Purgatory Canyon
Right (South) Fork

3A IV or 4A IV

Rick Kent
Mike Cressman

First Descent

03/22/2008

Mike and I did another fine DV canyon on Saturday � this time the right fork of the next canyon north of Bad Canyon.  Another first descent and it was almost as tiring as the weekend before.  Fortunately we got out in time to get dinner at the steakhouse (we were highly motivated).  We did at least 17 rappels and like the other canyons in the area there was plenty of downclimbing and some anchor building issues.  Overall this canyon wasn�t quite as good as the one the weekend before but it�s still a 3 star canyon.  I�d rank it similar to Hades.  With anchor building it took us a little under 14 hours.  This time we started before sunrise and finished up about an hour after dark.  Anchors were a little easier to construct this time due to better luck with existing chockstones, wedged rocks, etc.  We also got lucky that a lot of rappels could be bypassed.  Even so we still racked up a pretty good number.  One of the more entertaining (though short and easy) rappels was through a small natural bridge.  There were also a few interesting narrow sections of canyon.  Again we used over 200 feet of webbing and about 16 rings/links.  Only 2 anchors were redundant.  That means these first descents are costing us $100 to $150 to gain the distinction of being first.

I counted 4 confluences which is what I expected.  The left fork drops in fairly low with 6 rappels till the end of the canyon.  The middle fork drops in higher (with 12 raps in the lower part of the canyon) and looks like it may be a little tricky due to obstacles (bushes, outcrops, etc.) in the rappel path.  We�ll eventually have to explore these other forks.  My gut feeling is that they may be more challenging.  The nice thing is that we�ll be able to use our existing anchors in the lower part of the canyon so once we hit the main canyon we know it�s smooth sailing.

I was going to do Pyramid Peak on Sunday but couldn�t quite muster the necessary will or strength so I just played tourist.  Finally got around to doing the little boardwalk hike thru Salt Creek.  Those little pup fish look just like what Mike was eating on Saturday.

Rappels: 18
Max Rap: 185'?
Time: 14 hours (12 with existing anchors?)
Min Ropes: One 200 ft rope + 200 ft pull cord or two 200 ft ropes
Ropes Recommended: Three or Four 200 ft ropes or Three 200 ft ropes + 200 ft pull cord
Webbing: 250 ft
Elev Gain:
Elev Loss:
Distance:
Hazards: sharp rocks

as usual, lots of downclimbs
some anchor challenges but not as bad as Erebus

Approach

A: From Dantes, following ridge down to 4250', then drop down
B: From Dantes, drop down from peak 4870'
C: No car shuttle, hike up south ridge 2.5mi from below to 4045' (4200' gain), then 3+ mi down the canyon back to car

Log

06:21a - Dantes View parking lot
08:10p - Badwater Road

Notes