The Seven Cataracts Adventure Hike: A Mountain Sliding, Canyoneering Exploration Into Willow Canyon

Arizona is an very magnificent, wildly various condition with topography ranging from small level desert landscapes, to significant mountain peaks and alpine forest ranges. A lot more than any other geologic characteristic nevertheless, Arizona is widely renowned for its a lot of wonderful and distant rock canyons, deep slot gorges, drinking water falls and swimming pools which are scattered through the condition. On the other hand, what I come across even additional remarkable, is that a lot of of these backcountry wilderness canyons can be accessed through “non-technical” canyon mountaineering routes which you should not have to have ropes and are basically inside of a one day’s journey from possibly Phoenix or Tucson. For an outstanding late summer months to early drop working day vacation and hike, if you happen to be up for more of an remarkable challenge and an amazing and scenic working day trip, then consider a mountain sliding, canyoneering climbing journey to 7 Cataracts, and discover Willow Canyon, Tucson, Arizona.

It was the Labor Day holiday and early on Sunday morning that I left Phoenix, about 6am, heading out of town on I-10 East and arrived in Tucson by 7:30am. At the Ina Road exit, I swung off the freeway and took a still left, heading east 8 miles, and fulfilled up with the TLC Mountaineering Team, led and arranged by Eric Kinneman, at the Westin La Paloma Resort and arrived by 8am. Simply because the parking was reported to be minimal at the trailhead for this hike, we carpooled it with each other and established out for the day’s hike and journey heading east on Sunrise Blvd. by 8:25am.

The beautiful drive on Dawn Blvd throughout the northern stretches of Tucson and by means of the rolling foothills of the lovely Santa Catalina mountains has often been a favourite of mine. The Santa Catalina Mountains are Tucson’s maximum mountain range reaching all the way up to 9157 feet in elevation at its incredibly major, Mount Lemmon. To get there and to attain the trailhead for our hike, we zig zagged it throughout Tucson, driving east on Dawn Blvd to Swan Highway, turned appropriate (south), to River Road, turned left (east), then a suitable on to Sabino Canyon Road, remaining onto Tanque Verde Road and headed east on Tanque Verde Road till we arrived at the Catalina Freeway, aka the “Mount Lemmon Scenic Byway”, and then turned left all over again.

It was about 4 miles or so after generating the left change onto the Catalina Highway that you enter the Coronado Countrywide Forest and start out the winding ascent up into the rugged Santa Catalina mountains. Though it can be been a extended time since I was very last there, I was nevertheless impressed at just how lovely and lovely this travel definitely is. Promptly as you head on up in elevation beginning at 3000 toes, the views are certainly spectacular with every single switchback and hairpin curve offering a new and amazing rock development or stunning canyon vista off to the distance. If you like to halt and just take a great deal of pictures, as I normally like to do, you have plenty of prospect to do so due to the fact this travel offers a amount of vista factors to appreciate along the way. Even so, at about mile marker 5, just past the Molino Canyon Ignore, there is a spend station where by you must order a $5 Coronado Countrywide Forest day use recreation move if you might be planning on halting any place further more alongside the drive. We obtained the working day use passes, a single every single per vehicle and journeyed on for a few a lot more miles until eventually we arrived at the 7 Cataracts Vista Position, just past Thimble Peak Vista and about at about mile marker 8 and about 1/3 of the way up to Mount Lemmon.

We pulled into the 7 Cataracts Vista stage, and our trailhead, parked and commenced out on our day’s mountaineering and canyoneering journey by 9am. The see seeking down into Willow Canyon beneath was certainly beautiful, but also amazingly steep way too! Right away, correct from the starting, the fall off into Willow Canyon on this “working day use” trail was powerful, to say the pretty least. Approximated to be around about a 1000-1300 ft descent straight down with a 60% grade on all unfastened grime, gravel and rocks, just about every one particular of us experienced to practically drop down to the floor on our “butts” and from area to portion, slide it on down for about a overall of a ¼ of a mile until we had created down to the base. What a web-site it was to see also, really interesting and a large amount of pleasurable! Nonetheless, this “non-official” trail, mostly utilized by skilled canyoneers, is rated really difficult, some even say treacherous or harmful, so I would not advocate doing this hike on your very own except you are an professional canyon hiker or have an seasoned canyon climbing guide with you.

The moment we experienced all safely slid our way down and arrived at the bottom and after a speedy team image, Eric began main our group on our canyoneering exploration further more down into Willow Canyon, scrambling, boulder hopping and course 3 climbing by means of partly managing h2o falls. Really magnificent and stunning landscapes all the way down far too! We continued on for about a ¼ mile where we had achieved a definitely awesome running falls and savored the opportunity to cool off, relaxation and delight in the peaceful tranquility and beauty of this distant and lesser recognised wilderness canyon. Meanwhile, Eric, alongside with many other adventurous customers, journeyed on for an additional 1/3 to ¼ mile, and right after extra scrambling, boulder hopping and course 3-4 climbing, attained a lovely 100 foot water slide and a greater swimming hole deep enough he reported that even with a bounce off a 10 foot cliff, they could not hit base! Incredible!

Just after about an hour or so split, we resolved it was time to start out building our way back. Now it was time for the most demanding element of our canyoneering adventure, building it again! So we started our trek back through Willow Canyon the similar way we came, scrambling, boulder hopping, wading via the swimming pools, then climbing it again up through the h2o slide. It only took a limited time nevertheless and within minutes we experienced all manufactured it properly again up and to the foundation of the facet of the hill we had originally “slid” down on before. It was listed here that we achieved back again up with Eric then broke up into two groups. You could choose to either make the ascent in the similar location you arrived down with the 60% grade on all free dust and gravel, the place Eric reported it was for each and every 3 measures up, a slide of just one or two back. Or my close friend Dan made the decision it appeared like if you took it up a minimal further more down to the left, you could additional simply climb it straight up the rocks and cliff and up to the major. So myself, alongside with various other customers adopted Dan’s lead and hand more than foot, we slowly and very carefully climbed it, portion by segment until finally we safely achieved it back again up to the top. Wow, for me and somebody who’s worried of heights, and not expert at rock climbing, it was complicated but a ton of pleasurable and incredible exercise far too!

The moment again at the best and at the Seven Cataracts Vista parking good deal, we waited for the last users to securely return, then by 12:15pm we acquired back into our cars to generate the rest of the way up to Mount Lemmon for lunch at the Iron Door Cafe. The sights alongside the way ended up yet again, amazing as you make your way from elevation 5000 toes on up to the Mount Lemmon Sky Valley, elevation about about 8200 ft. Though the symptoms of the devastating 2003 Aspen fireplace were being noticeable, it was however extremely attractive and the temperatures by this time of day, reduced to mid 80’s and very neat and refreshing.

However, with the 2.5 hour wait around at the cafe, because of to it currently being a weekend and also a holiday, we made a decision it was most effective to transform about and head again as an alternative.

We arrived back again in Tucson at about 2pm and soon after an great lunch at a small cafe called Renee’s Organic Oven on Tanque Verde Highway, we arrived again at the Westin La Paloma Resort by 4pm, where by those people of us who had just arrived down for the day, headed back to Phoenix from there to return home again by about 6pm.

In all, it was really an remarkable canyoneering exploration and waterfall climbing adventure with the TLC Mountaineering Group, diligently researched, effectively planned and thought through to the very last detail by Eric Kinneman himself. Really experienced it all, amazingly wonderful, enjoyable, however also pretty complicated. I feel that this hike is greatest summed up however in Eric Kinneman’s personal phrases in which he quotes, “The Seven Cataracts Waterfall Adventure Hike is an remarkable hike that I remarkably propose folks having. It will check your fears, give you an unbelievable exercise routine and get you by way of some magnificent canyons, and a 100 foot waterfall and swimming hole, rarely seen by anyone. What additional could anyone inquire for!”