ADAM HAYDOCK

It continues to amaze me when I look up at canyon walls and think " what if there is a nice canyon back in there". 

I don't know why others haven't ventured back into this desert region except for a group that wants to keep the canyons quiet. 

I get it.  We don't want the desert to be destroyed, we don't want people leaving trash or placing bolts in canyon drainages and we all want to do our part to be ambassadors of our lands. 

So I can see how leaving a lack of information on canyons would keep most people away. I also see the theory of inclusion.  An opportunity to enjoy even more of an activity cannoneers love, while taking new opportunities to treat the lands with respect, keeping canyon drainages clean, and practicing safe and responsible canyoneering. 

I also think there is no right answer. If human beings impact ground than, No human impact sounds like the best.  Plus these drainages are "self cleaning", to an extent. the rains come and wash away debris into the river. that is the mere design of these drainages anyway, water found weaknesses in the rock and carved its way downhill. 

WE are left with a conundrum to either hide precious places or allow humans to walk on the lands, either for scientific research, mining resources, sport recreational activity, etc...  I think the answer between hiding and allowing access is in the middle. 

The answer is in the culture. Our ethos to bolt or no to bolt are quite different than European canyons.  When comparing bolting / do not bolt practices with canyoneering or sport climbing activities, we would find an abundance of "steel rusting away on outside mountain cliffs" which is accepted.  Bolts are no accepted in canyoneering. The use of webbing and replacing webbing is accepted but not accepted as a means to provide protection for climbing routes. 

I like the idea of no bolts in canyons and practice religiously practice a no bolting policy when canyoneering.  yet, we are using and producing more webbing which does create more trash.  This particular canyon is short, most of the dry falls you can downclimb.  The first rap we ghosted to ensure nobody will find evidence of a canyoneering route. descriptions are a bit vague, and the big rap is 320 ft.  We brought a 330 and we had 10 ft on the ground.  This is one piece unknown that is not going to be experienced by following groups which might take a bit of the "fun" out of the research, ( yes did extensive research to estimate rope length and build contingencies into our plan), so you don't have to. Not everyone shares my view but now you get to experience more great canyons within this range.  You can even float go up a break and down Black Jack Canyon, float again to AZ springs and hike out in a day called "Black Jack Magic".  This info is available to instill trust into the community's present and future.  Do your part to treat these places how the first descent crews and we would like,  its up to you to turn the page towards better canyoneering practices. 

Furco canyon is a excellent starter canyon in the Spanish Pyreenes.

There are three raps up to 60 ft in lengh that drop through fun easy water and some nice scenery. 

This can also be combined with Gloces canyon for a fun day of canyoning in some great water and scenery 

Backpacking and mountaineering is a journey where the destination is the present moment to moment embodiment of the now. 

being in the alpine is a serenity that accentuates the trickle of water, the whistling wind that blows through the grass, the chirping or a marmot, and the texture of the ground below my feet. 

Why not make the story profound, full of curiosity, adventure, and discovery..

That is the story that I like to tell. 

in the Spanish Pyreenes there is a prolific section called the Carros De foc trail. 

This 35-40 mile circumnavigating loop has a concentration of beautiful lakes, mountains, and some incredible scenery. 

This region reminded me of the Sierras in a lot of ways

One of the main differences is that the carros de foc trail doesn't get higher than 8900 ft which is a lot lower than 14000

There are a few of non technical obstacles to overcome. 

One obstacle is that you can take side trails and get a bit more into route finding your way to destinations. 

If you want to cut down the trip or get to a destination before a storm there are ways around 

Another is that you want to make reservations for the refuges far in advance

camping within the national park is forbidden but if you are able to score some stays at refuges that that will be the way to go. 

you can carry a lot less and not have as much to worry about. 

there is also a high saddle that you have to scale which can be a bit dangerous with snow and ice. 

towards the end of June there was enough snow to posthole our way up the 35 degree slope. 

people were using crampons and ice axes to get their way up but we made due. 

This is such an incredible place to go but we cut the trip short due to storms and the desire to summit aneto

we had to get ready for the summit which turned into a very interesting experience.

I recommend bringing micro spikes in the June timeframe in case you have to scale up snow,  

I also recommend reserving the refuge 6 months in advance so you can bring a lot less on the hike 

Espot is an excellent launch place to start the trip but you can start and stop at many of the cities around the trail.  You can also take a bus back to your start point. 

I would bring water drops to filter water 

There is plenty of water on the hike which is a huge help. 

I can see why this region was rated one of the best hikes in Europe. Have a blast on this trail

please reach out if you have any questions on how to prepare for your trip.