Find a spot near here to park and get off the road to start the route (pkMindBendrTp).  There is no large obvious parking spot just find what looks like a good spot to park out of the way of other traffic.

Note:
The area is wide open with a lack of obvious landmarks.  If using a GPS the trailhead is easy to find.  Checking your odometer when you get onto the Burr Pass Road and driving 7.7 miles and looking for this spot where the road drops down on both sides will get you to the correct location.  Something to keep in mind is that about 1 mile farther down the Burr Pass is another spot where the land on both sides drops off.  The second spot about a mile farther than the start trailhead is a lot more obvious than the trailhead spot.  If you are not watching the odometer and just winging it pay attention and be aware that the second one is more obvious and may be mistaken as the trailhead. 

To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod

Follow the directions to get to the trailhead (pkMindBendrTp).  From the trailhead, continue west on the Burr Pass Road for about 2 miles to the end of the road (pkMindBendrBt).  This is where the exit vehicle is parked.

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 drive into the route.
Map of the entire route.
Map of the technical section.
Map of the exit.

Details

Leaving an exit climb out rope (Optional):
The exit has a spot where moderate climbing is required and generally accepted as a 5.5 climb for about 30 feet.  Option 1 is to have one person make the climb un-protected then drop a rope down to belay the rest of the group.  Option 2 is to hike in from the exit vehicle parking spot to the top of the climb, leave a rope tied off then hike back out to the exit vehicle.  Then go enjoy the route knowing you have a rope left hanging at the climb out.  If you leave a rope hanging for the exit climb be sure to leave a note.  There have been times when fellow canyoneers have removed a needed rope if left un-attended for a few hours. 

If you decide to leave a rope hanging for the climb out, allow about 45 minutes to hike in, anchor the rope and hike back out with a round trip distance of about 1.8 miles.

From the exit vehicle parking spot (pkMindBendrBt) walk 200 feet due south to the top of a gully (RP-MBendExt5) dropping down to the right (west).  About 150 feet down the gully will widen and drop you out onto a steep slick rock slope.

When the gully widens out and drops you onto the slick rock slope, take a moment to look ahead of you.  Note the dirt, semi flat terrain below.  To the right (north) of this wide open dirt area are steep sandstone slopes / walls running west.  About 0.3 miles to the west, the sandstone walls drop down exposing a saddle you can easily walk up to.  From this vantage point it is obvious the saddle is just around a corner but is not quite visible.  The saddle is what you will be aiming for next.

Route find your way down the slick rock slope to the dirt floor below then route find your way about 0.3 miles west, roughly following the sandstone walls on your right (north) until you come to the bottom (RP-MBendExt4) of a slick rock slope running up to the saddle.

Walk about 300 feet northwest up to the top of the saddle (RP-MBendExt3).  From top of the saddle note, a peak to the west with an obvious dark brown top layer about 0.4 miles away which makes for a good visual landmark.  Route find your way west aiming just to the right (north of the peak with the brown top layer.

About 0.3 miles from the saddle you should find a small drainage running west and over the rim with series of small pot holes running along it.  Work your way down the right (north) side of the potholes as the slope gets steeper and find your way onto a ledge (RP-MBendExt2).

After dropping down to the ledge turn left and contour around the ledge south then sweeping around north then turning west again to the larger ledge system running west.  A couple hundred feet into the part of the ledge running west is where you can anchor the rope for the climb out. 

As you walk along the ledge look for a small natural bridge in the rock under a small ledge about waist high.  This small natural arch feels like an obvious and convenient place to anchor your rope but this does not drop the rope in the most convenient place for the exit climb.  However this small natural bridge / arch makes for a good visual land mark.  For the most convenient rope placement, walk about 50 feet west of this small arch and anchor the rope from a large rock(s).  There may be a large cairn here if it has not been dismantled (RP-MBendExt1).  A rope of about 80 feet will do the trick.

The Approach:
Written or verbal directions are not sufficient to guide you to the correct canyon.  Bring your route finding skills, a map and compass with you.  A GPS may be useful for this approach as well.  

From trailhead parking spot (pkMindBendrTp), leave the road and start walking slightly east of north (bearing of about 28 degrees) crossing over a rolling slick rock area about 400 feet from the road (RP-MBendApr1).  Route find your way through the rolling desert and aim for a confluence of minor drainages (RP-MBendApr2) shown on topo maps about 0.5 miles from where you left the road.  This confluence of minor drainages are part of the Mindbender drainage well up canyon of the technical portion.

From the confluence of minor drainages in the Mindbender drainage (RP-MBendApr2), look northeast and note a steep slick rock hill about 600 feet away.  The next step is to get up on top of that slope to the wide open rolling desert above.  An easy route up is to travel east up the left fork from this drainage for about 0.25 miles and look for a spot where slope is gentle enough (RP-MBendApr3) to allow travel up to the top.  Leave the drainage and route find your way about 0.2 miles north up the slope to the rolling desert above.

Once out of the Mindbender drainage and in the rolling desert (RP-MBendApr4) travel northeast along the flat wide open dirt for about 0.2 miles where you will pass by the (RP-MBendApr5) head of a small drainage that drops down to the west.  This small drainage is the top of the Maybe Mindbender drainage where the minor drainage begins to form.

After crossing over the tippy top of Maybe Mindbender continue northeast across the wide open dirt for about 0.25 miles to where the route crosses over another minor drainage (RP-MBendApr6).  This minor drainage quickly becomes steep as it drops off toward a bowl like area to the left (west).  This is a side drainage to Not Mindbender but is not the main canyon you are looking for.

Continue northeast about 600 feet until you get close to the rim of Not Mindbender (RP-MBendApr7).  The rim here is too steep to safely drop down.  Veer right and walk north east up along the rim to a safer spot to drop into Not Mindbender.

About 600 feet along the rim will be a spot you can easily walk down off the dirt down onto a wide slick rock area.  Continue along the rim now on the slick rock.  Another 200 feet along the slick rock is the top of a short ravine (RP-MBendApr8) that can be easily scrambled down to drop into the Not Mindbender drainage.  Farther up canyon the rim quickly becomes less steep so if you pass this ravine there will be lots of opportunity to find your way down into Not Mindbender (yMdBndNotTp).

The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
Once down in the Not Mindbender drainage (yMdBndNotTp), you can take a moment to put your body armor on for a couple down climbs coming up soon.  But the upper section has only a couple spots where body armor may be desired then a lot of walking down canyon after.  Something to consider if its hot and you are not enthused about putting on the armor yet.

Continue down canyon as it quickly goes narrow with a mix of walking, stemming and galumphing for travel. 

About 400 feet down canyon is the first down climb and is about 15 feet starting over a choke stone.  The down climb is an easy stem. 

About 100 feet farther down canyon is another downclimb over a larger choke stone and is also about 15 feet and and easy stem style downclimb.  Smaller people may enjoy a squeeze under this choke stone rather than going up and over it.

About 80 feet down canyon is a easy down climb of about 8 feet.

About 250 farther the canyon widens out into wide easy to walk in wash (RP-Mind-Not-01) where you will need to downclimb about 10 or 12 feet over a ledge to get to the canyon floor.

The wide easy wash walk about 0.2 miles long to where the walls close in and the canyon begins to slot up again (RP-Mind-Not-02).  Travel in this narrow section walking and a little side stepping here and there for about 600 feet to a boulder pile with a stem style down climb of about 10 feet.

About 80 feet after the boulder debris is another fork joining in from the right (RP-Mind-Not-03).  Just after this confluence is tight spot about 40 feet long where larger people may want to stem up about 10 or 15 feet to galumph where it is wider.

Right after the tight spot the canyon turns sharp left and is wide enough for easy walking but offers a very closed in hallway feel with the walls slanting to the left.  After about 400 feet the walls open up giving a large corridor feel.  This corridor like area sweeps right for about 0.2 miles and is all easy wash walking except for a very short shallow slot to galumph through.

At the end of the long sweeping right the canyon turns sharp left again (RP-Mind-Not-04) where another side drainage joins in from LDC.

From this sharp left the canyon stays wide and offers easy walking in sand as the canyon winds its way west for the next 0.6 miles. 

Note:
If you are watching the map to visually find keep track of where you are points RP-Mind-Not-05 is a side drainage joining from LDC, RP-Mind-Not-06 is a side drainage joining from RDC in a horseshoe bend and RP-Mind-Not-07 is a side drainage joining from LDC.

After the long wash walk the canyon begins to narrow again (RP-Mind-Not-08).  As the canyon narrows it starts with a V shaped slot with a mix of some easy galumphing and walking.  This narrow slot is where the meat of the route starts and is a good time to armor up if you haven't already done so.

The first 800 feet of this narrow section is skinny with multiple spots where it becomes necessary to stem up a few feet to get over tight spots.  Larger people will need to do more of this obviously.  In general your body size will determine how high you need to stem but you should never need to go more than 10 or 12 feet up.  Just pick a comfortable height and go.

In that 800 foot skinny section are a couple easy stem style down climbs of about 15 feet and a couple spots where waist or chest deep water are possible if recent rains have filled it.  But this section should drain water fairly rapidly.

Next the skinny section opens up to a large room / chamber.  The chamber is a scenic treat but just emerging from a skinny section into the chamber adds to the experience.

On the other side of the chamber is a stem style down climb of about 15 feet to a ledge and a small pool.  The top of this ledge is where the the first rap is for Not Mindbender.

Rap 1 (dMind-NotR1) has no anchor or anchor material.  Use a back pack, potshot or other dynamic anchor for this rappel.  Optionally the last person can slide down and partners can catch them at the bottom.  This would be a fast slide and need an aggressive capture from friends if this option is used.

After rap 1 the canyon turns left and enters a very beautiful chamber / subway like area.  Worth the time for some spur of the moment photos!

Walk a short distance in this chamber then start into more skinny narrows down to rap 2.  Just before reaching rap 2 the walls make a sharp right turn and open up a little.

Rap 2 (dMind-notR2) is about 150 feet down canyon of rap 1.  Rap 2 is anchored from a chokestone and drops about 35 feet down a mostly vertical wall.  If recent rains filled the canyon you may have waist deep water just before reaching rap 2.

At the bottom of rap 2 the canyon makes a sharp left into a beautiful long narrow section.  Continuing down canyon quickly becomes easy walking between narrow walls.

About 0.35 miles down canyon of rap 2 the corridor starts to widen out and become very wide giving way to easy wash walking where a side drainage also joins in from LDC (RP-Mind-Not-09).  From here the canyon has tall walls but is very wide with a sandy floor providing easy wash walking for a long way.  For a scenic treat keep your eyes open for a large pendant like rock that looks like it is teetering high on the LDC wall ready to topple down any time.

About 0.4 miles down canyon is a side slot joining in from RDC followed by a large drainage joining in from LDC.  The large drainage joining in from LDC is the bottom of Maybe Mindbender (yMdBndMbyBt).

About 0.2 miles farther down the wide sandy walk is another drainage joining in from LDC which is Almost Mindbender (yMdBndAlmBt).

About 500 feet farther down canyon is the start of the last narrow section before reaching the last rap in Mind Bender Canyon (RP-Mind-Not-10). 

The narrow section down to the final rap is about 200 feet long and has two potholes to cross.  The first pothole has a down climb of about 8 feet to get down into it and would be about waist deep if full of water.  The second has a down climb of about 5 feet to get into it and if full of water could be a possible keeper.  The exit is shallow enough that a partner assist should easily get you out the other side but the exit is still a little awkward as it exits in a tight V slot.  Just after the potholes is rap 3 for Not Minbender Canyon.

Rap 3 (dMind-NotR3) can be anchored in multiple ways and drops about 80 feet free hanging and an awkward start.  There are options for choke stones in the side walls or sand and debris for a deadman.  As of 2012 there is a bolt in the RDC wall and close to it a very ugly patch job on the wall where another bolt had been removed.  What you find will depend on who went before you and re-rigged the rappel.  On my first visit through rap 3 was anchored from 3 points, a choke stone and a climbing nut placed in the wall on the LDC side as well as from the single bolt on the RDC wall.  Whatever option you use try to extend the webbing as far as possible to avoid adding rope grooves to the rock from pulling the rope.

After rap 3 the canyon is again wide open and easy sand walking.  This is the last of the technical portion except for the short climb on the exit route.  About 250 feet down canyon is a sharp bend to the left which is an arbitrary point I chose to mark the end of Not Mindbender (yMdBndNotBt).

The Exit:
From the sharp left bend after the last rap in Not Mindbender (yMdBndNotBt) the canyon becomes extremely wide. with a lot of vegetation and tall scenic walls.

About 0.6 miles down canyon after the last rap of Not Mindbender is a large drainage joining in from LDC which is the bottom of Mindbender Canyon (yMdBndBt).

About 0.9 miles farther down canyon is a very wide drainage joining in from RDC which, is the end of the Mindbender system where it joins into North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon (yRRNFcyn-Bt).

After passing the bottom of the North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon (yRRNFcyn-Bt), continue southwest down stream for about 0.5 miles looking for a large bowl like area on the LDC (south) side (jMndBndrExt).  As you get closer to the bowl area you are looking for, keep an eye along the horizon slightly left of canyon and look for an obvious sandstone peak with a crusty brown layer on top.  The bowl area you want is just below this peak.

After passing the bottom of the North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon, keep an eye down canyon on the left for this peak. Just below this peak is the climb out part of the exit in a bowl like area.

When you get to the bowl area (jMndBndrExt) leave the main drainage route find your way through the sand and vegetation aiming for the peak you have been using as a visual aid.  Look for an obvious sloped light colored sandstone wall about 500 feet from the main drainage on the southwest side of the bowl.

The first part of the climb out is an easy scramble up a slope followed by a 30 foot section of 5.5 climbing then a steep scramble to the top.

The bottom of the wall (RP-MBendExt1) is sloped allowing an easy scramble before reaching a near vertical wall.  The vertical section of the wall is about 30 feet and has a lot of hand and foot holds and is generally rated about a 5.5 climb.  Then the wall starts to slope a bit making the rest of the climb more of a scramble.  If you have left a rope hanging for the exit and no one has taken it, use that to ascend up the vertical section.  If you have not left a rope send your better climber up with a rope.  They can then anchor the rope and belay others for a safer option.  For anchors there are just large rocks you might be able to fashion into a cairn anchor.  But finding a good stance to sit and provide a meat anchor will be faster.

After getting everyone to the top of the wall (RP-MBendExt1) follow the ledge left (east) toward a large alcove about 200 feet away.  You will need to contour around along the ledge to get to the alcove.  When you get to the alcove you might want to take a moment to walk over to the walls to look at some fun stuff there.

From the alcove continue along the ledge north as it becomes much smaller and leads over the top of an overhang below.  Just as you get over the overhang there will be the start of a small drainage in the slick rock (RP-MBendExt2).  Scramble east up the slick rock next to this drainage.  As you continue up the slope levels off a lot dropping you into a wide open rolling slick rock area.

From the alcove traverse left along the ledge as it gets smaller to a small drainage in the slickrock above an overhang. The purple line shows the route up to the slickrock after the alcove.

Once up in the rolling slick rock area, look east for a large sandstone peak with an obvious brown crusty top layer about 0.35 miles to the east.  Route find your way to the right (south) side of this peak to a small saddle at the base of the wall running down from the peak (RP-MBendExt3).

From the saddle (RP-MBendExt3) travel southeast about 250 feet down the slope on the other side to the bottom and into the dirt below (RP-MBendExt4).

Next route find your way through the desert northeast roughly following the sandstone slope / wall on your left (north).  About 0.3 miles along this wall make your way up the steep hill side to a short chute allowing access up to the rim (RP-MBendExt5).

Once at the top of the chute turn left (north) and walk about 200 feet to where the exit vehicle is parked (pkMindBendrBt).

GPS Waypoint Information

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

Not Mindbender (1) Drive to Trailhead and Exit Parking

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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. extRRcynSF-Tp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36241   W -110.37234        Elev: NaN Feet Exit off of the Burr Pass Road to a short road laeading to parking for the top entry to the South Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon. pkMindBendrTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36655   W -110.40313        Elev: 5,280 Feet Park here to start the route into the Mindbender system. pkMindBendrBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36700   W -110.43653        Elev: 5,170 Feet Park an exit vehicle here for the exit of the Mindbender Systemn and others using the same exit.

Not Mindbender (2) Approach

pkMindBendrTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36655   W -110.40313        Elev: 5,280 Feet Park here to start the route into the Mindbender system. RP-MBendApr1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36755   W -110.40214        Elev: 5,220 Feet Slick rock area about 400 feet from the road. RP-MBendApr2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37299   W -110.39872        Elev: 5,140 Feet Confluence of minor drainages in upp Mindbender. RP-MBendApr3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37332   W -110.39534        Elev: 5,190 Feet Arbitrary point about 0.25 miles up the left fork from a confluence of minor drainages in the Mindbender drainage. Leave the draiange here and route find your way north up onto the mesa top. RP-MBendApr4          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37543   W -110.39374        Elev: 5,310 Feet Once up out of the Mindbender draiange and up here on the rolling desert above, continue north east through the wide open flat dirt. RP-MBendApr5          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37812   W -110.39144        Elev: 5,290 Feet Pass by the head of a draiange. This is the very top of Maybe Mind Bender where the tiny draiange begins to form. RP-MBendApr6          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38108   W -110.39003        Elev: 5,270 Feet A minor draiange to cross that quickly becomes steeper as it drops into a bowl like area to the left (west). RP-MBendApr7          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38214   W -110.38883        Elev: 5,260 Feet The route to Not Mindbender gets to the rim here. The rim is too steep here to safely drop in so you need to rim walk up canyon to a safer place to drop in. RP-MBendApr8          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38386   W -110.38670        Elev: 5,230 Feet Top of a short ravine allowing access down into the main Not Mindbender drainage. yMdBndNotTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38410   W -110.38703        Elev: 5,200 Feet Top of Not Mindbender.

Not Mindbender (3) The Canyon,

yMdBndNotTp          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38410   W -110.38703        Elev: 5,200 Feet Top of Not Mindbender. RP-Mind-Not-01          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38344   W -110.38993        Elev: 5,120 Feet After a couple 15 foot easy stem down climbs the canyon widens out here for some easy wash walking. As the canyon widens there is a ledge of 10 to 12 feet to easily down climb on the LDC side to the canyon floor. RP-Mind-Not-02          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38517   W -110.39154        Elev: 5,090 Feet Canyon begins to slot up again. RP-Mind-Not-03          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38608   W -110.39305        Elev: 5,080 Feet Another fork joins in fro RDC. Just after this confluence the canyon turns sharp left going from traveling northwestish to traveling southwestish. RP-Mind-Not-04          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38597   W -110.39647        Elev: 5,025 Feet After a long sweeping right the canyon turns sharp left here where a side draiange joins in from LDC. RP-Mind-Not-05          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38455   W -110.39913        Elev: 5,000 Feet Large draiange joins in from LDC and appears like two seperate drainages while walking in the canyon. RP-Mind-Not-06          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38549   W -110.40021        Elev: 5,000 Feet Large side draiange joins in from RDC. RP-Mind-Not-07          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38475   W -110.40080        Elev: 4,990 Feet Side drainage drops in from LDC. RP-Mind-Not-08          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38499   W -110.40375        Elev: 4,980 Feet The canyon starts to get narrow again. dMind-NotR1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38517   W -110.40552        Elev: 4,950 Feet Rap 1 - Not Mindbender. No anchor for this rap. Use a pack, pot shot or any other dynamic anchor. This rap drops about 15 feet down a slickrock slope. Optionally a fast slide and an aggressive partner capture can be used. dMind-NotR2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38486   W -110.40600        Elev: 4,940 Feet Rap 2 - Not Mindbender Canyon. Anchored from a chokestone and drops about 35 feet down a mostly vertical wall. RP-Mind-Not-09          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38199   W -110.41008        Elev: 4,790 Feet Narrow corridor after rap 2 widens out into a very wide sandy bottomed area where a side draiange joins in from LDC. yMdBndMbyBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38168   W -110.41595        Elev: 4,750 Feet Bottom of Maybe Mindbender where it drops into Not Mindbender. yMdBndAlmBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37952   W -110.41885        Elev: 4,740 Feet Bottom exit of Almost Mindbender where it exits into Not Mindbender. RP-Mind-Not-10          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37964   W -110.42063        Elev: NaN Feet Start of the last narrow section just before the last rap in Not Mindbender. dMind-NotR3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38092   W -110.42278        Elev: 4,660 Feet Rap 3 - Not Mindbender Canyon. Multiple anchor options, a bolt RDC, choke stones, deadman or climbing gear placements may be found. Drops about 80 feet free hanging and an awkward start. yMdBndNotBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38138   W -110.42351        Elev: 4,640 Feet Bottom of Not Mindbender. This is a sharp bend in the canyon about 250 feet down canyon of the last rap in Not Mind Bender.

Not Mindbender (4) Exit

yMdBndNotBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.38138   W -110.42351        Elev: 4,640 Feet Bottom of Not Mindbender. This is a sharp bend in the canyon about 250 feet down canyon of the last rap in Not Mind Bender. yMdBendBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37642   W -110.43055        Elev: 4,590 Feet Bottom of Mindbender Canyon where it drops into the draiange for Not Mindbender just down canyon of the last rappel in Not Mindbender. yRRNFcyn-Bt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.37185   W -110.44240        Elev: 4,480 Feet Bottom of the Mindbender system where it joins into the North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon. With respect to the naming conventions of canyon routes in the area, it makes more sense to think of this point as the bottom of the North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyons. The bottom of the actual North Fork of Robbers Roost Canyon system is way down stream of here. jMndBndrExt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36935   W -110.44894        Elev: NaN Feet Leave the main drainage here and hike up into the large bowl like area on the LDC (south) side. RP-MBendExt1          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36787   W -110.44837        Elev: 4,550 Feet This is the top of the climb portion of the exit where an exit rope can be anchored for the climb out if desired. This is about 50 feet west of a small natural bridge / arch about waist high. Use a large rock(s) to set an anchor point for the rope. When exiting flow the ledge east contouring around where needed. Follow the ledge to a point due east of the top of the climb out where a steep scramble up a small slick rock drainage starts above an overhang allowing escape. RP-MBendExt2          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36784   W -110.44774        Elev: 4,580 Feet On the exit from the Mindbender system after walking along the ledge after teh climb out portion veer right (southeast) and scramble your way up the slick rock slope here. THis scramble up should roughly follow a small pothole filled drainage on your right. RP-MBendExt3          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36599   W -110.44211        Elev: 4,860 Feet Top of a slick rock saddle. On the exit from the Mindbender system drop southeast down the slick rock slope to the dirt floor below. RP-MBendExt4          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36544   W -110.44135        Elev: 4,800 Feet Bottom of slick rock slope below a saddle. On the exit from the Mindbender system veer left (east) and route find your way along the desert floor roughly following the sandstone walls on the left (north). RP-MBendExt5          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36648   W -110.43637        Elev: 5,165 Feet Top of a gully. When exiting the Mindbender system turn left (north) and walk 200 feet to the parking spot for the exit vehicle. pkMindBendrBt          Lat/Lon (WGS84):  N 38.36700   W -110.43653        Elev: 5,170 Feet Park an exit vehicle here for the exit of the Mindbender Systemn and others using the same exit.