Laguna Canyon
ACA Canyon
Rating – 3A III
NEVER ENTER ANY
SLOT CANYON WHEN HEAVY RAIN IS IN THE FORECAST…!!!
Laguna Canyon is a very short, steep
dropping slot canyon that often flows with water during snow melt season- April
and sometimes into May
Below is the 200’ high Laguna Falls
-and as seen from a distance-
...around the corner upstream from this 200’
lower tier of Laguna Falls is an “un-seen” upper tier 100’ high. Sorry we do not have a photo of this 100’
upper tier.
The photo below is from the upper
beginnings of this rugged defile…
beta facts:
name- Laguna Canyon
depth of slot portion- 300 feet or so
length of slot canyon portion- quite short
– maybe only one hundred yards
elevation- 7500’ at the top down to 7000’
at the bottom
GPS coordinates- ±36°21.210’N 106°43.206’W
flow- intermittent
season to visit- drier months of the year,
like May, June, September, October and November… NEVER ENTER ANY SLOT CANYON WHEN HEAVY RAIN IS IN THE
FORCAST…!!!
accommodations- NONE –Chama Canyon
Wilderness Area
ownership- Santa Fe National Forest
access- is from above on Forest Road #8
and/or #11… see the map below
nearest town- Gallina
is about 12 miles south of here
fun fact- Laguna Canyon is a tuff one…
be ready for rappels of 100 and 200 feet… as well as knowing the hike-out below
is an extreme tangle.
essay bro
Laguna Canyon is a tuff one… be ready for rappels of 100 and 200
feet -as
one 300’ rappel… as
well as knowing the hike-out below is an extreme difficult tangle, therefore
you may choose ascend your rappels…!!! There are no anchors for the
lower rappel of 200’. Therefore
we use one single 200’ rope for the 100’ rappel. The flat between the 2 waterfalls is maybe
100’ or more feet long. Therefore, the
extra length of rope is needed. Anchors
are not good here so we tie a single 300’ rope onto our 200’ rope which is
anchored up above the upper 100’ high waterfall… (sometimes dry)
After
rappelling down, we ascend back up our ropes, pull our anchors and return up to
our wheels on Forest Road 11. There is one
20’ rappel upstream from the high rappel explained above.
UNLESS you wish to book a cabin or a campout at the BEAUTIFUL
private ranch in the canyon below…
-and
hike up to see the falls during April and canyon from below
Gallina Canyon Ranch
…is
Amazing…!!!
Click this
link: http://gallinacanyonranch.com/
Forest Road 474, Abiquiu, NM 87510
(505) 490-3333
Gallina Canyon Ranch a great way to visit and enjoy
these amazing “slot canyons” of the Chama Canyon Wilderness. Several amazing slot canyons are easy to
visit with normal hiking from here. In
fact, vacationing at Gallina Canyon Ranch will put
you in the heart of slot canyon country...!!! ...AND- you will be in a
great position to visit some of the best parts of some of the best slot canyons
in New Mexico, without technical rock climbing and repelling equipment or even
having much canyoneering experience. Gallina Canyon Ranch is truly
amazing and is the only easy hiking access to this western portion of the Chama
Canyon Wilderness.
Click this link to see a larger map of this
entire area: http://www.dougscottart.com/hobbies/SlotCanyons/Gallina.htm
Enhanced USGS topo map by Doug Scott
The thin Red Lines depict
sections of “slot canyons” or “box canyons” and the thicker Red Lines show the boundries of Chama River Canyon
Wilderness Area
_____________one mile____________
Back to New Mexico
Slot Canyons
Send questions and comments to dscott@themarblesculptor.com