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Canyonlands National Park - Utah Send us your picture and articles.
Blue John Canyon: Blue John Canyon is a slot canyon with widths as little as as 1 foot wide but hundreds of feet deep. Unfortunately this canyon was made famous by the ordeal that Aron Ralston endured in April of 2003. You probably heard of him. He was the outdoors man who was trapped in the canyon by a shifting 800 pound boulder which had pinned his right arm to the wall of the canyon, He was pinned there for six days with only a bottle of water and 2 burritos and dressed in only a t-shirt and shorts. Breaking the main rule of wilderness adventuring he did not let anyone know where he went or when to expect him to return. After being pinned he hoped that other adventurers would locate him but when the second day, a Sunday passed he new that chances of being discovered alive were slim to none. As the days wore on he attempted to chip away the rock to free his arm with a generic leatherman tool but this prove futile. It would take longer to accomplish this than his life force would last. Having run out of provisions he was forced to save his own urine to replace the moisture. His lower arm had lost feeling indicating the it had become necrotic (dead while yet attached). This caused him to consider the unthinkable -amputating his own arm. With nothing for comfort and only the ominous company of a raven, a symbol of death, he recorded his thoughts and predicament on a camcorder that he brought in with him. The raven failed to appear on the sixth day. That was the day he realized there was no saving his hand because it had began to decompose, He reached the conclusion that he would have to break the bones and severe his own arm with the blades of his now dulled combo tool. Using the blades and the pliers he managed to cut the fresh and rip loose the tendons leaving the nerve bundle to the last. Leaving his blood stains on the canyon rock wall he continued on without applying a tourniquet he had prepared in case he had to do just this. Completing this gruesome chore he fell back and only then realized that he may yet live. Winding his way through the balance of the canyon to the end of it he was forced to do a one handed repel down a 65 foot canyon wall. Once safely down he found a pond of rancid water with the raven dead at it's edge. Maybe with his death sign dead it was a sign that he may make it out to civilization alive. Drinking water that is normally considered deadly he replenished only a small part of his body fluids. Staggering on he came across a family hiking and called for help. The husband remained to help him while the wife and son ran ahead to get help. Shortly afterwards a search and rescue helicopter flew over head and transported him to the nearest hospital. He had lost 45 pounds and had come very near death. His hand was recovered, requiring 13 men and equipment to move the boulder. It was later cremated and Aron spread it's ashes in the canyon on a visit while accompanied by the camera crew of CBS. Aron Has continued to pursue his love for the radical outdoor adventures. Using his prosthetic hand and custom attachment he has been able to climb mountains and ice wall that would deter even seasoned outdoors men. Further reading get a copy of his book "Between a rock and a Hard Place" on Amazon. You can make arrangements to hike down the canyon. If you are considering doing this then by all means utilize our Hiking Tips and printable Hiking Checklist and be sure to make up or purchase a good Day Pack.
For more information on Canyoneering and other canyons follow the link. Our rating is #7= Worth the Trip See the Photo album of Natural and Scenic locations for other great photos. Some of the photos on this site were supplied by the National Parks Service. These additional photos are on the NPS's Site
See the NPS website on this location. See our article " Antelope Canyon - Arizona" for additional slot canyons. Lots of pictures. See all the National Parks in the USA |
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