Canyoneering | Conundrum Canyon
Hype:
Conundrum is an great introduction to easy Class C canyons. There is only one rappel down a waterfall. If you use the cairn anchor in the watercourse, you can mostly stay out of the main waterfall flow, but if you're rappelling from the canyon rim, the last person will get very wet. Other than the main waterfall, Conundrum Canyon also has some low stemming sections and lots of river walking. The approach and exit are short, making this a great canyon to pair with other canyons in the area for a full day.
Canyon Rating: 3C1 
Time: 1-3 hours
Length: 0.8 miles with 1.1 mile exit if no shuttle
Longest Rappel: 200 ft
Gear: Standard canyoneering gear. A wetsuit is recommended. Bring a dry bag for anything you don't want wet.
Fees: None
Recommended Ages:
 | 0-3 |
 | 4-11 |
 | 12-19 |
 | 20-49 |
 | 50-69 |
 | 70+ |
Recommended Months to Visit:
| Jan |
| Feb |
| Mar |
| Apr |
| May |
| Jun |
| Jul |
| Aug |
| Sep |
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Navigate to 38.080619, -110.702608.
If you have two vehicles, park one at 38.080148°, -110.690224° for the exit before continuing to the trailhead at 38.080619°, -110.702608°. If you're coming from Sandthrax Campground, you'll be driving on about 15 miles of dirt road. The road is in generally good condition, but a high clearance vehicle is recommended. You might be able to do all but the last quarter mile in a low clearance vehicle, but I'm not sure.
From the trailhead, walk 250 feet to a dead tree on the canyon rim just above the waterfall.
Fix your rope to the dead tree. You'll retreive your rope after you finish the canyon. Rappel down approximately 100 feet to the canyon floor above the waterfall, then use a cairn anchor as a rebelay to rappel another 40 feet to the bottom of the waterfall. Remove the rebelay for the last person down so you can retreive your rope from the top.
After rappelling down the waterfall, you can put your harness and gear away. The rest of the canyon is non-technical.
Continue down canyon, stemming occasionally, until you reach an obvious weakness in the north canyon wall.
Scramble up the north rock scree about 5 minutes to your shuttle vehicle, or continue North to the road, which will take you back to the trailhead.
By Jeremy Dye
Jeremy Dye, Tara Dye, Anthony Dye, Ondylyn Wagner, Marci Parker, Rick Maggio, Austin Mehlhoff,
Start: 4:00
End: 5:40
After doing Woody Canyon, we had some extra time to kill, so we headed over to Conundrum Canyon. Tara and Ondy had done it two weeks before and had a great time, so that's what we did. Rather than entering the canyon where the road crosses Crescent Creek near Lecleed Spring, we opted to drop into the canyon directly above the waterfall. This shaved off some creek walking and deposited us directly into the fun. We dropped into the canyon then used the cairn anchor as a rebelay. Ondy and Marci were the only two people wearing wetsuits. I rappelled down last and went right down the highest flow of the waterfall, which was quite cold. We took it easy through the canyon and enjoyed our time.
By Tara Dye
Tara Dye, Ondylyn Wagner, Michelle Christensen,
Start: 3:30
End: 6:00
Camp Sites: Butler Canyon Primitive Camping
Canyoneering: Maidenwater Canyon, Middle Fork
Fun Places: 
Hiking: 
Rappels
Downclimbs
Wading
Stemming
Fixed Anchors
Wetsuit Recommended
Non-potable Water - filterable
Waterfalls
Wayfinding
Road Access is Dirt - High Clearance
Access Road is 2WD Accessible