Canyoneering | Woody Canyon
Hype:
Woody Canyon is an extremely fun pothole canyon, especially when you do both the main fork and the pothole fork. I lost track of how many potholes there are, but I would estimate at least two dozen. Some can be bridged over, but most must be attacked directly. All but one or two can be conquered individually or with a partner assist. Only one requires a sand bag to get out of, depending on water levels.
Canyon Rating: 4B 
Time: 4-6 hours for main fork, 6-9 hours for both forks
Gear: Standard canyoneering gear, potshot or pack toss, water anchor, sand trap.
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 |
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Navigate to 37.863701, -110.578861.
The trailhead for Woody Canyon is on the shoulder of Highway 276 just north of mile marker 12, 39 miles south of Hanksville. There is a dirt road that heads west. Park here.
Head northest on a well-traveled trail until you reach the wash. This is Woodruff Canyon. Follow the wash east for about 1.5 miles until just before Woody Canyon joins Woodruff Canyon from the south. Climb south up a slickrock fin and make your way over the plethora of fins to the top of Woody Canyon. Some of the fins can be tricky to get over, but if you search around a little bit you can find a way.
Once at the top of Woody Canyon, the fun starts immediately! Put your wetsuit on here then drop into the first pothole. Over the next 500 ft, you'll encounter back-to-back potholes. I'm not going to go into a play-by-play detail of each pothole because there are too many to keep track of, but basically there are potholes of all shapes and sizes. There is lots of sliding, lowering, boosting, heaving, hauling, grunting, bridging, stemming, and smiling to be had by all. For the most part, the potholes can be conquered without the use of ropes however there are one or two drops where a meat anchor is helpful. A little past halfway through the upper pothole section is a drop that requires a rappel from a Sandtrap.
After the 500 feet of potholes, you'll reach a section that opens up a little bit. From here you have two options.
Option 1: Continue down the Main Fork of Woody Canyon.
Option 2: Exit the main fork of Woody and cross over to the Pothole Fork.
If your group is running short on time or energy, I would recommend continuing down the Main Fork. There aren't any more potholes or water if continuing down the Main Fork, so you can take your wet suit off here. However, if you have the time and energy, I would highly recommend doing the Pothole Fork. The Pothole Fork adds another 2-3 hours of amazing potholes and is worth every minute. The Pothole Fork easity doubles the number of potholes on your trip.
If you're worried about missing part of the Main Fork by doing the Pothole Fork, worry no longer. The section of Woody that you bypass doesn't have any potholes. It is a section of extremely twisty, narrow slot canyon that is easy to travel in either direction. After you do the Pothole Fork, you can easly travel up canyon to see the section you missed. This only adds about 10 minutes.
To exit the Main Fork and cross over to the Pothole Fork, you'll have to climb up the canyon wall on your right (east). There is a break in the canyon wall with a crack coming down. The crack is an excellent width for chimneying up. The climb is fairly exposed and moderately difficult. Once the first person is up, they can wedge themselves in the crack and offer a top anchor for the rest of the group. I would recommend using an ascender or Prussic or something similar for each climber rather than having the top anchor provide the belay. Once up the rim, walk east and north until you get to the top of the Pothole Fork.
Once at the top of the Pothole Fork, you're ready for Awesomeness Part 2. Work your way down canyon sliding, lowering, boosting, heaving, hauling, grunting, bridging, stemming, and smiling. This is another 500 feet of back-to-back potholes that is absolutely amazing. As with the Main Fork, most of the potholes can be tackled solor or with partner assists, but some may require a meat anchor or partner assist. A couple of the potholes were deep enough for jumping when we were there, but always send someone down first to check the depth before anyone jumps. The last two potholes will require some specialized gear. The second-to-last pothole can be tricky to get out of at certain water levels and may require a pack toss or sand bag. Then the last pothole spills over a 30-foot dryfall. This drop will require a Sandtrap if dry, a Water Anchor if partially full, or something very creative if all the way full. This rappel deposits you back into the Main Fork of Woody. From the junction of the Pothole Fork and the Main Fork, you can take a quick jaunt up the Main Fork to see the section of narrows that you missed. It's very scenic and only adds about 10 minutes to your trip.
From the junction, continue down canyon through a section of narrows until you reach the last obstacle: a 10-foot downclimb. This can be done solo, but most people will probably want a partner assist.
Follow the Woody Canyon wash north until it joins Woodruff Canyon. Turn west and wash-walk for a little less than 2 miles until you see a trail on the southwest side of the wash as the wash bends northwest. This is the trail you came in on. Follow the trail for about a quarter mile until you're back at the trailhead.
By Jeremy Dye
Jeremy Dye, Tara Dye, Anthony Dye, Ondylyn Wagner, Marci Parker, Rick Maggio, Austin Mehlhoff,
Start: 8:45
End: 2:45
Forks: Main Fork and Pothole Fork
We had a lot of fun on this trip. There was another group doing Woody Canyon the same day, so we started fairly early. Marci, Rick, and Austin were all new to canyoneering. Marci had done a couple non-technical canyons and Crumbling Canyon with us before. This was our first trip with Rick or Austin, and they were both brand new to the sport as well. It was a pretty hot day, so I only wore my wetsuit up to my waist and left the arms off. The water was cold but not overly cold. We had a blast sequencing through the potholes in the Main Fork. Anthony had recently dislocated his shoulder, so I got to do a lot of the partner assists. I did the climb out of the canyon and anchored everyone else up. Then we dropped into the Pothole Fork. The other group just did the Main Fork and passed us while we were doing the Pothole Fork. Rick got some pretty good raspberries on his arm when we was being lowered over a drop, but other than that, everyone had a great time.
On the drive home Marci was just flabbergasted. She loves to go hiking and snowshowing and kayaking and visit National Parks and is very outdoorsy, but she has always taken her family along with her. This was basically her first trip without kids and doing something extremely hard and technical, and it just rocked her world! It was very funny to see her eyes open to the possibility of adventures that are challenging for adults without kids.
Camp Sites: Butler Canyon Primitive Camping
Canyoneering: Maidenwater Canyon, Middle Fork
Fun Places: 
Hiking: 
Rappels
Downclimbs
Swimming
Wading
Stemming
Pothole Escapes - Sand Bag
Pothole Escapes - Partner Assist
Anchor Building - Sand Trap
Anchor Building - Water Anchor
Wetsuit Generally Required
No Drinking Water
Arches
Wayfinding
Road Access is Paved
Access Road is 2WD Accessible
Wildflowers and Vegitation