Canyoneering Route Description
Bulloch Canyon -
Salamander Fork - 4A(B) IV
Zion National Park, Utah.
06-22-13, 5 people, 1 Day (Travel time in route 11.25 hours)
Time Required - 10 to 12 hours
Distance - 11.6 miles Total, 3.4 miles Technical
- Technical miles include 1.5 miles down Orderville which is
mostly a walk.
Rappels - 8 Rappels, Longest Rappel 170 feet.
Elevation Range - 6745 - 4440 Feet
Shuttle Required -Yes 27.6 Miles Vehicle - Passenger
Permit Required - Yes
Optionally using a 4WD - High Clearance vehicle will get a
little over a mile farther into the approach.
Rappelling and anchor gear, Ropes and or pull cords for rappels up
to 170 feet and 80 feet of 1 inch webbing for sling placement.
While it may never happen a couple sand filled potholes have the
potential to wash out so be prepared to use a pack toss to get out
of a keeper or semi keeper IF the pothole gets the sand flushed out.
Wet Suit?
While there is minimal water in the upper canyon a wet suit is not
recommended for Salamander itself since there is only a little water
and all of it is very shallow. But bear in mind this route
drops into lower Orderville which is a wet canyon. This may
dictate if you want a wet suit or not. On hot days it may be a
good idea to leave the wet suit at home since Orderville Canyon can
be done with no wet suit when warm. On cold days A wet suit is
a good idea for lower Orderville and the narrows.
There are sections of the approach route that have no
roads, trails, cairns or other markings. You will need good map
reading and route finding skills to complete the route. Also of note there are sections with rose plants on the approach so
be prepared to deal with some sharp thorns in places.
Many of the downclimbs in Salamander Fork are over log
debris piles / walls and can be awkward. Some of these are awkward and
have loose features. You should have at least one competent
down climber in your group to assist with these drops if needed.
Salamander Fork is the right / east fork of Bulloch
Canyon. Some of the alternate names for the Right Fork of
Bulloch Canyon are East Fork of Bulloch Canyon, The Angry Inch and A Half,
Salamander Fork and Snake Canyon. To reduce naming confusion I settled
on listing this as Bulloch Canyon - Salamander Fork. Snake may be confused with Snake
Alley. Some of the waypoint names I use for points in this area use
the word Bulloch, so using a unique name like Salamander Fork helps reduce
confusion while using my maps. All the names refer to the same place
so pick one you like.
Rating Note:
Overall Salamander Fork should be rated a 3 on technical difficulty.
However two things motivated me to rate this a 4. There are multiple
anchors in this canyon that can wash away and if they do new anchors will
need to be built. Rap 6 drops into a pothole that was sand filled on
my first visit to the canyon but has the potential to be a semi keeper
flooding were to wash out the sand. Rap 7 drops is two stages where
the first stage drops into a large sand filled pothole that could be a
keeper if scoured out from flooding. With that in mind anyone
descending Salamander Fork should be capable of confident new anchors and be
ok with the possibility of a surprise semi keeper to deal with.
Salamander Fork is mostly dry but does have a little
water so it may be considered an A or a B for the water content rating.
Rap 1 appears to have a spring / seep somewhere nearby which provides a
little bit of flowing water for rap 1. The flow is minor but you may
get splashed a little while on rap 1. There is also a pool at the
bottom of the first stage of rap 1 that may have waist deep water as well.
With a little effort it is possible to stem over the pool on rap 1.
There are a couple ankle deep spots to walk between raps 1 and 2 and there
is a waist deep pool at the bottom of rap 2. Shortly after rap 2 the
water disappears into the ground leaving a dry canyon ahead. A couple
of the potholes near the end of Salamander Fork have the potential to hold a
little water but should be dry most of the time.
Salamander exits into Orderville which is a wet canyon.
To get to the Trailhead
From the East Gate of Zion National Park, travel 2.4 miles east
on highway 9 to the turn for North Fork (wEngDP-01). Turn Left (north)
toward North Fork.
Drive 5.3 miles on the paved North Fork Road to the
turn for the Ponderosa Ranch. The pavement ends (wBirchHlwDP-01) a few hundred
feet past the turn for the Ponderosa Ranch.
From the turn off for the Ponderosa Ranch continue on the North
Fork Road for 3.1 miles to a large turn
out on the left (west) side of the road which is the trailhead
for Birch Hollow (tBirchHollow).
From the turn off to Birch Hallow continue on the North Fork
road for 3 miles to a turn off (extOrderville) on the left
(west) for the Upper Orderville Trailhead.
From the turn off to the Upper Orderville Trailhead continue on
the North Fork Road for 1.6 miles to a turn off (extCotageWoods)
on the right (east) that goes up to a community called Cottages
in the Woods.
From the turn off to Cottages in the Woods continue on the North
Fork Road for 0.9 miles to a turn off (pkBulloch1) on the left
with a brown road marker signed as 90 and 92. If you are
driving a passenger vehicle and do not have high clearance or
4WD find a place to park here to start the approach toward
Bulloch Canyon.
Note:
The North Fork road is dirt and usually in good enough condition
for a standard passenger car to travel unless muddy from recent
rains. So passenger cars will normally be able to get to
this point. Turning off of the North Fork Road here to go
toward the Bulloch Canyon approach starts down a road that gets
significantly rougher and is not suggested for passenger
vehicles. High clearance 4WD vehicles are suggested past
this point. Driving in past this point will get you a
little over 1 mile farther.
If you are using a 4WD high clearance you can drive a little
over a mile into the approach to another turn off to park at
(pkBulloch2). See approach description for details.
Warning:
The dirt portion of the North Fork Road can become impassable with rain.
The road has a lot of clay content and becomes very slick with just a little
rain. Even 4WD vehicles quickly become useless. If there is a
high likelihood of rain, consider opting out of this route that day.
Afternoon showers at some times of the year can create an impassable road in
a very short time. We got stuck overnight only 0.5 miles from pavement
(4WD vehicles included).
To leave the Exit Vehicle / Escape Pod
Leave an exit vehicle at the Zion Visitor center. After the
route take the Zion shuttle back to the visitor center to pick
up the vehicle. Then drive up to retrieve the entry vehicle.
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 approach segment 1.
Map of the approach segment 2.
Map of the technical section.
Map of the exit out the narrows.
The Approach:
From turn off (pkBulloch1) of the North Fork Road for the approach
for Bulloch Canyon walk southwest on the road marked as 90 and 92.
About 600 feet from the North Fork Road will be a fork in the road
(wBullochRP-01). Stay left and the fork.
About 550 feet farther will be a road (wBullochRP-02) joining in
from the right (north) that can easily be over looked due to the
angle of approach.
About 0.9 miles farther is another fork in the road (pkBulloch2).
This fork is about 1.2 miles after leaving the North Fork Road.
When walking in on the approach for Bulloch Canyon turn right
(north) at this fork.
Note:
If you have high clearance and 4WD this is where you can park to
begin the route. Driving farther is possible but the road
quickly deteriorates and is not recommended.
About 600 feet down this road you may notice a faint road joining in
from the left(south). Continue past the faint road and stay on
the more obvious road continuing west). As you continue the
condition of the road quickly deteriorates in spots making short
sections of the road harder to follow but over all the road is easy
to follow.
About 1.1 miles down farther the road goes sharply around a corner to the left
(jDakotaHill) and begins to drop south down toward
Walker Gulch. A game trail leaves the road here and
continues west up a ridge from here toward Dakota Hill.
To follow the Dakota Hill
ridge toward Bulloch,
Eastern Son or Checkerboard
Canyons, leave the road here
and start up the trail to
the west toward Dakota Hill.
Note:
To
follow the road over toward
Walker Gulch, Esplin Gulch
or Squeeze Play, stay on the
road and continue down to
the south.
About 100 feet up the
trail (DakotaRdgRP01)
is a point where a minor
ridge joins the the main
Dakota Ridge. The minor
ridge drops down to the
south. Continue west up
Dakota Ridge.
There is vegetation to
push through in places
as you travel this part
of Dakota Ridge but not
too thick to make
travel a hassle.
It does get in the way
of what you can see at
times so you may find
your self trying to see
which way the ridge
goes.
Continue northwest
following the ridge for
about 0.25 miles to high
point on the ridge
(DakotaRdgRP02).
From the high point
(DakotaRdgRP02) the
ridge turns left and
begins to go up to the
southwest.
Note:
The Deadeye Dick
drainage is visible to
the north. It is
possible to drop down
into Deadeye Dick from
the saddle near here but
not the best option.
To continue toward
Dakota Hill veer left
and follow the ridge to
the southwest where it
is mostly rolling up and
down. Travel about
0.25 miles to the top
out on Dakota Hill (pDakotaHill).
From the top out on
Dakota Hill continue
southwest along the
ridge as it gently
slopes downward.
About 500 feet from the
peak the ridge starts to
drop off rapidly (jSalamander1).
From this point notice
two ridges running down
from here; one to the
west and the other to
the south. To go
to Salamander Fork of
Bulloch Canyon drop down
southwest between the
two ridges. Start
by dropping down toward
the ridge running south
for about 250 feet down
to a small saddle
(SalamnderApr1)
Note:
If your route is to go
to Eastern Sun,
Checkerboard Canyon or
the Paper Bag Fork of
Bulloch Canyon you would veer
right and follow down
the ridge running west.
From the this small
saddle (SalamnderApr1) is where you
leave the ridge and drop
down the slope to the
southwest. As you
drop down the slope a
minor drainage begins to
form which makes travel
easier if you follow it.
About 800 feet down from
the saddle the minor
drainage will get to
small meadow like
clearing
(SalamnderApr2).
There is a small ankle
high fence on the south
side of this clearing
that you may not notice.
From this small clearing
continue west pushing
through thick vegetation
for the first 300 feet
or so. As the
thick vegetation clears
you will be greeted with
some wide open spaces
and grasses.
Continue west about 0.3
miles to the head of a drainage
(SalamnderApr3). This is one of the upper forks of Esplin Gulch.
Note:
There is a faint road heading south from here. This route
continues west where there is no road or trail.
Continue west by crossing the head of the drainage and route find your way
west toward a subtle saddle on the horizon a little over 0.5 miles
away.
About 0.3 miles farther almost due west is the Zion National Park
boundary (wZionBndyEspil). The way point marked here is a
small tree with a sign nailed to it noting the park boundary.
Depending on your chosen path up to the saddle you may or may not
find this sign.
About 900 feet west at a bearing of 285 from the park
boundary sign tree, is a barbed wire fence to cross over
(jSalamander2). This barbed wire fence is on the saddle you
have been visually aiming for.
After crossing the fence, route find your way about 550 feet
southwest down to a large wide open meadow area on a huge saddle
(wSalamander-01).
From the saddle go southwest about 400 feet toward a drainage
beginning to form (wSalamander-02). This drainage is one of
the upper forks of Salamander. Do not drop into the drainage
yet. Instead route find your way southwest following the side
of the drainage.
About 0.2 miles along the drainage will be a point where dense
vegetation starts to form as the drainage begins to drop more
steeply (wSalamander-03). From here cross over to the RDC
(west) side of the drainage and follow southwest along a wide mostly
flat ridge through a section of burned trees.
About 0.3 miles farther the ridge will start to drop more steeply
(wSalamander-04).
Continue southwest down the steep slope about 0.3 miles down into
the main drainage of Salamander Fork (wSalamander-05). The
point where you get down into the Salamander drainage is where a few
forks come together.
Continue south down Salamander Fork about 0.2 miles to where thick
vegetation begins to form (wSalamander-06) due to a spring / seep in
the area. The thick vegetation continues for about 600 feet.
Travel in the wash would be difficult and wet so bypassing this
section on the side makes travel easier. This thick vegetation
section is also where another fork joins in from the RDC (west)
side.
Note:
We found it easiest to stay up out of the drainage on the RDC (west)
side for about 200 feet then crossed over to the LDC (east) side up
to a shelf to bypass the rest of the vegetation before dropping back
down into the canyon. This may not be the best route but is
the one we found. You may find a better one.
After bypassing the
thick vegetation
continue down the wash
about 200 feet to a drop
of about 35 feet (ySalamanderTp).
This marks the start of
the technical section
for Salamander Fork.
The Canyoneering / Technical Section:
The 35 foot drop
at the start of the
technical section (ySalamanderTp)
can be easily bypassed
on the LDC (east) side
by dropping down a steep
slope / chute.
About 70 feet down
canyon is the start of a
deep slot with log and
rock debris to downclimb
into the slot about 20
feet. As you get
to the floor of the slot
after downclimbing on
the logs there is a big
drop about 10 feet away
which is rap 1.
Rap 1 (dSalamandR1) is
anchored from a pinch
point between two
boulders on the RDC side
and drops about 170 feet
over 2 stages. At
the bottom of stage 1 is
a pool that may be up to
waist deep if full.
The pool can be stemmed
over with a little
effort.
After rap 1 is stem
style downclimb of about
8 feet. Shortly
after is another stem
style downclimb of about
20 feet down a narrow
slot with slippery walls
making the downclimb a
little difficult.
At the top of the 20
foot downclimb is an old
single star drive bolted
anchor on the RDC side.
Then a short narrow
section to walk over to
the top of rap 2 that
may have ankle deep
water still flowing from
the spring / seep above.
Rap 2 (dSalamandR2) is
about 150 feet down
canyon of rap 1 and
anchored from a log
protruding from the
canyon floor and drops
about 90 feet down a
slightly sloped slot.
If the log at the top of
rap 2 were to wash away
you will need to get
creative when building a
new anchor.
When you get to the
bottom of rap 2 take
time to look way up on
the RDC side to see a
huge alcove worth the
look over for scenery.
Down canyon from rap 2
is easy walking in a
wide canyon with lots of
trees.
Shortly after rap 2 the
canyon is more like a
wash / ravine with lots
of boulder debris, log
debris, lots of
vegetation and multiple
short easy downclimbs
for about 1 mile before
reaching the top of rap
3 where the canyon
begins to slot up again.
As you travel the 1 mile
down to rap 3 there are
multiple side ravines
joining in form both
sides.
Just before rap 3 is a
10 to 12 foot downclimb
that is a little sketchy
as you climb down a log
debris wall.
Rap 3 (dSalamandR3) is
anchored RDC from a tree
up out of the wash about
15 feet and drops about
15 feet over some
boulders. Below
rap 3 the canyon begins
to slot up again and no
longer has the wash /
ravine feel.
It is about 500 feet
down canyon to rap 4
with a few short
downclimbs over log
debris piles along the
way.
Rap 4 (dSalamandR4)
anchored from a knot
chalk on the RDC side
about 15 feet back and
about head high and
drops about 10 feet with
an awkward overhang
start. Lots of
other options for
anchors if you prefer a
different anchor.
After rap 4 are a
multiple minor
downclimbs of 4 to 10
feet over the next 0.2
miles before getting to
a corridor about 100
feet long
(wSalamander-07) that is
between a side ravine
joining in from LDC then
a side ravine joining in
from RDC.
Continuing down are more
minor downclimbs of 4 to
10 feet for the next 0.2
miles before reaching a
downclimb of about 15
feet down a fluted wall.
A little over 100 feet
farther down canyon is a
cross joint
(wSalamander-08)
crossing the canyon with
narrow slots running up
out of the canyon on
both sides. From
this cross joint there
is about 0.25 miles of
canyon to the confluence
of right and left forks
of Bulloch Canyon.
Shortly down canyon of
the cross joint is a
drop of about 15 feet
down a crack on the RDC
side. The drop can
be downclimbed rather
easily but looks more
difficult than it is.
This is a good spot for
one of your better
downclimbers to set a
meat anchor for everyone
and downclimb last.
After the crack
downclimb the canyon has
some beautiful twisted
and sculpted walls to
look at as you continue
down the winding canyon
with a lot of easy
downclimbs of 5 to 10
feet.
A few hundred feet down
canyon after the crack
downclimb is a downclimb
of only 8 feet but will
require a partner assist
to get down since it is
severely undercut.
If you prefer to rappel
rather than partner
assist the downclimb you
can use one of the logs
at the top as an anchor.
About 200 feet down
canyon of the partner
assist drop is rap 5.
Rap 5 (dSalamandR5-6) is
anchored from a log
protruding from the
ground and drops about
15 feet and starts over
an overhanging section.
Rap 6 is about 60 feet
down canyon of rap 5 and
is anchored from a log
laying across the wash.
If the log were to wash
away there are multiple
anchor options using
nearby debris or knot
chalk or choke stone
anchors a few feet back
on the LDC side.
Rap 6 drops about 15
feet down into a pothole
that was sand filled on
our first visit to the
canyon and would be
about chest deep if
full. If mother
nature were to scour
this sand out the
pothole could become a
semi keeper requiring a
pack toss to get out of.
A short walk through a
narrow section gets you
to rap 7.
Rap 7 (dSalamandR7-8) is
anchored from a cairn
anchor about 10 feet
back and drops about 95
feet over 2 stages.
The first stage drops
down into a large
pothole that was sand
filled on my first visit
but could become a
keeper if scoured out by
flooding. The top
of the second stage of
rap 7 (exiting the
pothole) has another old
star drive bolted
anchor. The bolted
anchor is old and may
not be trustworthy.
Rap 8 is close to the
bottom of rap 7 and is
anchored from big logs
and drops about 25 feet.
At the bottom of rap 8
you are at the end of
the Salamander Fork
(Right Fork of Bulloch
Canyon). If you
were hiking this area
you would likely pass by
this confluence and
never even see the
Salamander Fork
(ySalamanderBt) joining
in.
The Exit:
Once at
the bottom of rap 8 and
in the wide open main
drainage of Bulloch
Canyon (ySalamanderBt)
turn left and walk south
down Bulloch about 950
feet to the end of
Bulloch Canyon where it
dumps into Orderville
Canyon ( yBullochBt).
Once in Orderville
canyon turn right and
start west down
Orderville Canyon.
About 0.6 miles down canyon is Orderville Rap 2.
Rap 2 in Orderville has a huge (house sized) choke stone overhead
that has a tree and bushes growing on it known as The Guillotine. The rappel drops about 12
feet to a pool below and is anchored from 2 bolted hangers LDC.
This is one of my favorite rappels when the canyon is such that
water is flowing over the rappel (which isn't always the case). It is short but has very high
wow factor with the huge rock over head and the pool below. It is
just very pretty.
Down canyon from rap 2 in Orderville the canyon has more and more
water. The further down canyon you go the more the water is
flowing. This is some of the best scenery in Orderville. There are
also more down climbs. One of the down climbs drops into a pool
that requires about a 30 foot swim.
About 1 mile below Orderville rap 2 is the junction with the Zion
Narrows.
From the Narrows junction turn left (south) and travel 1.4 miles
down the narrows to the steps leading to the sidewalk. Follow the
sidewalk another 1 mile to the Temple of Sinawava Shuttle stop.
From there it is a shuttle ride back to the visitor center.
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........
| Salamander Fork (1) - Drivfe in to Trailhead |
- wEngDP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.23934
W -112.83230
Elev: NaN Feet
Turn to the North Fork off Highway 9.
- wEngDP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.27285
W -112.87304
Elev: NaN Feet
Exit to the Ponderosa Ranch. If going to Englestead turn left, to the Ponderosa Ranch. If continuing up the North Fork road stay straight.
- wBirchHlwDP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.27620
W -112.87358
Elev: NaN Feet
Paved road turns to Dirt road.
- wBirchHlwDP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.30654
W -112.86085
Elev: NaN Feet
Dirt road / ATV trail leaves main road. Follow this to start an alternate route into Birch Hollow.
- tBirchHollow
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.30973
W -112.85655
Elev: 6,740 Feet
Trailhead for Birch Hollow. It is a very large turn out on the west side of the road.
- extOrderville
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33710
W -112.83050
Elev: NaN Feet
Turn off for Orderville from the North Fork road. 11.4 miles from highway 9.
- extCotageWoods
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35044
W -112.83240
Elev: NaN Feet
Turn off of the North Fork Road to go to Cattages in the Woods community.
- pkBulloch1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35896
W -112.84125
Elev: 6,745 Feet
Turn off of the North Fork Road on the left as the main road makes a sharp right hand bend. Road sign post labeled as 90 and 92.
|
| Salamander Fork (2) - Approach |
- pkBulloch1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35896
W -112.84125
Elev: 6,745 Feet
Turn off of the North Fork Road on the left as the main road makes a sharp right hand bend. Road sign post labeled as 90 and 92.
- wBullochRP-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35865
W -112.84336
Elev: NaN Feet
Fork in the road. Stay left on the main road to continue on the approach to Bulloch Canyon.
- wBullochRP-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35784
W -112.84508
Elev: NaN Feet
Road joins in on the north side of the road and is easily overlooked on the route into Bulloch due to teh angle of approach of the side road.
- pkBulloch2
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35226
W -112.85921
Elev: 6,640 Feet
Fork in the road on the approach to Bulloch Canyon. Turn right (west) at this fork.
Optionally you can park here if you have high clearance and 4WD to drive in this far.
- jDakotaHill
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35313
W -112.87547
Elev: NaN Feet
The road goes sharply around a corner to the left and begins to drop south down toward Walker Gulch. A game trail leaves the road here and continues west up a ridge from here toward Dakota Hill.
To follow the Dakota Hill ridge toward Bulloch, Eastern Son or Checkerboard Canyons, leave the road here and start up the trail to the west toward Dakota Hill.
To follow the road over toward Walker Gulch, Esplin Gulch or Squeeze Play, stay on the road and continue down to the south.
- DakotaRdgRP01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35374
W -112.87820
Elev: 6,400 Feet
A point where a minor ridge joins the the main Dakota Ridge. The minor ridge drops down to the south. Continue west up Dakota Ridge.
- DakotaRdgRP02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35558
W -112.88237
Elev: 6,500 Feet
High point on the ridge where the ridge makes a turn and begins to head up to the southwest. The Deadeye Dick drainage is visible to the north. It is possible to drop down into Deadeye Dick from the saddle near here but not the best option.
- pDakotaHill
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35354
W -112.88593
Elev: 6,640 Feet
Ridge tops out here on Dakota Hill.
- jSalamander
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35276
W -112.88736
Elev: NaN Feet
- SalamnderApr1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35210
W -112.88738
Elev: NaN Feet
Small saddle where you leave the ridge and drop down the slope to the southwest. As you drop down the slope a minor drainage begins to form which makes travel easier if you follow it.
- SalamnderApr2
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.35104
W -112.88969
Elev: NaN Feet
Small meadow like clearing. There is an ankle high fence on the south side of this clearing you may not notice. Continue west pushing through thick vegetation for the first 300 feet or so.
- SalamnderApr3
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34969
W -112.89587
Elev: 6,290 Feet
Road goes around the head of a drainge and ends. The drainge is one of the upper forks of Esplin Gulch. From here continue west crossing over the drainage and route find your way west toward a subtle saddle on the horizon a little over 0.5 miles away.
- wZionBndyEspil
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34933
W -112.90108
Elev: 6,355 Feet
Tree with a park boundary sign nialed to it. This is close to one of the minor upper forks of Esplin Gulch.
- wBullochRP-19
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34987
W -112.90399
Elev: NaN Feet
- wSalamander-01
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34903
W -112.90571
Elev: NaN Feet
Big Meadow area on a wide open large saddle. To go toward the Right Fork of Bulloch continue southwest toward a drainage froming which is one of the upper forks of the right fork of Bulloch.
- wSalamander-02
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34857
W -112.90694
Elev: 6,443 Feet
The drainage that begins to fom here is one of the upper forks of Salamander Fork.
- wSalamander-03
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34615
W -112.90871
Elev: 6,420 Feet
The drainage begins to drop more steeply and has a lot of thick vegetation forming. Cross over to the RDC (west) side of the drainage and continue southwest on the wide mostly flat ridge through a section of burned trees.
- wSalamander-04
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.34322
W -112.91296
Elev: NaN Feet
The ridge begins to drop more steeply down into Salamander Fork.
- wSalamander-05
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33981
W -112.91676
Elev: 6,175 Feet
Route down off the ridge drops into the Salamander drainage here where a few forks come together.
- wSalamander-06
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33717
W -112.91838
Elev: NaN Feet
Dense vegetation begins to form and goes for about 600 feet. We found it better to travel up out of the wash on the RDC side for about 200 feet before crossing over to the LDC (east) side and up on a shelf to bypass the dense vegetation.
- ySalamanderTp
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33497
W -112.91889
Elev: 6,070 Feet
Top of Salamander Fork. There is a 35 foot drop here that can be bypassed on the LDC side down a steep slope / chute.
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| Salamander Fork (3) - The Canyon |
- ySalamanderTp
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33497
W -112.91889
Elev: 6,070 Feet
Top of Salamander Fork. There is a 35 foot drop here that can be bypassed on the LDC side down a steep slope / chute.
- dSalamandR1
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33464
W -112.91881
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 1 - Salamander Fork. Anchored from a pinch point on the RDC side and drops about 170 feet down two stages with a possible waist deep pool mid rappel.
- dSalamandR2
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.33409
W -112.91874
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 2 - Salamander Fork. Anchored from a log prtruding from the canyon floor and drops about 90 feet down a slightly sloped slot. Be prepared for a little creative anchor building if the log washes out.
- dSalamandR3
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.32021
W -112.92013
Elev: 5,500 Feet
Rap 3 - Salamander Fork. Anchored from a tree about 15 feet overhead up out of the wash and drops about 15 feet over boulder some boulders. This is also where the canyon begins to slot up again.
- dSalamandR4
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31948
W -112.92158
Elev: NaN Feet
Rap 4 - Salamander Fork. Anchored from a knot chalk about 15 feet back about head high and drops about 10 feet with an awkward overhang. Lots of other anchor options if you prefer another.
- wSalamander-07
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31751
W -112.92405
Elev: NaN Feet
Corridor about 100 feet long (wSalamander-07) that is between a side ravine joining in from LDC then a side ravine joining in from RDC.
- wSalamander-08
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31535
W -112.92645
Elev: NaN Feet
Cross joint crossing the canyon with narrow slots running up out of the canyon on both sides. This is a little over 100 feet down canyon of a 15 foot downclimb down a fluted wall.
- dSalamandR5-6
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31449
W -112.92789
Elev: NaN Feet
Raps 5 and 6 - Salamander Canyon.
Rap 5 anchored from log protruding from ground and drops about 15 feet and starts over an overhanging section.
Rap 6 is about 60 feet down canyon of rap 5 and is anchored from a log laying across the wash and drops about 15 feet to a sand filled pothole that could turn to a semi keeper if scoured out. If the log were to wash away there are multiple anchor options using nearby debris or knot chalk or choke stone anchors a few feet back on the LDC side.
- dSalamandR7-8
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31465
W -112.92862
Elev: NaN Feet
Raps 7 and 8 - Salamander Canyon.
Rap 7 anchored from a cairn anchor about 10 feet back and drops about 95 feet over 2 stages. The first stage drops down into a large pothole that was sand filled on my first visit but could become a keeper if scoured out by flooding. The top of the second stage of rap 7 (exiting the pothole) has another old star drive bolted anchor. The bolted anchor is old and may not be trustworthy.
Rap 8 is close to the bottom of rap 7 and is anchored from big logs and drops about 25 feet. At the bottom of rap 8 you are at the end of the Salamander Fork.
- ySalamanderBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31460
W -112.92923
Elev: 4,900 Feet
Bottom of the Salamander Fork where it meets the left fork of Bulloch Canyon. Salamander Fork is the Right Fork of Bulloch. It is a short walk south down canyon to the confluence with Orderville Canyon.
- yBullochBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31207
W -112.92866
Elev: NaN Feet
Intermittent Stream
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| Salamander Fork (4) - Exit down Orderville and Narrows |
- yBullochBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31207
W -112.92866
Elev: NaN Feet
Intermittent Stream
- dOrderVileR2
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.31167
W -112.93784
Elev: 4,820 Feet
Rap 2 in Orderville Canyon.
Drops about12 feet anchored from 2 bolt and hangars LDC. The pool has a waterfall. There is a huge boulder overhead with tree growing on top. One of my favorite rappels.
This is sometimes called the Guillotine due to the huge boulder chock stone over head.
- yOrdervilleBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.30803
W -112.94661
Elev: 4,670 Feet
Bottom exit of Orderville Canyon.
Junction where Orderville Canyon meets the narrows in the North Fork of the Virgin River. Zion Ntl. Park
- yMysteryBt
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.29928
W -112.94447
Elev: 4,560 Feet
Bottom exit of Mystery Canyon where it meets the Virgin River Narrows after the 120 foot Rap 11.
- jRiverWalkEnd
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.29672
W -112.94818
Elev: 4,560 Feet
This is where the river walk side walk meets the river in The Narrows.
- tNarrowsBot
Lat/Lon (WGS84): N 37.28535
W -112.94785
Elev: 4,440 Feet
Bottom trailhead for the Virgin River Narrows at the Temple of Sinawava.
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